Conserving Water at Home: Everyone can conserve water at home!

In the kitchen

• Use less water for cleaner dishes. While dishwashers are more efficient water users than washing dishes by hand with running water. Remember to run the dishwasher ONLY when full to save on your electric and water bills.
• Scrape dishes instead of rinsing them off.
• Equip kitchen faucets with aerators to reduce volume and increase pressure.
• Keep a pitcher of water in the fridge instead of running the tap until it is cold.

Less water for your loads of laundry

• Get your clothes cleaner with less water & energy. Only wash full loads of laundry.
• Invest in a front-load washing machine. Frontloaders use 40-75% less water & 30-85% less energy AND reduces the wear and tear on your clothes.
• Use low setting in clothes washer for small loads. The permanent press cycle uses more water than the regular cycle.
  

In the bathroom

• Turn the faucet off when brushing your teeth. Fill a cup with water to rinse.
• Get clean with low-flow showerheads. Keep your water pressure, but reduce the amount of water with a water-smart showerhead with flow restrictors that reduce water flow without changing the water pressure of your shower.
• Is your toilet running? Use a dye test to catch it! To see if your toilet is losing water just drop a bit of food dye into the toilet tank and if the water in the bowl is dyed then you need to call a plumber.
• Upgrade your toilet to a water saver. A toilet installed before 1985 may use unnecessary volumes of water (4-7 gallons) with each flush. Replace old toilets, with newer 1.5-gallon models. On average 5 gallons are used every time an old toilet is flushed.

Clean Car, Clean Water

• Go to the Car Wash! Car washes typically use water more efficiently than washing your car at home. Choose a car washe that is connected to a sanitary sewer and/or recycles their water to ensure that water is reused and properly treated before released to the environment.
• Wash vehicles on unpaved surfaces. Protect water quality and promote groundwater recharge by allowing water to soak into the ground instead of becomming polluted run-off, potentially contaminating lakes and streams. If you have a well, wash your car at least 100 feet from the well head to avoid contamination.
• Wash vehicles with a bucket. Using a bucket limits the amount of water you use. To protect water quality, use soap or non-toxic and biodegradable products. Do NOT use anything that is labeled poisonous, harmful, or dangerous.
• Rinse with a hose equipped with an automatic shutoff nozzle. A standard garden hose uses about 10 gallons per minute, which equals 100 gallons for a 10-minute wash. Shutoff nozzles prevent continuous water flow, and power washers save even more because they only use between 2 and 5 gallons per minute.
  

Updated by seckel 3/25/10