25 Ways To Prevent Water Waste… …In the Bathroom Check your toilet for leaks. Put a little food coloring in your toilet tank. If, without flushing, the color begins to appear in the bowl, you have a leak that should be repaired immediately. Remember, your toilet is not your trash can. Every time you flush a cigarette, facial tissue, or other small bits of trash, you waste five to seven gallons of water. So don’t be wasteful—use your wastebasket. Put plastic bottles filled with sand and water in your tank to conserve water. To cut down on water waste, put up to two inches of sand or pebbles inside each of two plastic bottles to weigh them down. Fill them with water and put them in your toilet tank, safely away from operating mechanisms. The bottles may displace water and save you ten or more gallons of water a day. Speed up your showers. Long, hot showers can waste five to ten gallons every unneeded minute. Limit your showers to the time it takes to soap up, wash down, and rinse off. Install water-saving showerheads or flow restrictors. Your local hardware or plumbing supply store stocks inexpensive water-saving showerheads or restrictors, which are easy to install. Rub-a-dub-dub, hop in the tub! A bath in a partially filled tub uses less water than all but the shortest showers. Turn off the water after your wet your toothbrush. There is no need to keep water pouring down the drain. Just wet your brush and fill a glass for rinsing your mouth. Rinse your razor in the sink. Fill the bottom of the sink with a few inches or warm water. This will rinse your blade just as well as running water, and far less wastefully. Check faucets and pipes for leaks. Even the smallest drip from a worn washer can waste 20 or more gallons per day. Large leaks can waste hundreds. …In the Kitchen Use your automatic dishwasher only for full loads. If you wash dishes by hand, don’t leave the water running for rinsing. If you have two sinks, fill one with soapy water and one with rinse water. For those of your with only one sink, gather your washed dishes in a dish rack and rinse them with your spray hose or a pan full of hot water. Clean your fruits and vegetables without wasting water. When cleaning your vegetables, don’t let the faucet run. Just rinse them in a stoppered sink or pan of clean water. Have on hand a quick fix for a big thirst. Keep a bottle of drinking water in the refrigerator, and you are guaranteed instant, cool relief. Running tap water to cool it off for drinking is wasteful. Keep an eye out for leaks in your faucets or pipes. Leaks waste water 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Oftentimes, it only takes an inexpensive washer to repair a leak that could cost you a fortune. Use your automatic washing machine only for full loads. …Outside Water your lawn only when it needs it. How can you tell if your lawn needs a drink? Step on your grass. If it springs back up when you move, it does not need any water. If it stays flat, fetch a sprinkler. Get to the root of the problem. When you do water your lawn, deep soak it. Water long enough for the moisture to soak down to the roots where it will do the most good. A light sprinkling tends to evaporate quickly and can encourage shallow root systems. Rise and shine and wet that lawn. Water during the cool parts of the day. Early morning waterings are generally better than dusk since they help prevent the growth of fungus. Keep it out of the gutter. Position your sprinklers so water lands on the lawn or garden, not on paved areas or in your gutters. Also, try not to water on windy days. Plant drought-resistant trees and plants. Many beautiful trees and plants thrive with far less watering than other species. You can have beautiful plants without all the watering, which means less work for you. Mulch ado about nothing. Put a layer of mulch around trees and plants. It will slow evaporation of moisture and discourage weed growth, too. Sweep, don’t spray. Use a broom, not a hose, to clean driveways and sidewalks. Clean your car the smart way. Don’t run the hose while washing your car. Clean the car with a pail of soapy water. Use the hose just to rinse it off. Keep the kids out of the spray. Tell your children not to play with the hose or sprinkler. There are plenty of other ways to keep the kids cool during the summer. Look for leaks. Check the pipes, hoses, faucets, and couplings for signs of damage. Leaks outside the house may not seem as bad since they are not as visible, but they can be just as wasteful as leaks inside. Check frequently and be drip free! For more information on water conservation or to set up a home energy audit, please contact: Sara Gimberline (507) 292-1225 sgimberline@rpu.org