In the United States, water is one of the essential commodities for any home. Statistics show that the average American family will consume up to 100 gallons of water every single day. Therefore, you must take the initiative of saving water by adopting methods that prevent misuse. Households can use appliances or other fixtures that will help conserve lots of water, and such methods go a long way in minimizing unnecessary loss of water. Besides helping to reduce your monthly water bill, water conservation will ensure that Americans will not face water shortages in the future.
How To Reduce Water Shortage At Home
There are methods you can use in your home to help save gallons of water annually. These methods fall into different categories, including beginner, intermediate, and advanced.
Beginner User Tips
- Turn off the faucets: Most times, you will find that you will let the faucet water run as you wash and rinse your hands, clothes, or dishes. The faucet expels up to two gallons of water every minute, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Shutting your faucet while doing tasks such as brushing your teeth or shaving can help you save up to 100 gallons of water monthly. This will also help you save on your monthly water bill. Always consult with someone like Evans Leak Detection in Orange County when you detect leaks from your faucet or toilets. Note, a small leak can lead to a loss of water of up to 20 gallons of water every day.
- Learn to use every drop of water: Every drop of water counts, and it is vital to learn how to repurpose each drop. You can try capturing water that you use to wash fruits and vegetables under your colander and use it to water plants in the garden.
- Change your shower routine: You do not have to take a long shower to have a good bath. Long showers will have you spending a lot of water, which often goes to waste, and you can target to reduce this amount by taking shorter baths and showering less frequently.
- Use of dual sinks: You can borrow ideas from the past, which involve double sinks. Dual sinks allow you to fill one sink with hot and soapy water for washing dishes while filling the other sink with clean water for rinsing the dishes. It lets you avoid water running while washing and rinsing the dishes. However, if your sink is a single model, you can choose to use separate bowls for washing and rinsing.
- Use small amounts of water for cooking: Instead of boiling vegetables with too much water, you can choose to steam them. You can also choose to steam your vegetables in a basket over the pot while cooking your rice or pasta. When cooking pasta, you can choose to use the smallest pot to accommodate the pasta and a little water. Instead of draining the water used in making the pasta and noodles, you can reuse it to make soups and sauces.
Intermediate Water Saving Tips
Some of the intermediate water-saving ways include:
- Purchase a small dishwasher: Modern and small dishwashers are quite useful in saving water. You should scrape food remains off the dishes before you load them into the dishwasher because this helps save gallons of water per wash. Also, only run full loads because this further helps to conserve water. A double drawer dishwasher is efficient for small loads since these drawers only use less than two gallons of water, are energy efficient, save water, and work independently.
- Be smart about watering the garden: if you love watering the garden, you should consider investing in irrigation equipment that adjusts to real weather conditions and those that provide irrigation water only when necessary.It would help if you considered purchasing rotator sprinkler heads compared to the traditional mist style sprinkler heads. The rotator sprinklers will irrigate at a slower rate, and this helps to increase penetration and, in the process, prevent drifts.
- Use a low flow showerhead: This type of showerhead will help you reduce the amount of water you use in your shower. Low flow showerheads will only emit 1.8 gallons of water per minute compared to the average showerheads, which emit water at a rate of 2.1 gallons of water per minute.
- Repurposing of greywater: This type of water that runs off from your bath, shower, or sink and which remains unused. You should make a point of collecting this type of water from your sink or shower with a bucket. You can also choose to scoop the extra water on the tub using a tub and then repurpose the water for cleaning your car, watering plants, and the lawn.
- Upgrade the toilet: a traditional bathroom will use up to 7 gallons of water in every flush. However, these modern and efficient toilets will only use less than two gallons of water. Using modern toilets will save you hundreds of gallons of water annually. Next time you plan to shop for a new toilet, you should go for the modern toilet.
- Capture the rainwater: You should try as much as possible to capture and store rainwater that will go a long way in irrigating your garden. You can purchase a 55-gallon drum that will capture the rainwater from the gutters and other downspouts. Also, remember always to cover the barrels to prevent mosquito breeding.
- Purchase an efficient washing machine: according to statistics, most American families wash about 300 loads of laundry every year. Washing clothes is among the activities that use too much water in residential homes. People should aim to use front-loading machines since they use less water than top-loading machines. It would help if you purchased washing machines that will save you at least 40 percent water and those whose tubs do not fill up.
Benefits Of Saving Water
Now that we know of methods we can use at home to conserve water, it is essential to learn of the benefits of saving this water.
- It saves the world from drought and water shortages: The growing population and increase in the number of industries across continents lead to increased water consumption. To safeguard against water loss and ensure an adequate supply of fresh water in the future, we need to use methods that reduce water wastage.
- It protects the environment: When we conserve water, we reduce the energy required to deliver it to our homes and businesses. This will help prevent pollution, and at the same time, preserve our resources.
- It helps reduce the rising prices of commodities and political conflicts: If we continuously misuse water, there will be a reduction of potable water, increasing the cost of essential commodities. This increases the price of healthy drinking water and other food supplies. Wastage of water also means that there would be an increase in health hazards and even cases of political unrest.
In Conclusion
We need to save water by adopting methods that help conserve it in our homes. The efforts we put into saving water make a significant difference in our lives. It would be best to use appliances that conserve water and encourage people at home to always close taps when brushing their teeth or washing their face. Aerated faucets also go a long way in saving water at home. Always contact someone like Evans Leak Detection in Orange County if you suspect leaks in your kitchen sink or bathroom.
