The Best Ways to Save Water

Want to save some cash? Try saving your water. Here are some easy ways to save, drop by drop.

Run the dishwasher and clothes washing machine with full loads only, unless you can adjust the water level to the size of your load.

Reuse water when you can for watering plants, the garden and your lawn.

Find and repair hidden water leaks. Here is a simple test to see if you have any hidden water leaks. First read your water meter. Then read it again in two hours, when you are sure no water is being used. If there is a change in the meter, then you have a water leak. You can contact your water company for help in locating and repairing the leak. If you have a well and a pump, check to see if you hear the pump kick on when you know you aren’t using water.

Replace your toilets with low-flush ones, or add a brick to the tank. The brick will make the tank fill with less water, and you will use less water per flush. Listen to hear if the toilet tank is filling when you haven’t flushed. This was my clue that our upstairs toilet had a leak. An inexpensive part solved the problem. For a more extreme way to save on water in toilets, click here.

Replace your shower head with a low-flow version. Taking shorter showers is an obvious way to save, but that just doesn’t seem to be an option in our house. Hot showers are one of the ways we relax after a long, tense day.

Rather than just running water to warm it up, use the initial cold water. For example, brush your teeth while waiting for the water to warm up. Then wash your face with the warm water. Fill up pet bowls or your tea kettle with water as you wait for it to warm up to wash dishes. You can also install an instant-hot water heater on your kitchen sink.