Conserve Water at Home

water conservation

There are many steps that we can all take to help conserve water around our homes and businesses. It’s up to all of us to use our water wisely and protect our resources.

Upgrade to Water Efficient Appliances

Advances in plumbing technology and design mean that faucets, showers, and toilets can use significantly less water than standard models while still delivering the rinse, spray, and flush you expect.

combine logos watersense & energystar

When replacing water appliances, make sure to look for the WaterSense label.  WaterSense is a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) program designed to encourage water efficiency in the United States through the use of a special label on consumer products. WaterSense is to water appliances, what Energystar is to electrical items.

When purchasing water appliances, make sure to look for the WaterSense label. WaterSense is a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) program that seeks to protect the future of our nation’s water supply by offering water-efficient products.  More at www.epa.gov/watersense

Get a REBATE!

Many water departments in the Neponset Watershed encourage water efficiency by offering rebates for water efficient toilets and clothes washers, and by offering free water efficient showerheads and faucet aerators.  Check with your Water Department prior to making a purchase to see what they offer.

Be sure to contact your Water Department, prior to making a purchase, to see if they offer rebates!

Fix Leaks to Stop Water Waste

Thousands of gallons of water a year are wasted due to leaky faucets, showerheads and toilets. Learn how to fix leaks and start saving water – and money!

Plan Landscapes and Gardens for Weather Extremes

Summertime lawn watering uses almost 50% more water than indoor winter usage, and depletes the groundwater that sustains local streams and ecosystems. Planning your landscape with consideration for varying climate conditions will help to conserve water, and potentially save you unnecessary expense.

Change Small Daily Habits

Small changes to your daily routine can make a big difference in conserving both water and energy. (After all, it takes energy to make hot water.) To start, make sure you turn off the faucet when brushing your teeth and make sure that clothes washers are full before you run them.

How many of these water-conserving habits do you follow?

Interesting facts about water use…

Toilets

  • Toilets are the single largest water user in a household.
  • Over the course of your lifetime, you will likely flush the toilet nearly 140,000 times.
  • Toilets built before 1992 can use anywhere between 3.5 and 7 gallons of water per flush.  Under current federal law, new toilets must not exceed 1.6 gallons per flush (gpf).
  • High-efficiency, third party tested WaterSense labeled toilets go beyond the standard and use less than 1.3 gpf.
  • If you install a high efficiency toilet, you can save up to 4,000 gallons per year.
  • If you haven’t replaced your toilet in over twenty years, it’s time to purchase a water efficient toilet.

Clothes Washers

  • The average older model, top loading clothes washer uses about 40 gallons of water per load, while newer, more water efficient clothes washers use less than 20 gallons of water per load, without sacrificing cleaning performance.

Showerheads

  • Replacing a standard showerhead with a WaterSense labeled model, will reduce the average family’s annual energy and water costs by nearly $70 and save 2,900 gallons of water per year—the amount of water it takes to wash more than 70 loads of loads of laundry.

Faucets

  • Faucets account for more than 15% of indoor household water use—more than 1 trillion gallons of water across the United States each year.
  • Although federal law requires that new faucets not exceed 2.2 gallons per minute (gpm) at 60 psi, older faucets can flow at rates as high as 3 to 7 gpm.
  • Dripping faucets can waste up to 3,000 gallons of water a year, while leaky toilets can waste up to 200 gallons per day?

The gallon per minute (gpm) flow rate of an aerator is usually engraved on its side.

TIP: If you’re not ready to purchase a new faucet, but still want to save water, you can replace an older aerator with a water saving model.  Try a 1.5 gpm in the kitchen and a .5 gpm in the bathroom, and begin saving water immediately!

Faucet aerators, which are located at the end of a faucet, mix air and water to create a water flow that is consistent and splash free. Most faucets have aerators, or have threads on the inside or outside of the faucet to accept an aerator.