Watercalculator.org lists over 100 ways to reduce your water usage. You can easily save water (and money) by following some of their tips:
Save Water in the Kitchen
- Don’t let the faucet run needlessly
- Use as little water as possible to boil food (just enough to submerge food)
- Wash vegetables and fruit in a bowl instead of washing them under a running faucet
- Use a dishwasher instead of washing dishes by hand and only wash full loads
- Throw things away in the garbage can instead of the garbage disposal
- Keep a bucket in the kitchen to collect water you usually throw out (water used to boil food, wash vegetables, etc.) and reuse it to water plants
Save Water in the Bathroom
- Take shorter showers and limit the number of baths you take
- Put a bucket in the shower to collect water as you wait for it to heat up and reuse it for watering plants, cleaning, etc.
- Fix leaky faucets and toilet leaks ASAP
- Don’t use the toilet as a garbage can
- Fill a plastic bottle with water and put it in your toilet tank to reduce the amount of water used per flush
Save Water in the Laundry Room
- Only wash full loads of laundry
- Dry clothes on a rack or line instead of the dryer (saving energy = saving water)
- Wash your jeans less
Save Water Outside
- Water the lawn in the early morning or late evening; Don’t water on windy days
- Set up sprinklers to spray only the areas that need it; Turn sprinklers off when it’s going to rain
- Use a hose with a squeeze nozzle to water the lawn, wash the car, etc.
Save Water with New Appliances
- Low-flow sink faucets
- Low-flow faucet aerators
- Low-flow showerheads
- Low-flow toilets
- ENERGY STAR water-and-energy-efficient dishwashers
- ENERGY STAR water-and-energy-efficient clothes washers
These are only some of the ways to reduce your water footprint. For more information about water use and all the ways you can save water, visit watercalculator.org. You can also see what your individual water footprint is by using the Water Footprint Calculator tool.
