Water is one of the earth’s most important natural resources. Conserve fresh water supplies by eliminating wasteful habits to preserve our environment. Using less water reduces energy use, which will help to reduce harmful carbon emissions in earth’s atmosphere. You can do your part by saving water at home. Here’s how to reduce your water use and keep your home’s plumbing system in top (water-saving) condition.
Plumbing Water Saving Tips
Begin your personal water conservation campaign by addressing your home’s plumbing system. Make it as efficient as possible. Most home plumbing systems can be upgraded with minimal expense. The upgrades listed below can save you money in the long run as they’ll help you reduce water usage (and will likely lower your energy bills).
- Replace old, water-guzzling toilets with newer, more efficient models. Some dated models use six to eight gallons of clean water per flush. Newer models require less than a gallon per flush.
- Repair faulty toilets that run constantly or have a penchant for hanging up every now and then. A running toilet will wash enormous amounts of fresh water down the drain… along with your hard-earned money.
- Replace showerheads with low-flow units designed to conserve water. Some models are equipped with a convenient, built-in shutoff valve that allows you to interrupt the flow of water without changing the temperature. This comes in handy when shaving or scrubbing your back.
- Repair leaking faucets and hose bibs. You might be surprised to learn how much water is wasted as a result of leaking faucets.
Personal Water Saving Tips
Now that your plumbing is up to speed, you can practice these personal tips to save water at home.
- Turn off the water when brushing your teeth or shaving. A common faucet puts out up to two gallons of water a minute. Since the recommended time you should brush your teeth is two minutes, running the faucet while brushing your teeth will waste four gallons of clean, fresh water.
- Take showers instead of baths. Filling a bathtub can require up to 70 gallons of water. In addition, reduce your shower times to five minutes or less.
- Wash full loads of laundry when doing the wash and avoid the permanent press cycle, which requires an additional five gallons of water for the extra rinse.
- Avoid the garbage disposal. Aside from requiring a lot of water to dispose of food scraps, garbage disposals can be detrimental to septic tank systems. Put food scraps in the trash or start a compost bin and make your own fertilizer.
The aforementioned information will help you save water at home. You can take it a step further by discovering additional water saving tips and practicing common sense when you turn on the tap.
For answers to your questions, contact The Pink Plumber today.
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