Save Water

I grew up watching Sesame Street, and vividly remember the “Don’t Waste Water” song:
…Yes, water means so much that we
Have got use it carefully
Don’t waste water
(Water, water, water)

When cleaning hands or teeth, be smart —
Turn off that faucet, do your part
Don’t waste water
(Water, water, water)

And if you’ve got a drippy leak in your shower or your sink
Tell your folks to get it fixed, hey people stop and think
‘Cause once a drop goes down the drawn it’s kinda hard to drink
Save water…

Americans use an average of 80-100 gallons of water per day at home. With climate change causing droughts across the nation and around the world, it’s critical to save water whenever we can.

I live in a town where I pay for the municipal water use. So for me, conserving water makes not only environmental sense, but saves me cents, too — excessive water use is not only water but money down the drain!

Low-flow faucets: One of the first things I did when I moved into my apartment was to replace the kitchen and bathroom sink faucets with low-flow faucets. These use a maximum of 1.5 gallons per minute and are reducing my sinks’ water flow by 30 percent or more from the standard flow of 2.2 gallons per minute. How did I know which low-flow faucet to buy? The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sponsors a voluntary partnership program called WaterSense. This is both a label for water-efficient products and a resource for helping you save water!

Wash full loads of dishes and laundry: These are the two appliances in your home that use the most water. Only washing with full loads of dishes or laundry saves 15-45 gallons of water in the washer, and 5-15 gallons of water in the dishwater.
Daily savings: 7-21 gallons (assumes daily dishwasher use, plus one load of laundry per week).

Don’t run the water while brushing your teeth or shaving: Two to three minutes without the water on while brushing your teeth can save 2-3 gallons of water each day. Instead of having the water on while shaving, fill the bottom of the sink with a few inches of water to rinse your razor. These two adjustments can save 180 gallons per month.
Daily savings: 2-6 gallons.  

Fix leaks in your home: On average, leaks account for 14 percent of indoor water use. Leaks can go unnoticed for years, so proper inspection and maintenance of appliances can help prevent them. Your bathtub and sink could leak one drip per second, wasting more than 3,000 gallons per year. Outdoor irrigation systems can leak 1/32 of an inch in diameter, which can waste over 6,000 gallons of water annually.
Daily savings: about 24 gallons.

Choose tap water over bottled water: I never buy bottled water, and instead use a reusable water bottle. It takes about 1.5 gallons of water to manufacture a plastic bottle, which are almost always made from new plastic.
Daily savings: 6 gallons (assumes recommended daily water intake of eight eight-ounce glasses).

Avoid unnecessary flushing of your toilet: Throw tissues and other bathroom waste in the garbage can or compost pile, which doesn’t require gallons of water. The average person flushes five times a day, so that water use can really add up. You know what they say—if it’s yellow, let it mellow. The toilet is one of the most water-intensive fixtures in the house. Do you need to flush every time? Another way I save water with my toilet is that I’ve added a gallon jug filled with water to the tank, which then causes the tank to use a little less water than it normally would, and it still flushes fine!
Daily savings: 4 to 28 gallons, depending on how old your toilet is.
H/T: Green America’s 13 Ways to Save More than 65 Gallons of Water a Day

The Natural Resources Defense Council has 9 other tricks that save a ton of water.

What do you do to save water?