Easy Ways to Save Water at Home

There are quite a few inexpensive ways to save water at home that will not only reduce your daily water usage but also save you some money on your water bill as well. Of course the most common idea given for water use reduction is to buy energy efficient and water efficient toilets, washers, and dishwashers. However if you can't afford these appliances then this isn't a viable option for you.

Fear not, here are a few great tips for reducing your water usage at home.

- Only run faucet water when you actually need it. As obvious as this sounds, you would be surprised how much water is wasted while brushing teeth, showering, washing dishes by hand,and even washing one's hands. When doing any of these activities, simply turn the faucet off when you are soaping up, brushing, or even showering. Think of it like this: the average person is told to brush for about 3 minutes twice daily. Thats 6 minutes a day per person which means gallons of water literally go down the drain if you leave it running while your doing the actual brushing. The same holds true for washing dishes by hand, washing your hands, and even showering.

- If you water your flowers or lawn, only do it when needed. One good idea is to put some water in a gallon jug and use that water to water your flowers. It will help you limit your flower watering use rather then using a hose.

- Limit your showering times. As obvious as this sounds, cutting even a minute off your daily shower time can really make a difference. You don't need to jump in and out in cold water in 30 seconds, but just small cutbacks in the amount of time the water is running can make a difference. For example (and much like brushing) if you take 3 minutes to lather up your hair to wash it, turn the shower off while lathering then back on when your ready to rinse off.

- Do larger loads of laundry instead of many smaller loads. Most clothes can be mixed together after a few washes anyways, theres no reason to do a load of wash with 1 or 2 articles of clothing in it. The same goes for dishwashers, only use your dishwasher when it will be a full load.