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Water Conservation Ideas
Outside
- Water during the cool time of day. Early morning is best. Avoid peak watering time (4:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.).
- Don’t water on windy or rainy days.
- Don’t water every day. To determine if your lawn needs water, step on the grass. If it springs back when you move your foot, your lawn doesn’t need water.
- When you do water, let the water soak down to the roots.
- Call your local nursery to find out about drought-resistant plants, how much water different plants need, and which irrigation and watering systems are best for your needs.
- Adjust sprinklers so they only water your lawn and plants, and not the sidewalk, street or side of the house.
- Use a broom instead of a hose to clean your driveway and sidewalk.
- Don’t leave the hose running while you wash your car. Use a shut-off nozzle on your hose or use a bucket and rag.
- Check for leaks in pipes, hoses, faucets, and couplings.
Inside
- Check all faucets and pipes for leaks.
- Check your toilet for leaks. Put a few drops of food coloring in the tank. Wait a few minutes. If the color shows up in the bowl, you have a leak.
- Call your local hardware store and ask about water-saving devices for toilets, showers, and faucets.
- Don’t use the toilet as a wastebasket or ashtray.
- Turn off the water while shaving, washing your hands, or brushing your teeth.
- Take shorter showers – turn off the water while you soap yourself up.
- Wrap your exposed hot water pipes and water heater with insulating materials to speed up delivery of hot water to your tap.
- Always wash full loads of dishes. If you wash dishes by hand, don’t let the water run.
- Keep a bottle of cold water in your refrigerator for drinking purposes.
- Wash only full loads of clothes, or adjust the water level in your washer for smaller loads.
- Remove food from the freezer before it’s needed rather than using running water to thaw it.
- Use the garbage disposal sparingly.
- Use leftover drinking water on your plants.
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