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 Home Water Conservation Here are some tips to conserve water at home. 1. Stop Those Leaks! Check your indoor water using appliances and devices for leaks. Believe it or not, the 5 th largest use of water in US households is leaks – after toilets, clothes washers, showerheads and faucets. Silent leaks allow water and your money to go down the drain. Studies have shown homes can waste more than 10% due to leaking, which costs both you and the environment. 2. Inspect Your Irrigation System Frequently. Another large water waster can be leaks in your irrigation system. Fix irrigation system leaks quickly and check for water in the gutters or mud puddles. Inspect your sprinklers and drip sprayers regularly for leaks during the daytime since the optimal time to water is in the nighttime hours when you cannot observe leaks. If you have an older irrigation system, over 50% of the water can be lost to leaks. 3. Replace your old toilet, the largest water user inside your home. Or, install a toilet tank bank. If your home was built before 1992 and the toilet has never been replaced, then it is very likely that you do not have an efficient--1.6 gallons water per flush--toilet. You can check the date stamp inside the toilet by lifting the lid and looking at the back of the toilet at the manufacturer's imprint of the make, model and date of manufacture. If you do not want to replace your toilet, you can easily install a toilet tank bank, which is part of GreenFaith’s Water Conservation Kit. 4. Replace your Clothes Washer. Your clothes washer is the second largest water user in your home. Make sure you only run your washer when you have a full load. Energy Star™ rated washers having a Water Factor of 9.5 or lower, use 35-50% less water and 50% less energy per load. This saves you money on both your water and energy bills. 5. Replace your showerhead Your showerhead is your home’s third largest water user, with a low-flow showerhead. So, install a low-flow showerhead. GreenFaith’s Water Conservation Kit contains a comfortable, award-winning low-flow showerhead with variable settings. [link to kit] And, take shorter showers. The average US shower lasts 8 minutes – see if you can reduce your shower time to an efficient 4 minutes. 6. Plant the Right Plants with Proper Landscape Design & Irrigation. Whether you're putting in a new landscape or slowing changing your current landscaping, select plants that are appropriate for your local climate conditions. Consider, too, the trend towards Xeriscape™ and a more natural landscape or wildscaping. To get information about water-efficient landscaping in New Jersey , go to http://www.rcre.rutgers.edu/county/ to locate your county agricultural extension service which can help you develop a water-efficient landscape design for your lawn and gardens.
If you'd like to take a Home Water Audit quiz to evaluate your use of water and to identify conservation opportunities, visit www.wateruseitwisely.com/familywater.
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