You would be surprised at how much water your family uses every day. Did you know that the average American uses 100 gallons of water a day? And a good portion of that is just from your bathroom habits alone. The good news is that there are several ways to save water without sacrificing your bathroom habits. If you have public water and sewer (as compared to a well and septic) you may actually paying for that water twice, once when it comes in to your house and once when it goes out. But sewer water isn’t metered so even if you water your lawn with it, you may be paying sewage fees for that water. Plus if you use hot water you pay again to heat it. But you can start lowering your water bills by keeping the following tricks in mind.
Shorten Your Time in the Shower
Spending 20 minutes in the shower does a number on your water bills. It is best to focus on getting in and out rather than prolonging your shower just to relax. If you shorten your shower by at least four minutes, you can save up to 4,000 gallons of water each year. The money you save can go towards other things you may want or need.
Save Water: Install a Low-Flow Shower Head
If you do not mind making an upgrade to your bathroom, you can install a low-flow shower head. A standard shower head may dispense about 4 gallons of water per minute, but a low-flow shower head dispenses about 2 gallons of water per minute. Imagine how much money you are going to save when you only use half the amount of water in the shower.
And if you take a bath you might be in the habit of running the hot water until it runs hot and then putting in the stopper and filling the tub. But then you have to run cold water because the tub water is too hot. Why not just put the stopper in first and save that initial water?
Do Not Let the Water Run
Letting the water run when brushing or shaving is a habit that everyone needs to break. The few minutes you let the water run can be costly, especially when it happens several times a day. Turn the water off when you are brushing your teeth, and fill a cup for rinsing. If you are shaving, keep a cup of hot water next to you for dipping your razor—this goes for men shaving their face and women shaving their legs this can save you 8 gallons of water a day!
Don’t Ignore Dripping Faucets and Toilets
A leaky faucet may seem minor because it is only a few drips, but you could wind up wasting gallons of water before you get it fixed. If you see a few drips, this doesn’t necessarily mean that your faucet is leaking. Place a cup or bowl underneath the faucet and measure how much water it collects within a 24-hour period when the sink isn’t being used. In the end, if there’s more than a drop of water collected, then you should take steps to repair the leak. Quality Plumbing of Seattle says, “A running toilet can be even worse using as much as 200 gallons of water a day.”
You do not have to give up your bathroom habits to lower your bills. All you need to do is develop habits that help you to keep you from wasting the water. When you do so, you are sure to notice a positive change in your water bills—and more money in your bank account!
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