Whitworth Water District No. 2

"Working for Better Water"

Conservation

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Working for Better Water

Tips on Conserving Water

1. Water your lawn only when it needs it. Step on your grass. If it springs back when you lift your foot, it doesn't need water. Set your sprinklers for more days in between watering. Saves 750 to 1,500 gallons a month.

2. Fix leaky faucets and plumbing joints. Saves 20 gallons a day for every leak stopped.

3. Don't run the hose while washing your car. Use a bucket of water and a quick hose rinse at the end. Saves 150 gallons each time. For a two-car family that's up to 1,200 gallons per month.

4. Install water-saving shower heads or flow restrictors. Saves 500 to 800 gallons a month.

5. Run only full loads in the washing machine and dishwasher. Saves 300 to 800 gallons a month.

6. Shorten your showers. Even a one or two-minute reduction can save up to 700 gallons a month.

7. Use a broom instead of a hose to clean driveways and sidewalks. Saves 150 gallons each time. At once a week, that's more than 600 gallons a month.

8. Don't use your toilet as an ashtray or wastebasket. Saves 400 to 600 gallons a month.

9. Capture tap water. While you wait for hot water to come down the pipes, catch the water with a watering can to use later on house plants or your garden. Saves 200 to 300 gallons a month.

10. Don't water the sidewalks, driveway or gutter. Adjust your sprinklers so that water lands on your lawn or garden where it belongs---and only there. Saves 500 gallons a month.

More Indoor Conservation Ideas to Consider...

Put a plastic bottle weighted with pebbles and filled with water in your toilet tank. Displacing water in this manner allows you to use less water with each flush. Saves up to 300 gallons a month. For even greater savings, replace your water-guzzling five-to-seven-gallon-a-flush toilet with a three-and-a-half-gallon, low-flush or one-and-a-half-gallon, ultra-low-flush model.

Take baths instead of showers. A partially filled tub uses less water than all but the shortest showers. Saves 15 to 20 gallons each time.

Turn off the water while brushing your teeth. Saves three gallons each day.

Turn off the water while shaving. Fill the bottom of the sink with a few inches of water to rinse your razor. Saves three gallons each day.

If you wash dishes by hand don't leave the water running for rinsing. If you have two sinks, fill one with rinse water. If you only have one sink, use a spray device or short blast instead of letting the water run. Saves 200 to 300 gallons a month.

When washing dishes by hand, use the least amount of detergent possible. This minimizes rinse water needed. Saves 150 gallons a month.

Keep a bottle of drinking water in the refrigerator. This beats the wasteful habit of running tap water to cool it for drinking. Saves 200 to 300 gallons a month.

Don't defrost frozen foods with running water. Either plan ahead by placing frozen items in the refrigerator overnight or defrost them in the microwave. Saves 50 to 150 gallons a month.

Don't let the faucet run while you clean vegetables. Rinse them in a filled sink or pan. Saves 150 to 250 gallons a month.

Use the garbage disposal less and the garbage can more. Saves 50 to 150 gallons a month.

More Outdoor Conservation Ideas...

Put a layer of mulch around trees and plants. Chunks of bark, peat moss or gravel slows down evaporation. Saves 750 to 1,500 gallons a month.

If you have a pool, use a pool cover to cut down on evaporation. It will also keep your pool cleaner and reduce the need to add chemicals. Saves 1,000 gallons a month.

Water during the cool parts of the day. Early morning is better than dusk since it helps prevent the growth of fungus. Saves 300 gallons a month.

Don't water the lawn on windy days. There's too much evaporation. Can waste up to 300 gallons each time.

Cut down watering on cool and overcast days and don't water in the rain. Adjust or deactivate automatic sprinklers. Can save up to 300 gallons each time.

Set lawn mower blades one notch higher. Longer grass means less evaporation. Saves 500 to 1,500 gallons each month.

If you have an evaporator air conditioner? Direct the water drain line to a flower bed, tree base or lawn.

If municipal ordinances don't prohibit it, drive your car onto a lawn to wash it. Rinse water can help water the grass.

Tell your children not to play with the garden hose. Saves 10 gallons a minute.

If you are working around the yard, clean up with waterless hand cleaner rather than washing under a steady stream of water. Saves 7 to 10 gallons each time.

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