Remember water is a valuable resource that shouldn’t be wasted.
Your water is clean, safe and convenient but you have to pay for its treatment and the system to deliver it to you. By conserving water in your home, you also save energy needed to heat it or run appliances.
Two thirds of the water used in an average home is used in the bathroom, and a lot of it goes into the sewer. From 2-7 gallons of water are used every time a toilet is flushed. Do not use the toilet to flush items that can go in a wastebasket or garbage can.
Be aware of toilet leaks. Be sure to check toilets at the property! Toilet leaks are the most common and are hard to see or hear. Put food coloring or laundry bluing in the toilet tank and wait 10 minutes. Do not flush the toilet during this time. If the coloring appears in the toilet bowl, there is a toilet leak. Also, if you hear the toilet refilling and no one has used it, there is a leak. A major toilet leak can waste 800 cubic feet of water a day — which would cost over $24.00 for water and over $23.00 for sewer each day. That adds up to over $1,400.00 a month!
You may have been advised to take showers rather than baths to conserve water. If you take a long shower, however, you may use more water than if you took a bath. Long, hot showers not only waste water but also energy to heat the water. Consider using reduced-flow devices for shower heads.
Don’t leave the water running while you shave or brush your teeth. You are just running clean water down the drain.
Turn down the temperature on your water heater. If you set the temperature at 120° F or below, you will save about 4% of your energy cost per 10° that you lower your thermostat.
Flush Your Water Heater.
Flushing your water heater regularly ( every six months)will help you save money and extend your hot water heaters life.