30 Easy Ways To Conserve Water In Your Home

Words cannot describe the importance of water as a resource. Yet, once in a while, we may forget to conserve. Fortunately, conserving water at home is simple and provides many benefits — aside from the obvious. When you find ways to avoid wasting water, you can save on your utility expenses, notes Energy Star. You may even notice that many household tasks can still be completed effectively and efficiently when using less water.

Furthermore, you would not have to sacrifice the aesthetic appeal of your landscaping to incorporate methods of conserving water. It's often as easy as getting the whole family involved in looking for ways to use less water and changing up a few habits. So we bring you these 30 ideas that apply to almost every part of your home when comes to conserving water. And yes, we also have some advice for caring for your outdoor spaces and your vehicles by using less water.

Being that some shower heads save water more effectively than others, you might opt for replacing your current shower head. The water-saving variety produces similar, if not more pressure than the regular type while still decreasing the number of gallons per minute, according to Leaf Score.

Just like refraining from leaving the faucet turned on while brushing, the same goes for shaving which is also mentioned by the EPA. All you need is an inch or two of water in the sink to be able to rinse your razor as you shave.

Thawing out food in the refrigerator or microwave is just as safe as thawing them out in water (per the USDA). You may have to plan ahead and place the item in the fridge a day or two ahead of time. However, the microwave works well when you have less time.

According to Trvst, keeping a container filled with water in the refrigerator will help with conservation. The reason behind this relates to kicking the habit of running the faucet until the tap water turns cold, which leads to excessive waste. This way, your drinking water will always be ready to go.

If you hand wash your dishes, Colorado State University Extension recommends partially filling both sides of the sink. By partially filling one side for rinsing, you'll use less. Alternatively, you can try running the water slowly when rinsing. Another conservation idea is to invest in a dishwasher, which generally uses less water.

Remembering that the toilet serves one purpose will help you to save water. This means getting the entire family on board with not using the toilet as a means of getting rid of facial tissues, hair, sanitary napkins, and other garbage explains the Indiana DOH. Besides, this also prevents clogging.

A high-efficiency washer offers an additional means of water conservation. The HE washer may not need as much water as your traditional models. However, they still effectively clean your clothes without the worry of delicates or stretchy clothing getting pulled out of shape, notes Bellingham Electric.

If you choose to keep your grass lawn, you might consider watering at dawn. You might wonder why sunrise offers better timing than dusk — as noted by the Lawn Doctor, you have less chance of the water evaporating during the pre-dawn hours since the wind is calm and the sun is not up yet.

Adding a layer of mulch around bushes, trees, and shrubs holds the moisture in longer than if the ground was exposed, thus decreasing the need to water often, as mentioned by Contra Costa Water District.

One other prudent practice in gardening and conserving water is checking for leaks in your sprinkler system. According to Stream Labs, some signs of leaks include a yellowing lawn, water accumulation around a sprinkler, and an increase in your water bill. Thus, repairing a leak immediately saves water and money.

Also, if your community has an eco-friendly car wash that uses a water reclamation system, you might consider cleaning your vehicle there instead of on your driveway, suggests Maryland Department Of The Environment. Less water is used, and there's less waste.

In addition to installing micro and drip irrigation systems, you can keep a barrel or drum for catching rain for watering plants (per West Virginia Extension). An added bonus is that some containers come with a spigot for easy pouring into a water can or bucket.

Aside from monitoring your sprinkler system, you can also check your meter, which is recommended by the Department Of Water Supply. Looking for irregularities in its readings may not tell you necessarily where the leak is, but at least you will be aware.

Although this method of recycling water might take some work, in the long term, you're looking at less frequent watering. Gray water conservation involves installing a drainage system from the sinks, shower, or washer to the garden. The gray water itself is harmless and can be reused for irrigation (per Greywater Action).

One other useful tool in water conservation is the aerator, which is a small part with a metal mesh that fits at the end of your faucet. The aerator serves many purposes from filtering out impurities to lowering the amount of water that comes out, explains Denver Water.