Household Water Conservation Tips

Here are some easy ways to reduce your water use at home by ten percent:

• Fix leaking fixtures.  A tap leaking can waste over 10,000 litres per year!
• Reduce your shower time – five minutes is plenty of time to get clean.
• Practice water-efficient lawn care. To reduce evaporation loss, water your lawn very early in the morning.
• Use a rain gauge to tell you when your lawn has received enough water, approximately an inch (2.5 cm) a week, depending on your soil type.
• Plant native flower gardens. They are well suited to the climate and require little or no watering.
• Keep a jug of cold water in the fridge.  This way you avoid leaving the tap running until the water gets cold.
• Using a dishwasher can be more efficient than washing dishes by hand, as long as you wait until you have a full load.
• Wash vegetables in a basin or partly filled sink – not under running water.
• When hand washing dishes in a two sink basin, fill one with soapy water and the other with rinse water. It saves running the tap for each dish. 
• Wash your car less frequently- especially during hot dry weather. This will also keep pollutants out of storm drains, which empty into our lakes and rivers.