INC NEWS - Water Saving Tips; shower heads, more tips & correction source of quotes

[Laura Drey]

Water saving showerheads are available at Utility Customer Service, Durham
City Hall, 1st Floor. Please limit three (3) per customer for only $3.00
each

For more recommendation on saving water go to the City's web page on water
conservation 
www.durhamnc.gov./departments/wm/water_cons.cfm  once get to Water ­ Use it
Wisely link there is more information if take 3 more steps --- go to 100
Ways To Save Water, Southeast and than to North Carolina

Correction the source of quotes on Water Saving Tips the ones in italics are
from   www.conservewater.utah.gov/Tips/
<http://www.conservewater.utah.gov/Tips/>

------------ 

Water Conservation Tips

The following not in italics are direct quotes from L.A. web site:
www.monolake.org/socalwater/wctips.htm
<http://www.monolake.org/socalwater/wctips.htm>   in italics are direct
quotes from www.conservewater.utah.gov/Tips/
<http://www.conservewater.utah.gov/Tips/> Utah¹s web site.

Ways that will save the most water:

1. Install water-saving shower heads or flow restrictors. This could save
you as much as 2.5 gallons every minute you shower.  Saves 500 to 800
gallons per month.

2. Run only full loads in the washing machine and dishwasher. Saves 300 to
800 gallons per month.  Or adjust the water level to reflect the size of the
load.

3. Take a short shower instead of a bath. While a five minute shower uses a
12 to 25 gallons, a full tub requires about 70 gallons.  Shorten your
showers. Even a one or two minute reduction can save up to 700 gallons per
month. 

4. Capture tap water. While you wait for hot water to come down the pipes
(for a shower and washing dishes by hand,) catch the flow in a watering can
to use later on house plants or your garden. Saves 200 to 300 gallons per
month.
 
Save water indoors:
 
Pay attention to your water bill and become familiar with your water
meter‹use them to track your water use and detect leaks.
 
Fix leaky plumbing fixtures, faucets and appliances in the house.
 
Purchase appliances that offer water- and energy-efficient cycle options
(such as ultra low-flush toilets.)

In the bathroom:

1.  Put a plastic bottle or a plastic bag 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 5 to 10 gallons a day. That's up to
300 gallons a month, even more for large families. Better yet, for even
greater savings, replace your water-guzzling five to seven gallon a flush
toilet with a one and a half gallon, ultra-low flush model.

2.  Check toilet for leaks. Put dye tablets or food coloring into the tank.
If color appears in the bowl without flushing, there's a leak that should be
repaired. Saves 400 gallons a month.
 
3.  Check to assure that your toilet's flapper valve doesn¹t stay open after
flushing.
 
4.  Turn off the water while brushing your teeth. Saves three gallons each
day.

5.  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.
 
In the kitchen:

1. If you wash dishes by hand -and that's the best way--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 blasts instead of
letting the water run. Saves 200 to 500 gallons a month. Let your pots and
pans soak instead of letting the water run while you clean them.

2. When washing dishes by hand, use the least amount of detergent possible.
This minimizes rinse water needed. Saves 50 to 150 gallons a month.

3. 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.

4. 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.

5. 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.

6. Use the garbage disposal less and the garbage more (even
better--compost!). Saves 50 to 150 gallons a month.
 
7.  Purchase an instant water heater for your kitchen sink so you don¹t
waste water while it heats up.

Outside:

1. 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. Create
a compost pile and use it in your yard to add needed nutrients and organic
matter to the soil.

2. Set lawn mower blades one notch higher. Longer grass means less
evaporation. Saves 500 to 1,500 gallons each month.
 
3.  Apply as little fertilizer to your lawn as possible. Applying excess
fertilizer increases water consumption and actually creates more mowing for
you! Use iron-based fertilizers to simply ³green-up² your lawn instead.

4. Use a rain barrel to collect water off the roof and use it to water
plants and garden.  Have an evaporative air conditioner? Direct the water
drain line to a flower bed, tree base, or lawn.

5. Xeriscape--replace your lawn and high-water-using trees and plants with
less thirsty ones. But do this only in wet years. Even drought resistant
plantings take extra water to get them going. That'll save 750 to 1,500
gallons a month.

6. Dispose of hazardous materials properly! One quart of oil can contaminate
250,000 gallons of water, effectively eliminating that much water from our
water supply. Contact your city or county for proper waste disposal options.
And don't flush prescription medications!
 
7.  Avoid bursting or freezing pipes by winterizing your outdoor spigots.
 
8.  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.

Other means for conserving water once water restrictions lifted:

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. So set your sprinklers
for more days in between watering. Saves 750-1,500 gallons per month. Better
yet, especially in times of drought, water with a hose. And best of all,
convert your lawn to native plants.

2.  Water during the cool parts of the day. Avoid watering your landscape
during the hottest hours of the day (10 am until 6 pm) to minimize
evaporation.  Early morning is better than dusk since it helps prevent the
growth of fungus. Saves 300 gallons.
 
3.  Don't water the lawn on windy days. There's too much evaporation. Can
waste up to 300 gallons in one watering.

4.  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.
 
5.  Don¹t over-water your plants. Learn how much water they need and how
best to apply just the right amount.
 
6.  Place a rain gauge in your backyard to monitor rainfall and irrigation.
 
7.  Install drip irrigation systems for trees, shrubs and flowers.
 
8.  Visually inspect your sprinkler system once a month during daylight
hours. Check and fix any tilted, clogged or broken heads.
 
9.  Turn your sprinkler system off during or after a rainstorm and leave it
off until the plants need to be watered again. Consider installing an
automatic rain shutoff device on your sprinkler system.

10.  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 a month. When taking your car to a car
wash--a good idea for saving water--be sure it's one of the many that
recycles its wash water.

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

12.   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 per month.

13.  Tell your children not to play with the garden hose. Saves 10 gallons a
minute.  If you allow your children to play in the sprinklers, make sure
it's only when you're watering the yard--if it's not too cool at that time
of day.


   
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