Even though the earth is referred to as the Big Blue Marble, only about 1% of the earth’s water is fresh and suitable for drinking and use around your home. The rest of the planet’s water is either loaded with salt or in the form of massive ice caps and glaciers. What that means for you and your neighbors is that water conservation is essential. The EPA estimates that each person consumes somewhere between 80 and 100 gallons of water each day. It can add up very quickly between cooking, cleaning, laundering clothing, bathing, and drinking. Every little bit of conservation saves a precious natural resource and saves you money on your utility bills. Below are the most common mistakes in households across the country that waste water.
Considering The Toilet To Be A Trash Can
The toilets in your home are estimated to be the third-largest consumer of water. And that is only taking into account the correct use of these modern plumbing miracles. But when you flush trash or loose hair, you could be wasting another 3 to 7 gallons of water. Reach over and drop trash in the appropriate receptacle that uses 0 gallons of water.
Water Wasting Showers
Everyone enjoys a nice hot shower after a long day or to get moving in the morning. But unless you are using a low-flow showerhead, you are wasting a ton of water. Some showerheads dump as much as 5 gallons of water a minute on you. The average showerhead in the United States delivers about 2.1 gallons per minute. If you explore the low-flow options, you can drop that number to below a gallon per minute. If you are a person who loves a longer shower, low flow is the only way to go.
Wasteful Modern Conveniences
Every homeowner loves the convenience of washing machines and dishwashers. But the key to their real value is only to operating them when they are fully loaded. The average ENERGY STAR washer uses 14 gallons of water per cycle. And when the machine is washing a full load, that is very economical. But washing a single pair of jeans also uses about 14 gallons of water, which is very wasteful. Likewise, an ENERGY STAR dishwasher uses only 6 gallons of water to complete a cycle. And when the machine is full, that is a great bargain. Hand washing the same number of dishes is estimated to consume around 30 gallons of water, making a fully loaded dishwasher a very environmentally friendly choice.
Turn Off The Water While You Brush
The average bathroom faucet delivers 2.2 gallons of water per minute. And if you are brushing for 2 minutes, that comes to nearly 4.5 gallons of water wasted. Sure it sounds like a small amount. But if there are four people in your house, that is 18 gallons wasted. No, wait, that is 36 gallons a day wasted when everyone brushes twice a day. And over the year, we are looking at over 13,000 gallons or 1.3 times the capacity of the average residential swimming pool. Turn off that water and know that you are saving a bathtub’s worth of water every day as a family of four.
Saving water is something that every household should focus on as community members and save some hard-earned money. Call (214) 388-4525 to speak to the licensed plumbers at Metroplex Leak & Locate about ways to save water in your home. We offer affordable installations on low-flow fixtures and specialize in locating water leaks that are costing you money and endangering your home.
