Thanks to more climate change awareness and Earth Day’s growing popularity, homeowners across the globe are becoming more eco-minded. Making your home greener is a great goal, and an excellent place to start is your home’s water usage.
With over 900 billion gallons of water wasted annually in the United States, if we all do our part, we can cut down on water waste and strive to protect this precious resource every day of the year, not just on Earth Day.
Ready to go eco-friendly at home? Follow these tips for better water habits from our team at Frank Gay Services.
- Look to Your Tap
- Soak Up Savings While Conserving Water
- Watch out for Wasteful Water Leaks
Look to Your Tap
While your dentist might recommend you brush your teeth for at least two minutes twice a day, they don’t say to leave the faucet running while brushing. And for good reason!
Every time someone uses the faucet to brush their teeth, wash their face, or shave, 5 gallons of water are wasted.
If you think about it, a family of four can waste around 32 gallons of water each day if they keep up this bad habit! So, turn off the sink when not using running water. You could save thousands of gallons every year by changing this small habit.
Soak Up the Savings while Conserving Water
After a long day, a long hot shower can be just what you need to clean up and relax. Unfortunately, long hot showers can waste A LOT of water!
A 10-minute shower can use 25–40 gallons of water, whereas a full bath can use up to 60 gallons, depending on how efficient the showerhead is.
Since a shower lasting more than 15 minutes can waste more water than taking a bath, a quick clean can help reduce these water-wasting woes. If you’d rather have a long relaxing session in some hot water and steam, taking a bath is more eco-conscious.
Watch Out for Wasteful Water Leaks
Of all the ways that water is wasted in the home, leaky plumbing is the most common. Unfortunately, it can be the hardest to find and diagnose. The typical American home can waste more than 10,000 gallons of water in a single year due to undetected leaks.
If you notice a water bill that has suddenly skyrocketed but your home’s water demands haven’t changed, there is likely a leak somewhere in your plumbing system.
Since leaks can occur behind walls and are often caused by corroded pipes, it is important to work with a professional plumber like our 5-star rated team at Frank Gay Services to locate and fix the leak.
Got a leak? Call our professional plumbers at Frank Gay Services for leak detection service today; (407) 329-5145!
Additional Eco-Friendly Water Conservation Ideas
Conserving water doesn’t have to be hard! It’s all about the little everyday things that can add up. Here are a few more tips to help you save even more water at home: data-ccp-props=”{“201341983″:0,”335559740”:276}”>
- Soak your dishes in warm water first: Save water and a whole lot of effort! Soaking dishes is more effective and eco-friendly than scraping and rinsing them in running water.
- Run your dishwasher and washing machine only when full: Your washing machine and dishwasher can use 10-15 gallons of water per cycle, so get better value for your money and save water and energy by doing fewer, fuller loads.
- Use energy-efficient water-saving appliances and devices: Low-flow showerheads can be a great way to save water but will still offer you a satisfying shower. Low-flush toilets may use less water per flush, but they are just as effective.
- Install a water softener for hard water problems: If you find it hard to lather or wash off the soap in the shower or notice stains dotting your glassware after they are washed, you likely have hard water, meaning that you are probably using more water to clean everything. A water softener can help combat hard water minerals and conserve water in your home. Plus your hair and skin will be noticeably softer!
- Go easy on watering your lawn or plants: When watering your lawn, make sure that your sprinklers are watering just your lawn, NOT your sidewalk or driveway. If you have a garden, consider installing drip irrigation to ensure that water isn’t being wasted and that your plants are sufficiently watered.
- Reuse water for your garden: Instead of washing your vegetables and fruits in running water that goes down the drain, rinse them over a bowl of water. While you shouldn’t use this water for drinking, you can use it to water your plants or landscaping.
With small steps, we can collectively make a big difference to ensure that our water is conserved and available for generations to come.
Conserve Water with Frank Gay Services
If you’d like to make some changes in your water usage habits at home, call our team at Frank Gay Services! We can install low-flow toilets and showerheads, water softening systems to combat Orlando’s hard water, and fix any leaks or plumbing issues around the home.
Conserve water and save big on your utility bills! Call Frank Gay Services to schedule a consultation today
