Water Conservation Tips

Top 5 Action Plans presented by H2Ouse. With so many ways to save water, here are the highlights for 5 key actions to help you capture the water savings around your home. Remember, every drop counts!

1. Stop Those Leaks!

Check your indoor water using appliances and devices for leaks. Check out Leak Detection and Repair. Many silent leaks allow water and your money to go down the drain. To help detect unseen leaks go to Read Your Meter. Studies have shown homes can waste more than 10% due leaking, which costs both you and the environment.

Another large water waster can be leaks in your irrigation system. Fix irrigation system leaks quickly and check for water in the gutters or mud puddles. Inspect your sprinklers and drip sprayers regularly for leaks during the daytime since the optimal time to water is in the nighttime hours when you cannot observe leaks. If you have an older irrigation system, over 50% and even more than 75% of the water can be lost to leaks. Learn more about irrigation systems.

2. Replace Your Old Toilet

Your toilet is the largest water user in your home. If your home was built before 1992 and the toilet has never been replaced, then it is very likely that you do not have a water efficient 1.6 gallon per flush toilet. You can check the date stamp inside the toilet by lifting the lid and looking at the back of the toilet at the manufacturer's imprint of the make, model and date of manufacture. Learn more about toilets.

3. Replace Your Clothes Washer

Your close washer is the 2nd largest water user in your home. Energy Star rated washers that also have a Water Factor at or lower than 9.5, use 35-50% less water and 50% less energy per load. This saves you money on both your water and energy bills. There is a current qualifying products listing of water efficient clothes washer models maintained by the Consortium for Energy Efficiency. Learn more about clothes washers.

4. Plant the Right Plants

Be sure to plant the right plants with proper landscape design and irrigation. Whether you are putting in a new landscape or slowly changing the current landscaping at your home, select plants that are appropriate for your local climate conditions. Having yard with 100% lawn turf area in a dry desert climate uses significant amounts of water. Also consider the trend towards Xeriscape and a more natural landscape or wildscape. Learn more about landscaping.

5. Water Only What Your Plants Need

Most water is wasted in your garden by watering when you plants do not need the water or by not maintaining the irrigation system. Be attentive if you are manual watering by setting your oven timer or some other reminder to move the water promptly. Make sure your irrigation controller has a rain shutoff device and that it's appropriately scheduled. Most water is wasted in months prior to or just after the rainy season when intermittent rains occur.

You can also consider installing a weather adjusting Evapotranspiration (ET) irrigation controller (see description in glossary) that automatically saves water by not watering when the plants don't need the water, check with your local water provider to inquire if ET controllers work in your area. Learn more about using the features that you have in your garage for efficient watering like your hose and irrigation controller timer. Be sure to call your local water provider for more information and potential incentives.