A leak in your toilet may be wasting more
than 100 gallons of water a day. To check, put
a little food coloring in your toilet tank.
If, without flushing, the coloring begins to
appear in the bowl, you have a leak. Adjust
or replace the flush valve or call a plumber.
Stop using your toilet as an ashtray or wastebasket.
Every time you flush a cigarette butt, facial
tissue, or other small bit of trash down the
toilet, you waste five to seven gallons of water.
Put two plastic bottles in your toilet tank.
Your toilet can probably flush just as efficiently
with less water than it now uses. To reduce
water waste, put an inch or two of sand or pebbles
in a plastic bottle to weight it down. Fill
it with water and put it in your toilet tank,
away from the operating mechanism. The bottle
will displace several gallons of water a day.
Take shorter showers.
Long, hot showers waste five to ten gallons
every unneeded minute. Limit your showers to
the time it takes to soap up, wash, and rinse.
Install water saving shower heads or flow
restricts.
Most shower heads put out five to ten gallons
per minute: three gallons per minute is sufficient
for a refreshing shower. Your local hardware
or plumbing supply stocks inexpensive water
saving shower heads you can install easily.
The City will supply to you, at no cost, a small
insert to limit flow through your present shower
head.
Turn off the water after wetting your tooth
brush.
After you have wet your toothbrush and filled
a glass for rinsing your mouth, turn off the
tap water.
Rinse your razor in the sink.
Before shaving, partially fill the sink with
warm water. This will rinse the blade just as
well and use less water.
Check pipes and faucets for leaks.
Even the smallest drip from a worn washer
can waste 50 gallons or more a day. Larger leaks
can waste hundreds.
Water your lawn only when it needs it.
Watering frequently can be very wasteful as
it doesn't allow for rainfall that can reduce
the need for watering. A good way to see if
your lawn needs watering is to step on some
grass. If the grass springs back up when you
move, it doesn't need watering.
Use your automatic dishwasher for full loads
only.
Everytime you run your dishwasher, you use
about 25 gallons of water.
If you wash dishes by hand, don't leave the
water running for rinsing.
If you have two sinks, fill one with soapy
water and one with rinse water. If you have
but one sink, gather all the washed dishes in
the dish rack and rinse them with an inexpensive
spray device.
Don't let the faucet run while you clean vegetables.
You can serve the same purpose by putting
a stopper in the sink and filling the sink with
clean water.
Keep a bottle of drinking water in the refrigerator.
This ends the wasteful practice of running
tap water to cool it off for drinking.
Water during the cool part of the day.
Early morning is better than dusk since it
helps prevent the growth of fungus.
Use your automatic clothes washer for full
loads only.
Your automatic washer uses 30 to 35 gallons
of water in a cycle. That's a lot of water for
three t-shirts.
Plant drought resistant trees and plants.
There are many beautiful trees and plants
that thrive in Florida with far less watering
than other species.
Put a layer of mulch around trees and plants.
A layer of mulch will slow the evaporation
of moisture.
Use a broom to clean driveways, sidewalks,
and steps.
Using a hose to push around a few leaves and
scraps of paper can waste hundreds and hundreds
of gallons of water.
Don't run the hose while washing your car.
Soap down your care with a pail of soapy water.
Then use a hose just to rinse it off.
Teach your children that your hose and sprinkler
are not toys.
Few things are more cheerful than the sound
of children playing under a hose or sprinkler
on a hot day. Unfortunately, there are also
few things more wasteful of precious water.
Deep soak your lawn.
When you water your lawn, do it just long
enough for water to seep down to the roots where
it won't evaporate quickly and where it will
do the most good. A light sprinkling, which
sits on surface, will simply evaporate and be
wasted. A slow, steady fall of water is the
best way to irrigate your lawn.
Don't water the gutter.
Position your sprinklers so water lands on
your lawn or garden, not on concrete where it
does no good. Avoid watering on windy days when
much of your water will be carried off before
it ever hits the ground.
Check for leaks in pipes, hoses, faucets,
and couplings.
Leaks outside the house may not seems as unbearable
since they don't mess up the floors or drive
you crazy at night. But they can be just as
wasteful as leaks in the line from the water
meter, even more wasteful.
Your Score
If you've checked 19-23 boxes, you're doing an excellent
job of saving water, energy, and protecting our environment!
12-18 means you're doing a good job, but there's room
for improvement. Less than 12 means that you need
to change your habits.
For more information, contact the Public Works
Department, 949 NW 38 Street, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33309;
954-828-8000.
