photo credit: BFS Man

As I mentioned before, I am following this super website on tips for living green, and promised to share some of these with you.

Now that you are becoming more aware of these great ways to save the environment, energy, and money, you can join in and be part of the Living Green Team.

Mother Earth and future generations with thank you!

Today’s post is all about conserving water and saving a bundle at the same time, so read on.

Don’t Just Go with the Flow

What?
Conserve water – and lower your bills – by installing low-flow showerheads and faucet aerators.

How?
It’s brilliant, really. Low-flow showerheads and faucet aerators allow you to enjoy the same water pressure with lower water consumption.

Why?
Conventional showerheads use anywhere between 2.5 and 5 gallons of water per minute, while low-flow showerheads can reduce that number to 1 to 1.5 gallons per minute.

Did You Know?
Installing a low-flow showerhead can save you $100 per year in water usage and water-heating costs.

Scrub, Rinse and Get Out of There

What?
Save money and water by speeding up your shower routine.

How?
The average showerhead uses about five gallons of water per minute. Thus, trimming your daily shower by just three minutes can save 15 gallons of water per day – and 5,460 gallons per year!

Why?
Reducing your water use can save you about $170 per year. In addition, it decreases the amount of fossil fuel energy used to supply, treat and heat your water.

Did You Know?
Americans use an average of 100 gallons of water per day. No wonder 36 states are anticipating severe local, regional or statewide water shortages by 2013.

Do the Rain Dance

What?
Save water by installing a water catcher or rain barrel for your home.

How?
Position the barrel to capture rainwater from your gutters. Then use the non-potable water to wash cars, flush toilets, water the lawn, etc.

Why?
A rain barrel can save approximately 1,300 gallons of water during peak summer months.

Did You Know?
Lawn and garden watering make up nearly 40% of total household water use during the summer.

Don’t Be A Drip About Water Usage

What?
Save time and water with a drip irrigation system for your yard.

How?
Shop online or visit your local gardening store to buy a system. Once you’re set up, you can retire the sprinkler and put away that hose you keep tripping over.

Why?
Drip irrigation is extremely efficient because it applies water directly to the plant’s roots. As a result, it eliminates excess water usage as well as the misdirected spray that promotes weeds.

Did You Know?
Over 90% of the water used by drip irrigation is absorbed by the plant, compared to only 40-75% for sprinklers.

No Leaking – In or Out of the Pool

What?
Conserve water by identifying and fixing leaks in your swimming pool.

How?
The bucket test. Fill a five-gallon bucket with water, and put it on a step or bench in the pool. If the pool’s water level decreases faster than the bucket’s water level, you may have a leak.

Why?
In a big pool, even a small leak can waste over 100,000 gallons of water per year.

Did You Know?
You can search for pool repair experts in your area at www.poolleak.info.

Are You a Profligate Sprinkler?

What?
Conserve water through responsible lawn watering.

How?
Use an electronic soil tester to measure moisture. Water your lawn in one deep session per week – rather than frequent lighter sessions. And do it in the early morning to minimize evaporation.

Why?
Most lawns need about one inch of water per week, and many Americans go way beyond that. To make matters worse, we’re wasting water while many states have droughts.

Did You Know?
A whopping 60% of water use on the West Coast is attributed to watering lawns, a non-essential usage.