How to Save Water in the Bathroom
On average, an American household of four people uses 400 gallons of water every day. Yes, that’s right. 400 gallons of water every day. Most of that water – more than 60% — is used in the bathroom for showering and flushing the toilet. Obviously, that is a huge amount of water. Too much of that water goes to waste.
We have to find better ways to stop wasting water. It’s not good for the environment, and it costs you money. Use these tips to help you find ways to save water in the bathroom.
- 1. Toilets use a lot of water. More than 40% of a home’s total water use can be attributed to the toilets. If your toilet is leaking, you’re wasting a lot of water every day. You can eliminate toilet leaks by installing a new flapper and fill valve. The flapper and fill valve are what release water from the toilet tank into the toilet bowl. If there is a leak there, the tank is filling the bowl with water continuously, whether it is needed or not. Getting rid of that leak will keep the water in the tank, where it belongs. You can also cut down on how much water your toilet uses by installing a dual flush converter. A dual flush converter is a device that lets you choose how much water is used for each flush. One flush gives you less water for liquid waste, and the other uses more water for solid waste. This way, you aren’t using more water than you need. By using a low flow toilet, you can reduce your water consumption by 20% for every flush.
- 2. A dripping faucet seems like it is only losing a tiny amount of water each drip. Those drips really add up, though. In fact, a leaky faucet can waste 150 gallons of water every day, and thousands of gallons of water every month. It’s easy to fix the leak. While you’re at it, put in an aerator. An aerator cuts down on the amount of water that comes out of the faucet by reducing the flow rate. A regular faucet uses about 2 ½ gallons of water per minute. With an aerator, you can cut that down to only a half-gallon per minute. This means that water comes out of the faucet a little more slowly so that less is wasted.
- 3. Showers use a ton of water; older models can actually use as much as four gallons of water every minute. Replace your current shower head with a low-flow model. New, low-flow showerheads use less than half that amount. This swap can save you hundreds of gallons of water every month, and you’ll still get a great shower with excellent water pressure.
- 4. Do a routine check of your toilets. Look for leaks and signs of water damage. This can reveal issues that you didn’t know existed; fixing those problems will help to cut down on water waste.
- 5. Use an efficient washing machine. The washing machine uses around 20% of the total amount of water used in a home. A front loader uses much less water, and any Energy Star washing machine will cut down on water consumption.
You can save water and money by making use of these tips on how to save water in the bathroom. If you run into a problem, like a water leak or damaged flapper, get in touch with Scott English Plumbing. We are your plumbing experts, and we’ll help you make sure that your plumbing is working perfectly and using less water.