Plumber Summer: 5 Tips on Saving Water

Summer is upon us, and with the warm weather comes an increase in water usage. To ensure you are getting the most of your water this summer, here are a few tips you reduce wasted water to, help our environment and keep money in your pocket too.

1. Detect Leaks. 

A great way to find out if you have a water leak in your house is by checking your water meter. 

First, check that all your faucets are turned off and that your dishwasher and washing machine isn’t running. Take a reading off of your water meter and come back in an hour or two to see if the meter reading has changed. During this two-hour period, ensure you’re not using any water in the interior or exterior of your house. A change in the water meter indicates that there is a leak. One leak can waste a surprising volume of water, so once you detect a leak, locate then fix it. 

Tricky Toilets:

Toilets can account for up to 30% of water use and are one of the biggest culprits for water leaks. Luckily, there is an easy way to check if you have a leaky toilet. Add a few drops of food colouring to your toilet tank and wait a few minutes, if the water in your bowl starts to change colour that will indicate that there is a leak. 

Tap Dancing:

Leaky taps are sneaky, and you may never even notice them. However, they can account for up to 60 litres of water going straight down the drain every week. To check if you have a leaky tap, place a bowl under your taps and leave it for a couple of hours. If you do have a leak, you should notice the bowl is filling with water. This can easily be fixed by calling a Calgary plumber, or if you don’t mind the leak and want to be savvy, leave the bowl under the taps and use the water for other things, such as watering plants.

2. Efficiently Water Your Lawn

Summer is the time we want our our lawns to green up and grow, at least until it snows. To get our lawns to that beautiful shade of green, we need to care for them and water regularly. Watering your lawn takes about 1 inch of water per square foot, which can add up. With that in mind, here are a few quick tips for watering your lawn this summer. 

Point It Out:

To ensure that your lawn is getting the most out of your water and without waste, ensure that you are pointing your sprinklers and sprinkler heads towards your grass or plants. Then adjust the turning radius so that the water hits only the grass and not pavement. 

Time of Day:

You can also water outdoor plants in the early morning or at the end of the day to stop water immediately evaporating in sunlight and heat. Water the soil so that the liquid goes straight to the roots, where it’s needed most.

3. Turn off the Taps

Turning off your taps is one of the easiest and most talked about ways to conserve water. Here are a few ways that you can use this to save more water: 

• Brushing your teeth: If you turn your that taps off while you brush your teeth you can save up to 6 litres per minute! You only need to run the water to wet your toothbrush and then to rinse. 
• Washing your hands:  Turning the taps off while washing your hands is an excellent way to eliminate wasted water. If you are washing your hands according to guidelines and scrubbing your hands for 20 seconds, turning the taps off while you scrub can save up to 22 litres of water a day. 
• Washing dishes: If you are looking to save water while washing dishes, a dishwasher may be the way to go. An energy-efficient dishwasher uses as little as 4-gallons of water per cycle, whereas hand washing dishes can use up to 20 gallons. 

4. Summer Cleaning

When you are cleaning the yard this summer, there are a few ways that to reduce water usage. 

• Instead of using a hose to wash of your patio, driveway and sidewalks, use a broom to remove all the dust, dirt and debris. 
• An alternative to washing your car in your driveway is washing it with a bucket and sponge. Your neighbourhood might also have a car wash that uses less water per car and recycles its water. 
• Remember: turn your hose off when it isn't being used. If you use your hose to clean the exterior of your house, make sure that you turn it off as much as possible.

5. Collect Rainwater 

An easy, increasingly common way to save water is by collecting rainwater. All you require is a barrel. You can purchase a rainwater barrel at your local hardware store, or as an alternative, use a garbage can. Collecting rainwater can save up to 5,000 litres of water a year. That’s a lot of plants you could be watering throughout the summer months!

These tips are a great start to reducing your overall water usage this summer, and are easy to incorporate into your daily routine. Should you notice any leaks or other plumbing issues this summer contact the Calgary plumbing company you can trust. Call Alpha Plumbing.