Water Conservation

As you all should know, Earth Day is coming up April 22nd! I've decided to post tips on the different ways we can help our earth, starting with the basic water conservation, the three R's (reduce, reuse, recycle), and energy and global warming.

Two things I don't like about this holiday though are:

-People who are convinced they're "going green". I'll admit I am not the most eco-friendly person ever, but I'm making an effort which is what others should do too.

-This encourages people to focus on our world  only once a year, when they should be doing it all the time. It should be like "Earth Millennium" or at least to celebrate our efforts that we've been making year-round. 

Okey-Dokey, to start I'm going to start with things you should already know about water conservation. Of all the water on our planet humans are only able to drink less than 1% of it. Here are twenty tips from my little friends H2O Jo and Flo.

1. Turn off the water while you shave or brush your teeth. (Save 1-5 gallons/minute)

2. Fill up the bathtub half full if you take a bath. (Save up to 12 gallons on a 24 gallon bath)

3. Limit your showers to five minutes or take shorter showers (Save 2-8 gallons for every minute you cut back)

4. Install a low-flow shower head (Save up to 5 gallons/minute)

5. Run only full loads of dishes in the dishwasher (Save up to 15 gallons/load)

6. If you do not have adjustable water levels, run only full loads of laundry (Save up to 40 gallons for every load you don't run)

7. Limit family members to four flushes per day. This will likely mean that the toilet isn't flushed every time it's used (Save 1-5 gallons/flush) Okay, this one's kinda gross but be considerate about your toilet needs. 

8. Install low-flow faucets, faucet restrictors or aerators. (Save up to 5 gallons/minute)

9. Fix any leaky faucets. (Save up to 2700 gallons/year)

10. Get running or leaking toilets fixed. Or install a low-flow toilet. (Save up to 30-500 gallons/day)

11. While waiting for the shower or bath water to warm up, save that water and use it on your house plants, flower beds, trees, in your pets' bowls, or elsewhere.

12. Soak pots and pans instead of letting the water run over them while you scrape. 

13. When washing dishes by hand, fill one sink or basin with soapy water and one with clean water. Dip in clean water to rinse.

14. Defrost food in the fridge or use the defrost setting on your microwave rather than running water to thaw frozen foods.

15. Use the garbage disposal less often(in your sink). 

16. Chill water in the refrigerator for drinking instead of letting the faucet run to cool it.

17. Don't use or install ornamental water features unless they recycle water. 

18. Partially fill a sink or pan with water to wash produce, rather than running the water to wash them. 

19. Use one glass per person per day to cut down on dirty dishes. 

20. Xeriscape your lawn!

 Please please do incorporate these actions into your everyday life for the sake of your planet! If you have any other "green" tips for our planet, please leave it as a comment. Thanks!

-smellycat33