There are three major areas in the house where maximum water savings can occur- the kitchen, the laundry, and the bathroom. Outside the house, in the plants and the garden further water can be saved through utilization of grey water or rainwater.
Kitchen
The kitchen is a major consumer of water in the home, using around 10% of total household water consumption for cooking, cleaning, washing or drinking.
• Cleaning utensils by hand, under running tap water utilizes around 60L of water during every clean. There are actually two more efficient and water saving ways to clean dishes.
o The dishwasher- Installing a water efficient model will save you not only water, but also money. Before purchasing a new dishwasher, check the appliance for an appropriate label. Only use the dishwasher when you have a full load.
o 2 sink system- If you have two sinks, fill one up with water. Rinse the dishes in them rather than under a running tap to save water. If you have only one sink, stack the washed dishes in a dish rack and rinse them with a pan of hot water.
• Within 90% of the Indian households, maids are employed for daily chores. Ask maid servants to-
o Use washing up liquid sparingly as this will reduce the amount of rinsing required when washing dishes by hand.
o To prevent full flow of water (we all complain about the high water flow and water wastage by maids) install ‘Flow controlled aerators’ for taps that are inexpensive and can reduce water flow by 50%.
o Insulate hot water pipes. This avoids wasting water while waiting for hot water to flow through and saves energy.
o Make sure your hot water system thermostat is not set too high. Adding cold water to cool very hot water is wasteful.
• Preparations
o Defrosting- Don’t use running water to defrost frozen food. Ideally place food in refrigerator to defrost overnight or if you are short on time, use the microwave instead of placing them under running water.
o Cleaning the vegetables- Catch running water whilst waiting for it to warm up. Use it to water plants, rinse dishes or wash fruit and vegetables. OR when cleaning vegetables under a running tap (unadvisable) catch the dripping water and then use it to water the plants or flush the toilets.
• Boiling the food- When boiling vegetables, use enough water to cover them and keep the lid on the saucepan. The most water efficient methods for cooking vegetables are microwaving, steaming or using a pressure cooker. Your vegetables will boil quicker and it will save you water, power and preserve precious vitamins in the food. You can also cut down on water loss by using tight lids on pots and simmering instead of boiling rapidly.
Laundry
15-20% of all water consumed in the home is used in the laundry, making this room a high consumer of not only water but also energy and detergents. Therefore one of the most important points to consider in this area of the house is the Washing Machine. Here are a few tips to remember:-
• Consider buying a water efficient front loading washing machine.
• Check the water efficiency performance of any product before buying.
• Adjust the water level to suit the size of the wash load - some new water efficient models will do this automatically.
• Wash with a full load and you`ll save 10 liters of water each wash.
• Make sure your pipes or taps are not leaking. If you have a leaking tap, replace the washer or other components as required. Dripping taps can waste 30 – 200 liters of water per day.
There have been age long debates between the advantages and disadvantages of the Front Loaders to Top Loaders. In India, the Top Loaders have been used extensively till just recently. The following is a summary of the Pros and Cons of each system.
b>Bathroom
Nearly half of all water consumed in the home is used in the bathroom. 20% of that water is flushed down the toilet.
Toilet
The Dual flush system is designed to discharge 6L for the full flush and 3L for the short flush as opposed to the 7.5L discharged in the older versions. Parryware conducted an experiment for this new system and concluded that-
Premise: Every day use 2 times urinal and 1 time solid waste
b>Tips
? Flush the toilet only when needed (don`t use it for a trash can or ash tray) and save 45L of water per person per day.
? Does your toilet ever make noises when it is not in use? A toilet with even a small leak can greatly increase your water bill. Check to see if your toilets are leaking. Put some food coloring in the tank and see if it enters the bowl without flushing. If it does, try replacing the flapper.
Bath
• Take a 5-minute shower instead of a bath. Limit time spent in the shower to soap up, wash down, and rinse off. Shorter showers save on energy costs associated with heating water Moreover 5 minute showers save more than 56L of water per person.
• Use a shower timer. Choose from a manual 4-minute egg timer or a more sophisticated electronic timer that either attaches to the shower wall or showerhead, or is wired into the wall during construction
• While waiting for the shower to warm up, catch the cold water in a container to use on outside plants.
• Install a new water-efficient showerhead. It saves on hot water energy costs and stretches the availability of hot water for others.
• Shave your legs before taking a shower. Use running shower water to rinse off.
Other
o A running tap uses about 16 liters of water per minute. Turn off the water while brushing your teeth or while shaving. Use a glass of water instead and save 11L liters of water per brushing.
o Use a bucket while washing your car and always use a hose with a shut off nozzle when rinsing and save 19L of water per minute.
o Fix leaky faucets and plumbing joints inside and outside of your home.
o Check your water meter to see if there are any leaks. If it is spinning and there’s no water being used, there is probably an undetected leak somewhere.
o The next time a plumber visits, have them check your household water pressure. If it is over 80psi, have a pressure regulator installed outside.
o At a restaurant, turn your water glass upside down if you don’t want water. This saves the water you drink and the water used to wash the glass.
Garden
The most important thing to know when planting a garden is not to be tempted by exotic plants that do not suit the host climate. Many a times such plants require extra patience, efforts, money and most importantly water. They may transpire differently than native plants. There is a reason for certain plants to be adept in one climate, and certain reasons for them to be adept in another.
• Water your plants in the morning or in the evening, and never during bright sunlight. This is because heavy sunlight causes transpiration within the plants.
• Don’t make major changes during the summertime. Summer is not the time to reinvent a water wise garden. By all means mulch, prune, shade, get rid of pot plants, reduce lawn area, etc., but please don`t put in young plants, start a new grass lawn or even install a new irrigation system.
The ground is rock hard, disturbed soil will lose a lot more water and plants are likely to die even with copious water. Wait for autumn, preferably after the autumn rains start and the weather is cooler. It will be easier, more successful and you will be in an excellent position for next summer as plants will have plenty of time to establish before summer.
• Outdoor plants in pots use a lot more water than plants in the ground. They are more exposed to sun and wind, only have a small amount of potting mix to store water in and they dry out faster. If you need to minimize water for your garden, one solution is to reduce your pot plants. Cuttings and nursery plants should be put into the ground in Autumn. Pot plants on terraces and small spaces that you really love should be collected together out of the wind and preferably in shade over Summer. This will reduce not only the water you use, but the time you need to spend watering.
