Saving water 2 - water conservation tips

It has been a long time since I shared some tips for conserving water, so I'll add some more that I think are quite effective. The first one is really the most amazing one, because in no way does it reduce the way we enjoy and use water, but it makes a huge difference to our "water bill". In fact one of our neighbours wanted to compare their bill with ours and we found that with 4 people in our house, we were using almost half the water they used with 3 people in their house.

Install "low flow" aerators on all your taps.

What this does is mix air in with the water so that you still feel the "pressure" you would normally, but with less water being used. At our house the following flow rates work quite well for us:

• Bathroom sinks (hand washing and tooth brushing) 1.5 GPM (Gallons per minute)
• Kitchen sink (filling pots and washing things) 2.5 GPM
• Shower head 2.5 GPM

Installation only requires a pair of plyers.

1. Look for and read any small writing on the spout of your tap, look right where the water falls out (this is in case you already have one). You are looking for a number and GPM (or LPM if you are metric)
2. Purchase an aerator for your tap
3. Cover your tap's spout with a piece of cloth to prevent the plyers from scratching, and remove the round piece on the end of your tap's spout.
4. Screw your aerator back on there to replace that piece.
5. Save water

Buy a timer for your garden hose

For $6-$14 you can purchase a mechanical hose timer (no batteries required) that will let you water your lawn for increments of 15 minutes up to 2 hours. Very handy in places where there are watering restrictions. This way you can start your watering and not need to fear wasting water, while at the same time, not needing to come back at a specific time. Most models come with an option to "bypass" the timer allowing for on/off operation like normal.

Water your yard more effectively

Water your garden and lawn in the early morning or in the evening when the sun and the day's heat is not likely to evaporate your water.

Use pinholes in bottles of water to target irrigation right to the stalks of the plants you want to water. (2Litre pop bottles and 2Litre waxed cardboard milk containers work effectively.) Fill them up and leave them unattended to supply your plants with a slow and steady amount of water that won't flood them.

Turn off your water supply to your toilets before you vacation

If you have a slow leak in your toilet, while you are on vacation, your toilet will faithfully continue filling itself which wastes lots of water. If your toilet tank cracks for some reason and starts to leak onto your floor... your toilet will faithfully continue filling itself which wastes lots of water and destroys the floor, walls and anything else that gets in the way. Do yourself a favour, if you are going away for a couple nights camping or traveling, turn off the water supply and flush your toilet (you can usually time the flush so you don't waste any water ;-) ) This small step can not only save you from wasted water, but it can protect your house against the unlikely but nasty situation where a toilet decides to convert your house into a giant aquarium.

Use a rain barrel for watering your garden.

My relatives have a giant plastic rain barrel at the side of their house which catches water from the downspouts that drain from their roof. If the barrel is full, the water diverts like normal to the downspout and out onto the lawn, otherwise, a mesh cover on top keeps the barrel clean from debris and that soft rainwater that plants love so much is available for watering on weeks when there isn't a lot of rain falling. By positioning the barrel on the side of the house that is a little higher and elevating the barrel with a platform, a hose at the bottom provides adequate pressure for flowing into drip irrigation hoses and the like.

OK, I'm all out of ideas. I'd love to hear yours. Check out the previous post linked above and if you've got something new, or comments about these methods. Let everybody know down below in the comments section.

Cheers,

Greg.

My response to the One Tonne Challenge

The government of Canada initiated the One Tonne challenge as an exercise to get Canadian’s thinking about how they would reduce their emissions of carbon dioxide by one tonne (1000 KG) per year.

My response: No more gas, Less wasted water, Less drafts

The government of Canada initiated the One Tonne challenge as an exercise to get Canadian’s thinking about how they would reduce their emissions of carbon dioxide by one tonne (1000 KG) per year.

No more gas

I moved into a house that is lit and heated with electricity rather than natural gas. We have our gas meter locked off. We plan to light and heat the house entirely with electricity. We have 85% of our electricity produced through green means here in British Columbia. Huge hydro electric dams capture our abundant rainfall yielding a huge benefit from that investment in this infrastructure that was made years ago. We need to keep thinking like this. Principles before profits. My friends warn me that electricity is more expensive, so I’m trying to soften the blow by making my house more energy efficient.

Less wasted water

When water is wasted there is less clean water for other uses. When hot water is wasted it contributes directly to global warming through the C02 released to heat the water. We have replaced faucets, and replaced faucet cartridges for 6 taps. We believe that this represents 22,000 litres of water saved per year. As you know it is usually the hot water taps that leak the worst. We’ve installed aerators (little metal screens) over the faucets to limit the peak water flow. 1.5 gpm (gallons per minute) for the bathroom sink 2.2 gpm for the kitchen 2.2 gpm for our low-flow shower head, 2.2 gpm for the ensuite bathroom. We have committed to only watering the lawn 1 time per week if it needs it since frequent watering encourages shallow root systems and the quick death of your lawn anyways. We have turned down our hot water tank to 50 degrees Celsius from 60 degrees Celsius. We have read that this is hot enough to discourage bacterial growth, and the reduction in temperature means that there is a lessened chance of our children being scalded with host water. I am also continuing my practice of always washing my hands with cold water, requiring no hot water heating and no water wasted by waiting for the tap to “warm up”.

Less drafts

We have installed a door sweep under our front door with brushes to keep bugs and drafts out. We have tightened the weather stripping on our 3 exterior doors so that no light is visible around the door frame when it is shut and locked. (yes we keep them locked). We have injected expanding latex foam under our door sills (lots of space for bugs there) into spaces around anything that penetrates our house’s ‘envelope’ (entry points for vents and wires). We have put drapes up over our largest windows which we close at night to reduce the transfer of heat through those windows.

Irony or tragedy?

In an ironic twist I read this on the “one tonne challenge” website:

The Government of Canada Climate Change site is currently unavailable.

We appreciate your interest in the important issue of climate change and suggest that you visit the following sites for more information:

• Visit Environment Canada’s Green LaneTM for weather and environmental information. The Green Lane helps connect Canadians, exchange information and share knowledge for environmental decision-making.


• Visit the Natural Resources Canada site to learn about the role this department is playing in helping shape the contributions of the natural resources sector to the Canadian economy, society and environment.

Now I know Canada has been getting a black eye for its “very slow movement” on the Kyoto accord and the obligations it made, but perhaps this black eye is deserved? <<Addendum>> Perhaps these comments are in appropriate. Canada has done much in the area of natural resources given its vast land area, while having to overcome the challenges of distances unknown to all other countries except perhaps Russia. We have to communicate and transport further to move resources from source to “market” we have to move resources further to move them from market to market. We have some challenges that no European country has. However, it would appear that Canadians are waiting for something. Waiting for the government to make the first move, waiting for the pollution free car to suddenly be produced by the car manufacturing corporations, waiting for the garbage they put in landfills to magically dissolve. Some Canadians deserve credit for taking initiative and reducing their negative impact on the natural environment, but others are waiting for it to magically become more convenient and less expensive to do the right thing. In this respect it would appear that our brothers and sisters in Europe have us beat as they consciously try to do the right thing at higher cost and higher inconvenience.

Saving Water

Some simple tips for water conservation.

• Wash your hands with cold water, this saves waiting for warm water to arrive at the faucet


• Turn off the tap while you are soaping up your hands while washing.


• If you prefer chilled water, keep a jug of water in the fridge so you don’t have to run your tap while waiting for cool water.


• Use a bucket to wash your car, using the hose only for rinsing.


• Use a container (like a 4Litre milk jug) filled with water to water plants by poking a small pin hole in the bottom, rather than running a house continually.


• Fill kitchen pots with cold water and allow stove to heat. (this is still somewhat up for debate in terms of the energy used)


• Water lawn in evening or morning when there is no direct sun to evaporate your water


• Do not water lawn daily, water once per week allowing a good soaking, do not allow water to fall on hard surfaces, or to drain from lawn to hard surfaces.


• Allow your lawn to grow longer in summer (3-4 inches) so it can stay healthy in dry summer conditions.


• Consider using a “rain barrel” to store water (rain water is especially good for plants) rather than allowing it to get drained off via your house’s drainage system.


• Don’t allow your sprinkler to water the driveway, sidewalk, or street. This water evaporates quickly so it is wasted. Also stop watering if your lawn or garden starts allowing water to run out of it onto the street. it means your land is saturated and should not be watered further.


• Set a timer to remember to turn off your sprinkler.


• Turn off your hose at the faucet on your house, rather than leaving the hose under pressure, where it can leak through couplings or nozzles which are rarely 100% water tight.


• Turn off the tap while you are brushing your teeth.


• Skip a bath or shower.. I’m serious, chances are there is one day a week when you don’t have to smell like a rose. You are getting up, going to chop firewood, and then heading out for a hike. Instead of showering first thing in the morning, save it for evening before you go to bed. When you rise in the morning, you will have just barely had your shower the night before and you can avoid wasting multi-gallons of clean water. Note this won’t always work, and some people need their showers more than others.


• Put a brick in your toilet tank to reduce the amount of water used per flush.


• Fix tap leaks by replacing washers or cartridges. http://www.slowtheflow.com/repairing-faucet-leaks.html It’s easy unless you have a major plumbing problems.


• Fix toilet leaks http://www.slowtheflow.com/repairing-toilet-leaks.html (even silent ones you don’t know you have) Remember the water where you are doing the repair is the fresh water that comes in from your water supply. Relatively speaking it is much cleaner to work on that end.  They provide a handy (albeit general) pdf brochure for fixing toilet leaks.


• Choose a property with trees that shade your yard, providing better conservation of water.

Saving Energy

The energy we use costs us money, and requires  effort to produce. It also has an environmental cost when you consider how energy is produced, transported and consumed. Using energy is more expensive in all these terms than not using energy. Conserving energy represents the best of both worlds. Having energy to use to benefit our lives, and being judicious in its use so as to minimize any negative effects of energy use.Here are some energy conservation suggestions:   

• Coast in traffic. Most modern vehicles will retain their speed if you lift your foot from the accelerator. (older carbeurated cars decellerated). Anticipate what is happening ahead of you, ahead of the car ahead of you, ahead of that car etc. When you see red lights, get off the gas.


• Wash your hands with cold water (no energy to heat the water).


• Heat water using a microwave when possible, rather than using a pot on a stove.


• If heating something in a pot on a stove, use a lid to keep heat in.


• Put insulation on the hot water pipe coming out from your hot water tank, to help the hot water in the pipe retain its heat.


• Don’t drink pop from a can, the refining of the aluminum uses lots of energy. Drink water instead as it does not need to be transported. Don’t drink bottled water as in most areas the water supplied by the municipality is of equal or better quality than water that is wrapped in plastic and carried in a truck


• Carry a water bottle with a lid, so you don’t have to use paper cups, or ceramic cups that need to be washed out. A water bottle that is continually refilled and used is fine for a 5 day work week, if you purpose to wash it on the weekend. Also you won’t contribute to the wasteful production and disposal of paper cups.