Do you usually brush your pearly whites whilst letting the water run down the faucet? Or, how about letting your showerhead create a waterfall-like effect as you get carried away with your solo performance in the shower? These are simple acts that lead to water wastage.
Wastage and misuse of water cause the unfortunate incidence of water scarcity to arise. Not only that, but this also causes millions of people around the world, particularly those who live in poverty, to have unequal access to clean water or no water at all. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), around 2.1 billion people in the world lack access to clean drinking water.
Hence, we should all do our part while we can and conserve probably the most important resource on Earth. For starters, we should identify where/how we are wasting water:
1. Your toilet becomes a trash can
Toilets are used to dispose of our bodily waste and toilet paper. However, we have the tendency to dispose of other stuff as well into the toilet.
A single flush equates to a loss of about 5 to 7 gallons of water! Before you tug on the flush, remember that you are not just wasting water. But you could be creating potential problems such as clogged pipes that are going to be really expensive to repair!
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2. You indulge in the luxury of long baths
Studies have shown that each time you use the shower, you’re using about 2 gallons of water per minute. If you spend 15 minutes in the shower, that means 30 gallons of water is being used! The best is to be mindful of what you're doing when the water is running. This means turning off the tap when shampooing, or wait till you're done showering to do your solo performance.
You can also choose to opt for a low-flow showerhead which helps to reduce the amount of water being used.
3. Running the washing machine even when the load is half-full
In order to save water, it is best to run the washing machine when the load is full (or almost) instead of half. This ensures cost-effectiveness and the durability of your washing machine in the long run.
Front-loading washing machines are the best as they use up to 70% less water, unlike top loaders. That’s because they are able to toss the clothes up and down into the wash water repeatedly, instead of letting them float or immerse in water.
4. Leaving the tap running when brushing your teeth
Oftentimes we brush our teeth and leave the water on, thinking that we are going to be done in any minute anyways. Wrong! Since you do not need to use the water at that moment, it is best to turn the faucet off, till you’re ready for good gargling.
5. Washing the dishes while the tap runs
Though it feels easier to soap up the dishes and immediately washes them under the running water, there is another efficient way to wash them and save water at the same time.
It’ll actually be more productive (and quicker) for you to soap up all the dishes first. Once you’re done, you can turn on the faucet and wash all the dishes at once! Cinderella will be so proud!
These little acts will undoubtedly help save water and your water bill too!