Remember growing up when we never thought twice about water? Just the idea that people in the future would be paying to buy bottled water would have made us all laugh hysterically.Today is Blog Action Day, a day when bloggers around the world unite to talk about one topic. This year's topic is Climate Change. I am a strong believer that grass roots efforts can make a difference.
I've decided to focus on water usage. 71% of the earth is covered with water, but only 3% is drinkable. Here are some easy ways to reduce the amount of water that you use.
Green Plumbing:
How To Conserve Water
1. Turn off the water when you brush your teeth, shave and wash your hands.
2. Install a low flush toilet or don't flush each time. My mother is fond of saying "If it's yellow, let it mellow. If it's brown, flush it down. " A regular toilet uses 3.5 - 5 gallons per flush, so this can quickly save quite a lot of water.
3. Take a shower rather than a bath. Generally a shower will use 1/3 the water of a bath (as long as you don't take those marathon showers I did as a teenager!)
4. Make sure your toilet isn't leaking. Put a few drops of food coloring, dark colored fruit juice or instand coffee in your tank. Put in enough so that there is a deep color in the tank. Make sure no one uses the toilet for 30 minutes. Check the toilet bowl. If any color is in the bowl, you have a leak. A silent leaking toilet can waste 30 - 500 gallons of water a day!
5. Mulch your garden. Mulch not only reduces evaporation of moisture from the soil, it will also help cut down on weeds.
Small, easy changes can make a big difference in the amount of water we all use.
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