Conserving water is always something I keep in mind, though lately it has been something not to take for granted. It was late Wednesday night, as we were doing the last of the dinner dishes, when the water just stopped. We went to bed and hoped the problem was as simple as needing to change the filter on our well. The next day, when changing the filter on our well did not solve the problem, we had to call the company who put in our well. In the meantime, our family of 3 had to figure out how to survive on low-flow, intermittent water. I came up with a few tips.
#1: Keep a small tub in the sink filled with water at all times. When dishes are dirty, it is easy to use the tub to rinse food off before putting them in the dishwasher. In a pinch, you can add a little soap and even do the dishes. It is much more efficient than letting water run continually down the drain every time you need to wash a single dish. It conserves a lot of water!
#2: Turn off the shower while you soap up! It may sound a little extreme, especially as the weather gets colder and it is tempting to let the hot water run down your back a little longer than usual, but I learned it really isn't that bad, and conserves so much water. It also makes the shower much shorter, which for me is a tip in itself.
#3: Only flush the toilet when you need to. Again, this may seem a little extreme, but more often than not, the contents of the toilet are just fine to sit for a little longer. Every time you flush, it uses GALLONS of water, but when you are slective, you consere a lot of water!
#4: Think twice about what you throw in the dirty laundry. Just because you wore it doesn't mean it's dirty. This was an especially good lesson for my husband, who tosses everything in the hamper after he has worn it. Honestly people, that is why we wear undergarments, to keep things cleaner longer. It also keeps your clothes looking newer and better for much longer. Of course, if you spill or soil your clothing, that is an exception. The less you have to use the washing machine, the more water you conserve.
We finally got our water back on track after 3 days of going with little. It turns out the heavy rains had caused the pressure regulator to go underwater, so we had to replace it. We are happy to have things back to normal, but will take these small lessons in water conservation with us. When I think about how lucky we are to have running water all the time, and actually how many people in the world do not have this luxury, I know we are truly blessed and we cannot be wasteful.
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