Save Money on Your Water Bill

Posted on Thursday, August 6th, 2009 at 7:57 pm in Financial Planning

One of the simplest ways to save money is to waste less. We all need to use water for drinking, bathing, cooking, cleaning etc., but there are many painless ways to cut down on our water consumption. If you live in a rural area you might get your water from a well and therefore don’t have to pay a water bill, however you’ll be paying for the electricity needed to pump the water out of the ground.

Besides saving your hard-earned cash, cutting down on water use means that you’re conserving a valuable natural resource and helping to preserve the environment. Here are several easy tips for reducing your water consumption. If you live in a place where there are water restrictions, you might know some of these already:

* Take a short shower rather than filling the tub for bathing. Turn the water off while you’re applying shampoo and soap.
* Use a normal shower head rather than the outsize type that has been fashionable for a while now.
* Alternatively, you can fill a bucket with water from the shower or bath, and use a plastic cup or measuring jug to scoop the water out and pour over your hair and body. With this method you only use the water you need.
* If you have to run the shower to get it hot, catch the cold water in a bucket and use it for flushing the toilet, watering the garden, and so on.
* Do the same in the kitchen with a pitcher. Then you can put it straight in the refrigerator for drinking, or use it for coffee, cooking, pets or watering plants.
* Keeping the tap on while you brush your teeth wastes a lot of water. Run the water again when it’s time to rinse, or fill a glass or mug and use that to clean your mouth and your toothbrush.
* Avoid rinsing dishes under the faucet. Fill a basin, or the second sink, with water and dunk the washed dishes instead.
* Look out for dripping pipes, toilets and taps, and get them repaired as soon as you find a leak.
* If you’re renovating make sure you install low-flush toilets, which use far less water.
* Do your laundry when you have a full load, and not before. Also, don’t wash items that aren’t actually dirty.
* The same applies to running the dishwasher.
* Use a bucket for washing your car or motorbike. Hosepipes waste gallons of water!
* Get a watering can for your garden, or use a low-flow hose attachment if you have a big yard.
* Catch the runoff from the roof in a water butt or old barrel placed beneath a drainpipe. The water is ideal for cleaning your car, watering plants or filling pets’ bowls.
* Keep your swimming pool or hot tub covered unless you’re using them. That way you minimize the need to replace water lost through evaporation.

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