by Reid Case

Created on: November 17, 2009   Last Updated: November 18, 2009

Woe to those of us with running toilets, dripping sinks, and ravenously thirsty washing machines. Compound those wasteful fixtures with ever increasing utility bills and you create an equation hell-bent on rendering your family broke.

To save on your bill you must maintain all your appliances and fixtures to avoid running up your bill, as your toilet runs continuously. The dripping sink may not seem like much, but after dripping 24 hours daily, 7 days a week, for an entire month it may add up. The first real step in saving is to tie up the loose strings. Inspect every faucet, fixture, and spigot inside and outside. Monitor your meter and keep a log of daily usage. If no one is home then it should not be running, unless you have ice machines/makers, fountains, pools, and automated irrigation.

Once you have stopped the drips you must confront usage habits. Do you, or anyone in your family, take long showers or multiple baths per day. Limit the household to one shower/bath per individual each day. Also limit the amount of time in the shower. Set up a timer in each bath room to help with the situation. How often do you wash dishes and cloths? Some households execute this chore daily. Take a step back and consider if you absolutely must wash clothing that often.

Is there a way you can avoid doing the dishes nightly? Maybe using towels more than once, although they may be slightly damp, may avoid multiple loads of laundry throughout the week. How often do you wash your hands? Hopefully every time you use the toilet. Do you leave the water running as you brush your teeth? Do you water your garden twice daily? These are all the kinds of questions you must ask yourself in this step. You must confront the obvious wasteful use and arrest it before you can save on the bill.

The next step is to install fixtures and appliances that are less wasteful. All common hardware and big box building supply stores sell low use shower fixtures. It is more than likely that there are similar restricted faucets for sinks. A smaller tank on your toilet will flush less water each time, and subsequently save money. If your hot water heating system is inefficient then it may cause you to run the water for a few minutes before each shower or bath. You could spring for a hot water on demand type water heater and install it closer to the bathrooms. Most of the same supply stores, a few garden centers, and online merchants offer rain water collection systems that collect water from your gutters

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>