Water is an extremely important resource, and yet there is very little of it that is available to humans. In fact, although our earth is covered by a vast majority in H2O, only about 3 percent of it is fresh water. And of the 3 percent, only about one-third of it is available to humans—the rest is locked up (at least for now!) in ice caps around the globe. And of that 1 percent that is fresh and available to humans, much of it has already been contaminated by pollution or drained from aquifers, lakes, rivers, and streams.

It’s obvious that we must protect our water, but how do we do that as consumers? Here are some simple tips for saving water around your home—in your bathroom, your laundry room, your kitchen, and yes, even in your garage.

We need about 200 gallons of fresh water per person per day to water our collective lawn “crops.” You can reduce your impact by cutting back on the size of your lawn by planting hedges, trees, and shrubs, adding hardscape features to your landscape design such as stone walkways, brick patios, or retaining walls, or installing a porous patio. Choose a low-water lawn species to reduce the amount of water used to keep it green. Native grasses are ideal since they have survived in the wild for centuries without human intervention. Use smart watering methods, like drip irrigation and soaker hoses. Better yet, collect rainwater and use it to water everything outdoors. Start saving water at your sinks by installing faucet aerators which can cut water consumption by 13 percent. Install a low-flow showerhead to save between 15 and 20 gallons of water per shower! Use a shower timer to cut the time you spend under the water—keep it to 5 minutes or less to be really water-conscious. Fix leaks in your toilets to stop the 20 percent water leakage most homes experience. Install dual flush toilets (the most efficient options around these days) to reduce water use there by 23-32 percent. Use an Energy Star dishwasher which should be 41 percent more efficient in terms of energy consumption and uses 1,000 gallons less of water every year. Reduce water and energy use in the laundry room by 18 to 25 gallons of water per load by using a Energy Star, front-loading washing machine. Wash your car with a waterless car wash product to eliminate the 80 to 140 gallons of water people normally use to clean the outside of their vehicles. Laura Klein’s Waterless Car Wash system is both eco-friendly/nontoxic as well as water-saving, making it a really green choice.

These are some very practical, mostly inexpensive solutions to save water around your home. Implement them all and you’ll see a drastic reduction in the water you use every month!

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