Where is the most potential to save water inside a home?

Q:

 Where is the most potential to save water inside a home?

A:

 Bathrooms are the best place to start. Conventional toilets, showers and faucets combine to consume an average of 41 gallons per person per day, or about 60 percent of a home’s daily indoor drain, according to the American Water Works Association. Installing low-flow toilets, showerheads, and faucets can drop daily consumption by 36 percent, a potential savings of 12,500 gallons of water a year per household.

The old stigma that low flow toilets do not work as well as the higher flow toilets does not apply anymore.

With new government legislation forcing companies to make more low flow toilets available to the consumer the industry responded. New low flow toilets are designed in a way that allows a low flow toilet to function as well as their water wasting cousins. Gone are the days of flushing multiple times to make sure the waste has been deposited down the drain. Other ways to save water with toilets are with dual flush toilets; these are toilets that have two different flushes, one for urine and one for solids. The one for urine uses less than the one for solids. Toilets are flushed many more times for the former rather then the latter.

There are showerheads on the market today that use far less water but deliver it with far greater pressure. This puts to rest the problems people had with low flow shower heads in the past with limited pressure and eliminating the common complaint of not enough water pressure to wash the soap out of long hair.

Even bathtubs are into water saving. Today’s bubblers and jetted tubs have in-line heaters to heat the water in the tub as it is re-circulated around you. This helps keep the water warmer longer and eliminate the need for you to add extra hot water because of cooling water.

A lot of these lower water usage items are not anymore expensive then their heavy using cousins, all you have to do is a little research and you could save a lot of water and in time a lot of money.

Rob Abbott
Operations Manager
Village Builders Inc.