Tips on how to save water
A privilege not many people have
1. FILL IT UP!
Filling up your washing machine will really save you water. Instead of just putting in a pair of socks, undies and jeans into the washing machine, wait with starting it until it is full! This also goes for the dishwasher! (see next tip)
3. flush only when you need to
If you are in the bathroom and have made a #2, then yes, please DO FLUSH! But if you have just done a #1 then just close the lid and wait for later with the flushing or for someone else to do a #2! If you live with other people, for example if you go to college, this might not be accessible to you, but if it is just you, or one other person, just think about it and maybe try to arrange it with your roommate so you both can save money on using less water.
5. Change your diet wisely
While veganism and cruelty against animals can get really tricky to tackle, there is an environmental aspect to the issue as well. Meat production requires a lot of water compared to veggies. While society also argues over whether or not meat is healthy, you can spare the environment, and the rest of human society who don’t have much water, a good deal of resources if you cut down on the amount of meat you eat. In fact, if you switch to a vegetarian diet, (which includes dairy, eggs, etc.) then you can reduce your carbon footprint by 36% (source). And if you do want to eat some meat, choose poultry over beef:)
The water footprint of poultry, pork and beef: A comparative study in different countries and production systems, P.W. Gerbens-Leenes, M.M. Mekonnen, A.Y. Hoekstra, https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2212371713000024
2. Use the dishwasher rather than handwashing
The majority of relatively modern to modern dishwashers use much less water than you would washing your dishes by hand. Often a small fraction of it. Which is lucky for the lazy person inside of you. Now you can even get dishwashers like the Tetra Tech dishwasher, which only takes 10 minutes and 3 liters (≈.8 gallons) of water to wash! It is a small countertop dishwasher, but it conserves an immense amount of energy and water, and can also be used for any other things, such as cooking. This dishwasher is also (this dishwasher is not available yet, and if you already have a dishwasher, please just keep using that one to save the earth from more appliance waste)
4. turn it off!
You have probably heard this one before, but it is not one that many people do! Turning off the water when you apply soap in the shower. Especially people with long hair struggle with taking short showers because it takes soooo long to get all that soap out of those luscious locks! But if you try to limit the time you're just standing underneath the warm water, and only have it on when you need to, it will save a lot of water (and money). So to turn of the water when you're applying soap, and then turn it back on once you need to wash it out. (If you close the door to the bathroom when you shower, like most people do, the room should heat up pretty quickly. Just bite it in you if it is a little cold to stand there the first time you apply soap.)
6. shower less
Unless you are a professional athlete that smells every day from sweating doing what you do, you most likely don’t need to shower more than 1-2 times a week. Showering less means letting your hair and skin regenerate it’s natural oils and prevents chlorine (present in almost all treated water and sometimes even in toxic levels) from drying your skin and frizzing your hair. IT’S A WIN WIN!