Power Smart Water Saving Tips
Be Power Smart around your home to save water and energy. Here are some small changes that you can make to reduce your water use and save:
- Wash your clothes in cold water whenever possible. Hot water wash cycles use more energy than cold water.
- Turn off the faucets when you brush your teeth or shave. Use a glass of water for rinsing and leave water in the sink for shaving.
- Repair leaking toilets and faucets promptly. A leaking faucet can waste up to 11,000 litres (2,400 gallons) of water (or more) every year.
- To prevent taps from leaking, turn them off properly and replace washers as necessary.
- In the kitchen, use a bowl to wash vegetables rather than rinsing them under the tap.
- Thaw frozen foods in the fridge, or use the microwave instead of thawing them under running water.
- If you must rinse dishes first, use cold water and conserve water with a low-flow 1.5 gallons per minute (gpm) faucet aerator.
- Wash only full loads. The dishwasher uses the same amount of water, for full and half full loads.
- Install water and energy saving faucet aerators and showerheads with a flow rate of 1.5 gpm or less.
- Put food colouring in your toilet tank. If it seeps into the toilet bowl, you have a leak. Fix it and save more than 600 gallons a month.
- Drop that tissue in the waste bin instead of flushing it and save litres every time.
- For peak operating efficiency, load your clothes washer to capacity. A full load uses less water than two half loads.
- Consider an ENERGY STAR® front-loading washing machine. It uses considerably less water than a top-loader.
- Insulate the first metre and a half of your water pipes going in and out of your water heater with pipe wrap to reduce heat loss and save energy.
