Shave your face with a little water in the sink or a cup instead of letting the tap run.
After a bath, don't drain out the water but use it for flushing toilets by pouring it in quickly.
You can flush a toilet and not waste any water if you use the water from boiling eggs or potatoes or from washing dishes. Once you remove the food and the water has cooled, simply pour the water into the toilet all at once.
If you do not have a low-flow toilet, adding a two-liter bottle filled with water and stones to the tank will save water with every flush.
Do not flush the toilet for liquid waste but wait until there is solid waste. Keeping the lid closed will prevent any odor problem.
Use a trashcan instead of the toilet to dispose of tissues.
Close the drain in the tub before filling it with water. You can turn off the cold water before the hot if the tub water is too cool, but cold water is not wasted while you wait for it to turn hot.
Most adults can use less water in the shower instead of a bath. Little children use less water in a shallow bath, especially if two or three of them can fit in at one time.
A parent can save water by taking their little one into the shower with them.
Family members should take their showers one right after the other so the water does not have to be run again just to warm it.
Put a dishpan or bucket in the shower to catch the cool water that would otherwise be wasted waiting for the water to heat up.
Check for toilet tank leaks by adding food coloring to the tank. If the toilet is leaking, color will appear in the bowl within 30 minutes (flush as soon as test is done, since food coloring may stain tank).
There are many devices available to help save water (low-flow showerhead, low-flush toilet, shower timer, low-flow faucet, tankless water heater, etc.)
Kitchen
Wash only full loads in the dishwasher.
Do not let the water run while you are washing dishes. Instead, wash dishes by hand using a dishpan in the sink.
Fill a second dishpan with hot water and dip dishes and glasses to rinse them.
When all the washed dishes have been rinsed, pour the water down the drain slowly while you run the garbage disposal.
Used dishwater can also be used to flush the toilet if it is poured in all at once. (Many cities have an ordinance against using this "graywater" on lawns or gardens to keep it out of the groundwater. But it could always be used to water houseplants.)
Floors or counters may also be washed with used rinse water since it was only used for clean dishes.
After washing dishes in a dishpan, reuse the soapy water to soak more dishes throughout the day.
Paper plates and cups can be recycled instead of being washed.
You can flush a toilet and not waste any water if you use the water from boiling eggs or potatoes or from washing dishes. Once you remove the food and the water has cooled, simply pour it into the toilet all at once.
After boiling eggs and letting the water cool, pour the used water in your garden. The water is not wasted, and it is a great fertilizer.
Use grapefruit seed extract
(30 drops of grapefruit seed oil to a quart of water in a spray bottle) to clean fruits and vegetables. Putting fruits or vegetables into a bowl of water instead would allow all pieces to become contaminated if only one had any e-coli.
Getting onions cold in the refrigerator before peeling them will prevent as many tears as peeling them under running water, and it prevents tears while cutting them.
Line your measuring cup with plastic wrap before adding shortening or butter, and it will come out easily and completely - and not need to be washed.
Store-bought eggs do not have to be washed. This was done before they were packaged.
Don't drain the water into the sink after boiling pasta. Instead, use a pasta fork to dish it out of the pan. Then use a large spoon to carefully add eggs to the hot water one at a time. Bring the water to a boil again then turn off the heat and leave the eggs in the water for 20 minutes. Water can also be reused this way after cooking rice in a boil-in bag.
Put leftovers into plastic bags, or on a paper plate wrapped with foil, instead of bowls to eliminate washing more dishes.
Line baking trays with foil for little or no washing after cooking.
Most newer (and many older) dishwashers will clean your plates and silverware on their own without your rinsing them first, just scrape food into the trash or compost pile first.
Scraping food off dishes, pots and pans and into the trash or compost pile cuts down on time using the garbage disposal, which requires water.
Peels (from carrots, potatoes, etc.) should be put into the trashcan instead of the sink drain, requiring less use of the garbage disposal.
Thaw food in the refrigerator instead of in a bowl of water or under running water.
Run the garbage disposal while rinsing off clean dishes for double use of the water.
Your drinks will need less ice if you make them ahead and put them in the refrigerator to get cold.
Use special blue ice containers inside water or juice pitchers instead of using ice.
There are devices available to help save water (low-flow faucet, instant-hot faucet, tankless water heater).
Cleaning
Dusty drapes do not have to be washed. They can be vacuumed clean on a low setting, or they can be put into the dryer on low heat or no heat for about 15 minutes.
Wash only full loads of laundry.
Adding a faucet aerator will allow sinks to be rinsed with much less water.
Many items of clothing do not need to be washed at all. If you shower in the morning, put on an undershirt, put on a dress shirt, and go to church for two hours, that dress shirt can be put right back into the closet except on a hot, sweaty day.
Miscellaneous
Use blue ice or a two-liter bottle of frozen water in your cooler instead of ice cubes. They can be put back into the freezer for future use.
If you do use ice cubes in your cooler, allow the water to drain into the flowerbed or on the lawn instead of in the gutter.
Swimming pool and spa covers meant to keep children from drowning can also be used to prevent evaporation.
Photo courtesy of budgetstockphoto.com
