Water-Saving Requires Technology and Techniques: Eco Living Articles: Eco20/20

Water-Saving Requires Technology and Techniques

There are a number of things every homeowner can do that will effectively conserve water - with the side benefit of reduced water bills.

Smart decisions help save water

* The purpose of a dishwasher is to wash dishes. If you are one of those people who thinks a dishwasher is only good to sterilize them - stop wasting water. Washing your dishes twice, especially when the first wash includes the act of waving dishes under running water, wastes as much as 6500 gallons of water each year. If you have dishes with a hardened crust, a constant stream of water will not soften them nearly as well as a small bit of soaking. In the case of hardened debris, go ahead and soak the dishes in a small amount of standing water; then scrub them lightly, then put them in the washer without the added step of a running water rinse. If you think you are saving water and energy by hand-washing, think again; a dishwasher uses less water and energy than washing a load by hand, and it rinses hotter.

o Water saving dishwashers, along with low-flow toilets and shower heads are all the rage. Some of the new designs are looking pretty glamorous. But some products are being deceptively labeled as low-flow despite the fact that similar, unlabeled, products might use much less water. To answer that problem, appliance manufacturers are establishing water factor numbers for their equipment that will let you see how much water an appliance actually uses.

* New housing developments are subject to an assortment of green building standards, which have spawned a number of water-saving innovations. One is smart weather control, which shuts off watering equipment when it rains. Smart weather controllers, together with standards that require a margin around non-permeable surfaces where no water is sprayed, are helping many cities control run-off.

* Taking your car to a professional car wash uses less water than washing it in the driveway. Beyond the simple efficiency of the washing equipment itself, many carwashes filter and recycle their water. Vehicle wash-water treatment systems are available for commercial and industrial wash applications, even for forklifts, heavy equipment, buses and military vehicles.

* There are several ways to practice the conservation of pool or spa water. Always covering the pool when not in use can reduce evaporation by up to 90%. Without a cover, a standard-sized pool loses about 1 inch of water per week in the summer. The technology for automatic covers has existed for decades.

o Also look for water-saturated soil near the pool or pumps, or constant damp spots near the pool that may indicate a leak. The cost of a repair will repay itself in water savings, and new technologies allow repairs with minimal impact on the yard and wallet.

o While we're on the subject of pools, if you have a pool heater, reducing the temperature will reduce the water loss due to evaporation, and is especially important when the pool isn't being used. Technologies have long existed for adjusting pool temperature via timers, to let you heat up for the weekend, or cool it a bit when no one is home.

Water conservation is one of the simplest eco-friendly activities. It doesn't require anything more strenuous than paying a little extra attention to your daily habits, and making water-smart decisions whenever you can.