Save Money This Summer By Saving Water

Summer fast approaching and the weather heating up, it's only natural that you are going to want to run the air conditioner more, water the garden more often to save the plants and let the kids play under the sprinkler too cool off. But all these things cost money and we all know our water and electricity bills go up in the summer months. But there are a few simple things you can do to save water around the house during summer, without sacrificing any of the summer fun.

Outdoor Water Saving Tips

We all want our gardens to stay nice throughout summer, but It can feel like an uphill battle to keep the plants alive with the 30-40 degree days increasing rapidly, but there are a few easy things you can do to save water outdoors:

• Water your garden less frequently, but more deeply by aerating your lawn and garden with a gardening fork.
• Water in the early morning / early evening, these are the coolest parts of the day and you will lose less water due to evaporation.
• If its forecast to rain don't over water, let Mother Nature run its natural course.
• Let you lawn grow longer in the summer months and when mowing cut your lawn no shorter 5cm in length. This will ensure healthy green thick grass with less water.
• If you have a pool use a pool cover to avoid evaporation.
• Get a plumber to preform leak detection on all taps, pipes and irrigation systems to ensure your plumbing is working at maximum efficiency.
• Install a rain water tank to make the most of the water that is being provided naturally.

Indoor Water Saving Tips

These water saving tips aren’t all summer specific so they can help you save money and water all year round, allowing you to run the air conditioner those extra couple of days each year:

Kitchen

• Get a plumber to install flow restrictors on you taps.
• Don't rinse dishes or defrost food under running water, instead put the plug in the sink and let them soak.
• Chill water in the fridge instead of running the tap until it cools down on a hot day.
• When washing vegetables and fruit put a bucket in the sink to catch the water runoff, this is perfect for watering the garden.
• Install a water efficient dish washer, most models use around 25L per load whilst a water efficient model only uses 13L.
• Hire a plumber to fix leaks and drips as soon as you notice them, whilst a drip may seem minor these happen 24-7 and quickly add up costing you money.

Bathroom

• Wash razor blades in a plugged sink rather than under a running tap whilst shaving.
• Get a plumber to replace your taps with aerating taps, or install aerator fittings this will regulate the water flow without sacrificing pressure.
• Keep a bucket in the shower to catch excess water and use it to water your garden.
• Get a plumber to replace your single flush toilet with a double flush system, double flush toilets can save upwards of 60% of water per flush.
• Install a water efficient WELS (Water Efficiency Labelling Scheme) high rated shower head, these provide high pressure showers with lower water usage.
• Get a plumber to check for leaks, this can save thousands of liters a year.

Laundry

• Choose a washing machine with a good WELS ratting, this can cut water usage per wash by as much as 55%.
• Only run the washing machine for full loads of Washing.
• Get a plumber to help you divert water from your laundry (grey water) to your garden.

Whilst there are dozens of things on this list that you can do yourself to save water, never attempt to do your own plumbing as this can cause more damage and cost thousands in repairs. By using a combination of these simple water saving tips in and around your house, you can save water and money, and breath a little easier when the water bill arrives after summer.