Summer Tip: Saving Water
It seems like every summer the water prices here in Connecticut creep higher and higher. Here’s a few tips from Housemaster to help you save some money this summer!
Don’t let faucets run continuously. Letting the water run when shaving, brushing teeth or rinsing the dishes is common practice, but an open faucet can allow 5 gallons to pass in as little as 2 minutes.
Use water-saving showerheads and faucets. High-flow showerheads can provide a water flow of 5 or more gallons a minute. Flow restriction devices can cut flow in half or more without reducing the water pressure.
Water your lawn and plants early in the day. This practice will reduce the loss of water due to evaporation. Late watering also reduces evaporation. During the summer, water your plants slowly and infrequently. Consider drip irrigation for garden areas to add water just where it is needed.
Check for drips and leaks. A dripping faucet can allow up to two gallons per hour to be wasted. Toilets are also prime suspects. To check a toilet, simply drop some food coloring into the tank (not the bowl) and wait 15 minutes before flushing. If colored water shows up in the bowl, you have a leak from the tank to the bowl.
Replace your old toilet. If your home was built before 1992 and the toilet has never been replaced, then it is very likely that you do not have a water-efficient 1.6 gallon per flush toilet. You can check the age of your toilets by looking at the date stamp inside the tank. Lift the lid and look at the back of the tank for the manufacturer’s imprint of the make, model and date of manufacture. Old toilets are the largest water users in many homes, typically using 3 or more gallons per flush.
Replace old clothes washers. Next to old toilets, an old washing machine generally is the next largest water user in a home. New Energy Star™ rated washers use 35-50% less water and 50% less energy per load. You’ll have an upfront cost but a modern, energy efficient unit saves money on both water and energy bills.
Stay tuned for more summer tips and insurance information! Visit our website to check out some of our products. We offer free quotes so there’s nothing to lose!
- The Paradiso Insurance Team
Here you go again. Not only do you help people save money on their insurance, you look for ways to help them outside of the insurance arena. That is great service!
Thanks Will water is something we take for granted, we should be more thankful and not take it for granted.
Good stuff Chris. We should definitely conserve our most valuable resource. However, studies have proven that the introduction of the 1.6-gallon flush toilet has not been a great success in water conservation as the efficiency of the flush is significantly compromised with the reduced water flow and therefore often requires 2 or more flushes and ultimately uses more water than the older models.
Well the best water saver I can think of would be to get all the teenagers out of my house and living somewhere else. But that takes time and of course they get even more expensive when they live somewhere else but are still on my nickel. Thanks for the tips though Chris. Great stuff!
Chris I cannot think of an insurance agent that does more for his or her clients than you. All the hard work and effort you put in are paying off and will continue to do so. Keep up the great work. This is just another example of you adding value to your relationships with your clients, companies, employees, etc.