Here’s a list of things people don’t normally pay attention to, but that you should for a more eco-friendly household.
(1) Dishwasher- Dishwashers can waste so much water if you run it when it is not full. A way to prevent this is to wash your dishes without use of the dishwasher. If you do need to use a dishwasher, make sure it is completely full before you turn it on. If you can buy a new dishwasher, invest in an Energy Star or other energy efficient dishwashers.
(2) Brushing Teeth / Washing Dishes WITH the Water Running- DO NOT keep water running while brushing your teeth/ doing the dishes. When you brush your teeth, wet the toothbrush first and turn the water off immediately. And use a natural toothpaste, like Tom’s of Maine. Only use the water to rinse. Same for dish washing. Scrub the dishes without the water on, and then turn the water on to rinse off the soap. I hope you are using a Biodegradable Soap, like Seventh Generation. These soaps are made %100 naturally, and help the petrolium levels in the air. This is what is used in my house, and it makes me feel good about doing the dishes.
(3) Shaving (Men)- Men, you do not need the water running when you shave. Fill the sink up a little less than halfway, and use that water to rinse your blade.
(4) Shaving (Women)- When you shave in the shower, do you really need the water running? Turn off the water while you shave your legs. I put conditioner in my hair, fill cup with water, sit in the bathtub and shave, with the water off, while my hair is being conditioned!
(5) If Its Yellow, Let it Mellow. If Its Brown, Flush it Down- Some people are bothered by this, but it is essential. Every time you flush the toilet, you waste 10 gallons of water. So why not just flush when necessary?
(6) Car Wash-This may be hard for us city folks, but if you have a lawn, Wash your car on it! Use Biodegradable soap, like Simple Green’s Car Wash , and a bucket of water. Only turn on the hose for the final rinse. Your car will be clean, your lawn will be fed, and by doing this you know you did a lot to help the environment.
(7) Leaky Toilets / Leaky Faucets-If you notice a leaky pipe, faucet, or toilet, get it fixed immediately. A leaky toilet, for example, can waste up to 200 gallons of water a DAY. So please, fix your water problems.
(8) Bathtime! Bathtime is no longer Funtime. It wastes an unnecessary amount of water. an average shower uses 1/5 the amount of water that is needed for a bath! Teach kids to take showers early on. It all really adds up. So please, take a shower not a bath.
(9) Using the Toilet as a Garbage Can- Do Not Do This! Throw out everything in a garbage can, even if it is tempting to just throw it in the toilet. Tissues, Hair, and Bugs are things that people generally throw away in the toilet, but they will be disposed if thrown away in the garbage can as well.
(10) Hot Water-Only use hot water when absolutely necessary. Hot water uses a lot more energy, and it isn’t always necessary. So think about what is needed before turning that hot water knob!
46 Comments so far
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GreenScream 
Wow do I feel proud of myself now. I have been living like this for my whole life now, hope other people I know or don’t can see this.
Comment by Jesse November 11, 2007 @ 7:58 pmYOUR SO COOOOOOOOOOOOLLLLLLL!!!!!!!! I adimire you so much.Keep on saving the planet.
Comment by kik January 18, 2010 @ 5:50 pmConservation is the key to the world that we live in today. I have been attempting to teach my son those very same rules about dish washing. But let me be honest…I used to be a person who loved to hear the sound of the water rushing over the dishes. However, when I owned my first house and saw the water bill I decided it was better to see a low water bill and nix the sound of rushing water. I will go to the beach so I can enjoy the sound of the waves crashing! Where is the dish washing liquid sold at? Thanks for that “green” reminder”.
Comment by riveroflifelisajoy November 12, 2007 @ 5:45 amMakes a whole lot of sense to me. Thanks for sharing.
Comment by aliti November 12, 2007 @ 5:53 amThese tips are useful but I’ve already read them in so many places, what I want is a few communities to start the trend that has begun in eco-villages and change their water drainage system to the natural reed pond. Even the flush water comes out clean!
Have you heard of this and have you got a link for it?
Also if you are into water read Living Water by Olaf Alexandersson it is about an Austrian (Victor Schauberger) who realised water contains and relies on a living energy that we need yet we deplete with our piped sewage systems. He got the Austrain government to listen to him despite reason telling them he was wrong. He was a very cool man, even invented a copper plough that did the job of fertilisers.
Comment by sixpillarstopersia November 12, 2007 @ 6:03 am“Your car will be clean, your lawn will be fed, and by doing this you know you did a lot to help the environment.”
I wouldn’t advise you to do that if you don’t want to poison your garden with all the bad stuff that rinses off your car. Ever seen snow on the roadside? After one day it has become black — so this is what ends up in your garden if you wash your car there. 😉
I’ve got another one: if possible, collect rain water for watering your plants. You can even use it for wiping floors, rinsing off dirty boots etc.
Comment by cschwartz November 12, 2007 @ 6:13 amYa well rain water is dirty
Comment by Sofia October 11, 2011 @ 11:01 amHmm, washing your car on your lawn is a good tip (if I had a lawn). But the toilet flushing? I don’t know about that one. I’m more worried about leaving the bowl all dirty. 😦
Comment by Curtis November 12, 2007 @ 4:40 pmI don’t believe you can actually waste water. The water that is on the earth today is the same water that was on the earth at its creation. If you contaminate water the earth’s filtration system filters that water and the end result is clean usable water. If this is not true let me know. I know this sounds crazy but its true. The same water that was used by the first people on earth is the same water that is here now. By now if it were possible to pollute beyond its recovery we would be out it by now. To prove this, is there any more water being made today,no.
Comment by Tom April 7, 2008 @ 7:32 am“I don’t believe you can actually waste water.” Wasting water refers to not using the fresh water we, as a country or municipality, have available to us in an efficient manner. It is true that water is never truly consumed as it re-enters the earth’s hydrologic cycle, however these are two seperate proceeses. When we use or ‘waste’ fresh water, it is discharged in a way that makes it inaccessible to us, meaning that it is not usually returned to the same source it was taken from and through the hydrologic cycle may end up half way across the world and therefore cannot be used again any time in the near future.
Comment by Tyrel Wenzel December 8, 2010 @ 1:08 pmHey! pure water is only 1 % of the worlds water and if your thinking of purifying it its going to pollute the world.
Comment by 19kritanutl April 2, 2012 @ 11:07 pmWater gets evaporated and we get more water through rain.
Comment by Amy White September 30, 2016 @ 5:06 ami got few more points to save water
Comment by karanemania May 14, 2008 @ 7:18 amthanks for helping me out but how can we stop this?
Comment by anonymous May 19, 2008 @ 10:00 ami need help by finding ways to save and waste water.
Comment by cieaira May 20, 2008 @ 6:39 pmRainwater Harvesting
Comment by catherine April 9, 2012 @ 10:41 amI really think you put on some good things on your website. It is really helpful.
Thanks!!!!!!!!!
Comment by Kseniya June 11, 2008 @ 6:56 pmyellow? mellow?
Comment by sikkent August 12, 2008 @ 4:45 amwhat the hell! seriously who doesnt flush there toilet.. waste of time
weelll…
if its yellow let it mellow
if its brown flush it down 😀
OH YEAH …woooooooooo!!!!
Comment by bob misfitsimmons March 17, 2009 @ 8:41 amqwertyuiopasdfghjkZxcvbnml
Comment by dfghj August 31, 2009 @ 4:48 amHi! I was surfing and found your blog post… nice! I love your blog. 🙂 Cheers! Sandra. R.
Comment by sandrar September 10, 2009 @ 9:33 amHi, thanks there for more tips to save water. We will be wasting water oblivious of the fact that it is a vital resource. You can live without food for days but you can’t live without water for more than 3 days. So let all of us here on the planet Earth vow to start saving water.
Comment by Narayan December 29, 2009 @ 6:27 amthat really gave me tips on how to use water prperally!!!!
Comment by Alice January 17, 2010 @ 1:05 pmYippee Water 🙂 🙂 😀
Comment by Paul March 10, 2010 @ 5:52 pmthis is good thanks
Comment by enya April 26, 2010 @ 4:10 pmThank u for the context.
Comment by Rajesh August 4, 2010 @ 2:27 amExcuse me.I am doing an assignment, and I need to write the references.
Comment by renatayoung October 21, 2010 @ 11:20 pmHow to know who wrote this article? Where?
Excuse me…May I know the writer of this article?
Comment by renatayoung October 24, 2010 @ 12:11 amI love these tips i used them for this school essay i’m trying to do
Comment by Emily Moore December 13, 2010 @ 12:44 pmThanks
Everybody please follow these tips
on facebook at school lolz
Comment by steven seaborn June 13, 2011 @ 11:46 amWow~Thank U!
Comment by 이수현 July 14, 2011 @ 8:29 amI finished my homework!
Super! Super! If you come in our country BG will see how work combined sewerage systems, and how surface run off rain water goes to the sewerage, and mixed with the foul water goes where?—- of course into the rivers. Great and aroma idea “yellow-mellow”. I don’t know how is in the US, but in BG most of the villages are “equipped” with yard toilets without any water flushing, because they are of the type septic tanks. Absolutely flushing-free technology…
Comment by Miro September 14, 2011 @ 11:18 amThis helped me and my friend alot with our water wise project
Comment by vincent ham December 1, 2011 @ 6:53 pmcheers, love the blog.
Comment by ollie January 10, 2012 @ 8:15 amThanks a lot for this information. I needed this for my school IT project for spreed sheets. My topic is about “How do people waste water and how much water is used up” for example in the spreed sheet. Thank you for the data.
KIS international school Grade 7
Comment by Kuldeep March 30, 2012 @ 1:59 amBangkok, Thailand
Cool blog…. I wil follow these rules from now on:-)
Comment by Nicolene pandy April 4, 2012 @ 12:09 ami flush my toilet no matter what who cares and it aint the stone ages a dishwasher is ligit
Comment by tj December 3, 2012 @ 10:53 amYes I agree mmyess
Comment by Fudge April 8, 2013 @ 10:39 pmTen gallons per flush? Don’t think so – especially not with the newer units in place since 1993…..and there are some potential sanitation issues with the “mello-yellow” issue…..Otherwise good info.
Comment by c. Breidenstein April 16, 2013 @ 10:48 amSo little water….
what to do!!
neoepts88.blogspot.com
Comment by Stacey May 7, 2013 @ 4:07 amit is bad to waste wther
Comment by luke May 28, 2013 @ 7:12 pmThis site help me to do my project of wastw of water
Comment by maria eduarda July 11, 2013 @ 1:41 pmYou want to talk about water wastage – don’t bother with the average household – take a look to the SW of W.A. where Cristal Mining is planning to pump down the creeklines and drains 850,000 kilolitres of water for 2 years. That is 4000 households annual water usage. So from that perspective a few leaking taps is nothing. Plus they have wasted good water in the same manner for the past 5 years whilst they were mining. We’ve been trying to win a losing battle with the DOW over this – seems they condone the wastage. We need for scrutiny placed onto the likes of Cristal Mining etc – we don’t see them getting a fine – they just get a smack on the hand or a blind eye.
Comment by Bev Jones November 5, 2013 @ 2:25 amhey!!!! cool blog, sorry didn’t see it earlier…………..its nice to see people care about the environment ………keep it up!!!!
Comment by Alexandria pesly (@APesly) February 26, 2014 @ 4:13 amThanks guys for this blog. it helped me a lot on my project. (:
Comment by THE HAZZA March 26, 2015 @ 1:08 amHey dude,
Comment by sethini February 24, 2017 @ 9:20 amYou’d better save water if you think about the future