World Water Day: What to Know About Water Use in Your Home

The average Calgarian uses around 7000 litres of water every month– that’s a lot of water! March 22 is World Water Day, a day to advocate for the sustainable management of freshwater resources worldwide. Regardless of what you’re doing to manage your water consumption, there are always more ways to preserve water without changing your lifestyle:

The Bathroom

• Tissues and dental floss should be thrown in the garbage rather than flushed down the toilet.
• No leaks! Make sure your sink, toilet and shower are in tip-top shape. Keep in mind that toilet flappers should be replaced every few years.
• Install high-efficiency toilets and showerheads. Toilets should flush 4.8 litres or less and showerheads should flow at 9.5 litres per minute or less.
• Take shorter showers.
• Turn off the tap when shaving or brushing your teeth.

The Kitchen

• Upgrade to a more efficient dishwasher and only use it when it’s full.
• Scrape food off your dishes instead of rinsing them.
• Place your vegetables and fruit in a pot to rinse them rather than running water over them.
• Have a jug of water in your fridge to drink from so that you don’t have to run the water to get a cool drinking temperature every time.

The Utility Room

• Upgrade your washing machine and only run it when it’s full. Pay attention to water levels in your washing machine – don’t use the large load setting if it’s a small amount.
• Adjust your water softener to hardness levels based on values provided by your city.
• Keep an eye on your softener, furnace and hot water tank. Get them serviced as soon as you see an issue.

While these tips are great for the environment, they are also great for your wallet. To put this into perspective, the average Calgarian uses around 100 litres per day just flushing a normal toilet. If you switch to one of the high-efficiency toilets mentioned above, you can cut this in half. By saving this much water, you will have that toilet paid off fairly quickly, and then it is just extra money in your pocket at the end of every month when the water bill arrives.

With summer right around the corner, we want to mention the impact of watering your lawn. On average, you use about 950 litres per hour by setting up a sprinkler and letting it run. There are ways to save water while also having a nice green lawn to enjoy:

• Water every other day. Many towns and cities put limitations on how often you can water your lawn – typically, it is every other day.
• Place a frisbee upside down on the area you’re watering and keep an eye on it. Once it is full, that area of the lawn has enough water.

By being conscious of our water usage as a city, we will help make the world a better place to live while also saving a few dollars. It’s a win-win situation and really doesn’t impact the way we live today. Happy World Water Day Calgary!