Do you want to save money this year? Below, are 5 water saving tips that will save you money.
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Take your car to a car wash
Taking your car to a car wash instead of washing it at home with your garden hose sounds counter-intuitive, right? A standard garden hose uses about 10 gallons of water per minute. The average person runs their hose for 15 minutes when they are spraying down, washing and rinsing their car. This means on average you will use 150 gallons of water when you wash your car at home. A power washer uses half the amount of water per minute as a standard hose because there is resistance at the tip. One factor that will influence the amount of water you are using is the amount of pressure you have the power washer turned up to. Obviously, higher levels will cause you to use more water. In the Tampa Bay region, professional car washes are regulated, requiring them to recirculate water usage and adhere strict water conservation regulations. On average, in a Tampa area car wash, you will use between 50 – 100 gallons of water for a car wash. Remember, all of the water used is recycled, filtered and used again.
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Use your dishwasher
The average Tampa Bay household has about 215 dishwasher loads of plates, cups, silverware, etc. each year! Don’t let all of those dishes pile up in the sink. The best way to get them clean while also saving water is to load up your Energy Star rated dishwasher. Energy Star rated dishwashers use just 5 gallons of water per load. Hand-washing can use up to 27 gallons of water cleaning a dishwasher load of dishes.
Using and Energy Star rated dishwasher every day to do your dishes will save you over 4,500 gallons of water a year.
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Search for water leaks
Usually, the biggest water waster is the one you can’t see! Household leaks waste nearly 1 trillion gallons of water a year in the Unite States. Correcting water leaks from a worn toilet, dripping faucet or other leaky valves can save about 10 percent on your water bill, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Knowing you have a leak is as easy as using your water meter. If you discover a water leak in your home, Cass Plumbing of Tampa Bay can conduct a thorough plumbing inspection to find the cause of the leak and fix it.
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Switch to water-saving shower heads
The EPA estimates standard shower heads use 2.5 gallons of water per minute. Look for a WaterSense label to help identify models that save water but still perform well. Simply getting more efficient shower heads in all the bathroom in your home can save you and your family thousands of gallons of water over the course of a year.
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Service your hot water heater.
We all love a steamy hot shower, but we waste gallons of water each time we wait for the water to heat up to our desired temperature. If you find yourself waiting for hot water, it may be time to call a plumbing professional from Cass Plumbing to have your water heater serviced. Regular water heater maintenance can help cut that wait time down, and it will prolong the life of your water heater. And if that doesn’t help, you might want to consider a hot water recirculation system or tankless water heater. The experts at Cass Plumbing can help determine how you can have a hotter, more efficient shower experience.
We at Cass Plumbing hope you will consider the points above and save both water and money in the coming year. And always remember, if you have any plumbing questions in the Greater Tampa area do not hesitate to give us a call at: 813-265-9200.
