Tips and Suggestions:

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Approximately 27% of domestic water usage comes from toilet flushing. A leaky toilet can have a major impact on your bill. However, a leaky toilet is harder to detect than a leaky faucet because it can be silent. You may not hear or notice it running. 

Here is a simple at home test you can use to see if your toilet is leaking:

- Drip 10 to 15 drops of food coloring into the toilet tank. DO NOT FLUSH

- Wait 10 minutes

- If colored water appears in the toilet bowl, you have a leak.

A faulty flapper or plunger ball causes most toilet leaks. Remember to check them regularly and replace when necessary. 

If you plan to leave your home empty for any length of time, consider shutting off your valve so that if a serious leak develops while you’re gone, it will not flood the premises and you won’t accrue a large water bill. Remember to also turn off the electricity to the water heater. 

• Turn off the faucet when you are brushing your teeth, shaving, or washing your hands. Running a faucet flows about 2.2 gallons of water per minute.

• Run the dishwasher or washing machine only when it’s full. Doing half or small loads creates gallons of wasted water. Adjust the washer machine setting if you must do a small load.

• Soak pots and pans with water instead of scraping and cleaning the food off while the water is running. Quick cleaning tip: Soak with water, add a few drops of dish soap, and put onto the stove with low heat; this will help clean stuck on food and debris easier with less water waste. 

• Don't use running water to thaw frozen foods! For both food safety and water conservation, defrost food in the refrigerator. 

• Position your sprinklers to water plants, not pavement. We’ve all walked by that one house or park where we get nailed with water from the sprinklers! It’s smart to check this positioning often, as sometimes external factors such as children or animals can move these out of place.

• Put a nozzle on your garden hose. Left unattended, a running garden hose can waste over 100 gallons of water in just minutes. Use a shutoff or pressure nozzle so you only use what you need when you're watering the plants, cleaning the house, or washing the car.

• Install gutters and downspouts. You can re-direct rain water runoff to trees & plants solving two water issues at once; Watering your plants, and using rain water! 

• Create a rain catcher. Harvesting rain water is a fantastic way to keep your plants hydrated without using your hose or sprinklers.

• Keep a pitcher or water bottle of drinking water in the fridge. While waiting for the tap water to get cold for a fresh drink of water, collect the water in a pitcher or water bottle so it's not running down the drain. This way, you have fresh cold drinking water while helping reduce water waste!

• Ever have cups of water, or leftover ice cubes, laying around your house from guests, your kids, or significant others? Instead of throwing it down the drain, pour in a kettle to boil for tea or use it to water plants. 

• Reuse your towels. When at home, or at a hotel, reuse your bath towels. Let them dry properly. Wash after every 4th or 5th use. Towels don't need to be washed every time they're used, you're already clean when you come out of the shower!

• Be a frugal flusher – if it’s yellow, let it mellow. Flushing your toilet with a conventional toilet uses about 3.5-5 gallons per flush; if flushed 5 times a day, this equates to 17.5-25 gallons used! If you install a high-efficiency toilet, 5 flushes equates to only 6.4 gallons used.

• Check for leaks. Checking leaks both inside and outside can dramatically save a lot of water, as well as money. If you’ve experienced a huge spike in your water bill, call a plumber and have them check your water lines for you.