Posted by Mike Smith :: November 4, 2008 @ 6:34 am

Many of the same updates to your home that help you save energy also help you save water. Energy Star compliant clothes washers and dishwashers tend to use much less water as well. Add to that the savings potential of improved fixtures in your kitchen and bath, and the savings can really add up. Whether you have a well and use an electric pump or get your water from your municipality, less water means lower bills.

Here are a few statistics from the Home Depot Water Conservation Know How site:

• Switching to efficient hardware could save 30,000 gallons of water per year, for an average savings of about $250 in water costs and $42 a year in energy costs.
• Leaving a faucet on for 5 minutes uses about the same amount of energy as leaving a 60 watt light bulb on for 14 hours
• An average of 8% of all home water use is wasted through leaks

Here are some suggested ways to save water:

• Keep a pitcher of water in the refrigerator instead of running the tap for cold drinks
• Collect and reuse water that would be wasted while waiting for hot water
• Compost kitchen waste rather than using a garbage disposal
• Run full loads through the clothes washer for maximum efficiency
• Wash clothes with cold water
• Replace older toilets, which typically use 3.5 gallons per flush with newer models, which use at most 1.6 gallons per flush
• Installing high-efficiency showerheads can save more than a gallon of water per minute
• Installing high-efficiency faucets can reduce water usage more than 30% by reducing flow rates
• Allow plants to dry between watering
• Run sprinklers early or late in the day to minimize evaporation losses
• Keep grass slightly longer to reduce watering needs

These are just a few of the ways that you can reduce water usage in your home. Whether the secondary benefits of water conservation, such as a reduced environmental impact, are important to you or not, even on purely financial grounds a strong case can be made for reducing your water use. You can then take the money you’ve saved and invest it or pay down your credit card debt.

What other ways do you save water in your home? Have you made any upgrades that have led to lowered water and electric bills?