Urban Ecoist

As you may have guessed from my posts, I am really big into saving water. Despite the childhood in Michigan, surrounded by the Great Lakes and never really having to worry about water, I am acutely aware of the somewhat finite nature of water. Not finite, so much so that water will disappear, but rather that potable, clean fresh water can be looked at as finite.

So what seemingly little things can you do around your house or apartment to conserve water? You can switch to low-flow shower heads, low-flow toilets; you can install a grey-water collection system, but let’s say you rent your house or apartment or you simply don’t have the financial resources at the moment to convert your old-school plumbing into the newer, greener water-conserving systems — then you can always get yourself a bucket.

Notice I found a picture of an old, vintage-y looking bucket. I heart antiques, and it is recycling, afterall. But I disgress.

You know when you are waiting for your shower or kitchen sink to “warm up” i.e. start pumping out hot water instead of cold, you can collect that water that normally goes down the drain. You may not think that your faucets take that long to start kicking out the hot/warm water, but if you do this simple bucket technique, I think you will be surprised how much water you are wasting down the drain.

Obviously, take the bucket, put it under the faucet in question while you are waiting for warm or hot water. Voila. You have saved water that would normally go into the sewer system.

What can you do with that water is up to you. I tend to save the water from my kitchen sink to soak my dirtiest pots and pans so that when I do clean them it is that much easier and uses that much less water. But you can save the water for your pet’s water, or even your own drinking water. You can transfer it to a water pitcher in your refrigerator. Just keep your water pail clean or devote a pail just for drinking water. You can also use that water to water your houseplants or your outdoor garden. You can use the water for a birdbath, too. Birds really like fresh water, and will reward you with pesticide-free insect control around your yard.

water, conservation, water resources, Michigan, Great Lakes, saving water, low-flow, lo-flo, toilets, faucets, showerhead, apartment, rental, grey water, gray water, birdbath, bird bath, pesticide free insect control