Simple and Important Water Saving Tips You Can Do Now!

Boil just enough water
When making tea or coffee fill the kettle with just the amount of water you need. Don't overfill it then throw the extra water down the drain.

Keep drinking water in fridge
Keep a container of drinking water in the refrigerator or use ice cubes to cool water. Running the tap to cool water for drinking loses 12 litres per minute.

Save water while cleaning vegetables
Don’t let the faucet run while cleaning vegetables.
Rinse them in a sink or bowl filled with clean water. Save 12 litres/minute.

Use all the dishes
Wait until you have a full load before using your automatic dishwasher. Consider washing the dishes by hand and visiting with your family.

Wash dishes by hand
Consider washing the dishes by hand and getting in a visit with your family.

Save while brushing
Turn off the water while brushing your teeth. Before brushing, wet your brush, and fill a tumbler to rinse your mouth. Savings: 12 litres per minute.

Take shorter showers
Saving water can be as easy as changing your habits. Start taking shorter showers. Cutting your shower by 1-2 minutes can save 2,600 litres of water each month.

Make every flush count
The toilet is the biggest water user in the house. Consider replacing your old toilet with a new water saving toilet. If finance is an issue, fill a plastic bottle with some pebbles or sand and water and put it in the toilet tank to reduce the fill amount. The volume in the tank occupied by the bottle is the volume of water saved every flush. Why not!!

Detect Leaks
Check all your taps, pipes and toilets for leaks. Leaks can waste 14% of all the water we use in our home.  Check your toilet for leaks. Put a little food colouring in the tank. If it appears in the bowl without flushing, you have a leak. Leaks can waste 14% of all the water we use in our home.

Take the bag off the mower
Grass clippings are 90% water. Given a bit of time, they work their way back into the soil providing valuable nutrients and more importantly, water to the lawn.

Plant drought-resistant trees and plants
Plant drought-resistant trees and plants.  Many native plants can survive on rainwater alone. Practice xeriscaping or look for plants with the low water use sticker.

If you must water - Water early
Water your lawn early in the morning or evening hours to minimize evaporation loss. It also achieves greater soil saturation and provides better absorption of the water.

Sprinklers are water inefficient
Rethink your irrigation system. Install drip irrigation or use a root irrigator for deep watering. This brings water down to the roots.

Encourage deep roots
If you do water trees, this should be done slowly, deeply and infrequently. This encourages deep roots, making your tree healthier and helps save water.

Report leaks in fire hydrants
Report leaks in fire hydrants, plumbing, or other public facilities so that they can be repaired.

Drive dirty
Washing the car uses 500 litres of water! Turn the hose off while you swab the car or use products that require no water at all.

Sweep instead
Don’t hose down your sidewalk, patio or driveway with water. Clean with a broom or rake and save hundreds of litres of water.

Kitchen & Laundry
• Run washing machines and dishwashers with full loads only
• Instead of using a dishwasher, wash dishes by hand
• Keep water in the fridge or use ice instead of running the cold water  

Bathroom
• Take shorter showers.
• Only partially fill your bathtub for baths.
• During showers, turn off the flow while soaping or shampooing.
• Do not run water while brushing your teeth. Fill a glass for rinsing.

Garden
• Use a hand-held hose for watering.
• Use rain barrels for water storage to water gardens.
• Choose a sprinkler that suits the size/shape of your lawn or garden.
• Check the upcoming weather here and water only when required.
• Use an automatic timer to regulate the amount/duration of the watering.  

Repair!

Leaks
• Seek and repair leeks.
• Repair leaking toilets!
• Leaks can waste 14% of all the water we use in our homes.•

Retrofit!

Toilets
• Adapt your toilet by with a water-saving device. One option is toilet dams.
• Replace your current toilet with a ultra-low volume toilets.
They use only 3-6 litres per flush instead of 18 litres saving a lot of water!

Showerheads & Faucets
• Standard showerheads have flow rates up to 20 litres per minute.
• Changing to a low-flow showerhead can reduce your water flow by half.
• Install low-flow aerators in your faucets and reduce the flow rate dramatically.
• Many of the new taps on the market already have aerators installed.

Contact Information:

Director of Engineering
Dave Newman

Phone: 604.886.2274
Fax: 604.886.9735
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Location and Mailing Address

474 South Fletcher Road
Box 340
Gibsons, BC  V0N 1V0

Business Hours
8:00 am to 4:30 pm, Monday to Friday (excluding statutory holidays).