Water Efficiency
Water-Efficient Products
One approach to saving water in your home is through the use of water-efficient fixtures and appliances. Pennsylvania’s more than 12.4 million residents use 740 million gallons of water in their homes each day. This equates to approximately 62 gallons of water per person per day—more than 22,000 gallons of water per person each year. Repairing leaks and replacing older, inefficient fixtures and appliances with new water-efficient models could literally save you thousands of gallons per year! And of course, saving gallons of water means saving money on your monthly water bill.
Learn More:
- To find out more about water-efficient products and behaviors you can incorporate into your daily life, visit: Water Use in Your Home.
- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s WaterSense program sponsors Fix A Leak Week once a year. The Fix a Leak Week Web site provides step-by-step leak-fixing instructions year round.
- WaterSense’s Product Search allows users to find WaterSense labeled products, which are certified to meet EPA criteria for water efficiency and performance.
- The Alliance for Water Efficiency is a national nonprofit organization that promotes water efficiency research, evaluation, and education.
Conservation Practices
Here’s a no-cost approach to saving water in your home: incorporate water-conservation practices into your daily life. For example:
- Take shorter showers.
- Turn off the faucet when brushing your teeth.
- Only run full loads in the dishwasher and clothes washer.
- Fill a basin when washing dishes by hand, rather than leaving the faucet running.
These small changes in behavior can make a big difference when it comes to saving water.
Learn More:
- The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection hosts the Water Conservation Center Web site.
- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) WaterSense offers Simple Steps to Save Water.
- EPA’s WaterSense published the fact sheet Using Water Efficiently: Ideas for Residences.