Get wet first when showering, and then turn the shower off. Clean body all over, and turn the shower back on to rinse and remove soap. I use a lot less water this way.
By Gwyneth from Plant City
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My husband taught me this trick when we first married and traveled some in a camper. When you're limited to 5 gallons of water for everything you learn very quickly how to stretch it!
We also do this in our home, & I may get a bit cold at times, but you'd be amazed if you saw our water bill!
* Another idea if you if you live in a camper or REALLY need to conserve water: You can put a large plastic storage tote in the bottom of your shower or tub & stand inside the plastic storage tote while you shower. Then when you're done you can use the water to flush your toilet with. Just scoop up the water in a plastic dish pan or small bucket. And if you turn off the shower while lathering, you will save so much water you'll just barely fill up the storage tote.
These days many people are using biodegradable shampoo & soap & they have their shower water run into a gray-water holding tank & then use this water for their garden. Talk about REALLY conserving water, now THAT'S the way to do it! ...I can't believe how much it cost to water a yard & garden, Thank God I live in Seattle where the rain is plentiful!
If you have about 15-20 dollars you can buy one of those nice shower heads that have various settings one of which is to turn it off while lathering. Works awesome!
This also works for hand-washing. If you change your habits, the savings start to add up.
Some similar tricks I learned while growing up:
Don't run water while brushing your teeth! I have been amazed at how many people do this, without any reason to. Also, for men, if you run the water while shaving, try filling the sink up with water instead.
My mother put bricks in our toilet tank. It reduces the water by the volume of the brick. As long as the toilet still flushes clean, the only difference is water savings. Most toilet systems now have an adjustable float, so you can control the amount of water in the tank that way. If the toilet doesn't flush clean, readjust for a little more water until it does.
I wash clothes in cold water. I adjust the hot water tank to heat only to the degree that if I turn the hot on to shower, I don't have to turn on the cold! No heating water to cool it down.
Storage water tanks should heat the water to above 60degC, otherwise bacteria can grow. Instant hot water systems are fine though as the water isn't sitting there for a long time.
Great ideas! We put a bucket in to save water while shower is getting to warm. That cold water start is too hard on some systems.
I catch rain water to water my flowers I have on our patio in pots & flower beds near the patio also water for the birds. I made a place for the birds to drink water with a plastic hanging basket & a cake pan, hang the basket in patio then, set a cake pan in it, the other critters can't get to it.
In my family, we do baths like the Japanese. We get some hot water with a little soap in it to pour over ourselves, then rub down till we lather up. Then we pour a little more hot water over ourselves to rinse off. Usually this will take one to two 20-ounce cups for the soaping, and three to four for rinsing. Obviously, more is needed if we're shaving or washing our hair, but not THAT much more. Then we traipse into the other bathroom, where we've been running a hot bath. One at a time, we do this pour-bath, then soak for fifteen or twenty minutes to take the ache out of our bones while the next person's taking their own pour-bath.
I don't mind my $18 a month water bill and I use as much water as I want. Foolish to be cold in the shower.
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