Most of our faucets in our home use more water than we need, especially for activities like washing hands, brushing teeth, and rinsing items in the kitchen. Reducing our water consumption by making adjustments to faucets is easy and inexpensive.
There are a few ways to reduce how much water you use from your faucets:
Throttle the faucet
You may not usually think about it, but when you turn on your faucet you have the option to either open it all the way (maximum water flow), or to throttle the faucet so that it only opens partway (low or partial water flow). Make sure to throttle the faucet so that you are only using what you need.
Turn off the faucet when not in use
If you are using the faucet to do things like wash your hair, brush your teeth or wash dishes, it is best if you turn off the faucet during the time you are not using the water. Water can flow from your faucet at rates of up to 20 litres per minute. It is important to shut off the faucet when you are not using it.
For your showerhead, consider installing a small on/off switch above your showerhead that lets you momentarily pause the flow of water.
Install an aerator
An easy way to reduce your faucet water use is to simply install a small aerator onto the end of the faucet. These are inexpensive and easy to install. Simply unscrew the current faucet end (usually a small mesh screen) and replace it with the aerator. Look for aerators that will bring your bathroom faucet flow down to 1.9 litres per minute.
Install a low-flow showerhead
Check to see if your current showerhead is low-flow. This is usually written in small print somewhere on the showerhead (look very closely). If your showerhead has a flow of less than 7.5 litres per minute, it is considered low-flow. If not, you should consider replacing it with one that is low-flow.