Waiting for rain

Back in September I was surprised by an article in my local newspaper offering tips for reducing water consumption. The surprise wasn’t the topic; in the month of August, I collected only about a half-inch of rain in our rain gauge, making it one of the driest months I can remember in the thirty-nine years that I’ve lived in southeastern PA.

Rather, I think that the tips listed didn’t go anywhere near far enough; just offered the sort of superficial suggestions that I’ve seen before.  Some tips even seemed counter-productive. The following week in my own column, I expanded on those tips and added some of my own.

Nearly four months later, it’s now mid-November and rainfall remains eerily absent in an area that typically gets plenty. The usually robust French Creek, not far from our house, continues to shrink. How bad is it? From a recent article about a spate of wildfires in New Jersey, I learned that the soil is dry down to a level of eight inches, something that hasn’t been experienced here in 120 years. So, with no great rainfall in the forecast, I’m posting my list of water-saving tips and practices here. I hope they’re helpful to you.

First, my take on the tips I read in the newspaper:

1-“Shorten the time you let the water run to warm up before showering.” This isn’t a bad tip, though few people, myself included, enjoy stepping into a cool shower. More practical would be for people in the same household to time their showers so that the water only has to warm up once. In any case, you can keep a 5-gallon bucket in the tub or shower to collect the water until it warms up. That saved water can go to flushing toilets or watering plants.

2-“When you water your garden, direct the water to the ground at the base of the plant so you don’t waste water through evaporation.” Another good tip, but it didn't mention the value of a layer of mulch in preventing evaporation.

3- “Water your lawn only if necessary.” In my opinion, watering lawns during a drought is a misuse of water.

Things the article didn’t mention:

1-If you must absolutely must wash your car, drive your car onto your lawn (if you have one) and use a biodegradable cleanser. Or take your car to a car wash; many of the newer ones recycle the water.

2-Place a bowl under your kitchen faucet to collect water while rinsing vegetables, washing hands, etc. It’s surprising how much water is used in those simple activities. Use the collected water on your plants. Or use it to soak pots and pans. "Reduce—REUSE—Recycle" can apply to water as well as to more concrete items.

3-Use the dishwasher. Hand washing uses much more water. When washing pots and pans, you can recycle the water from one to the next.

4-If you haven’t already and can afford it, install low-flush toilets. Also, for “Number 1,” consider flushing every second or third use.

5-Fix any leaky faucets or hose attachments.

6-Get out of the habit of letting the water run.

7-Make it a game to see how much water you can avoid using.

My husband and I rely on a well for our water supply and there’s no way to know how much water we’re tapped into or how many wells draw from this same source. This has tended to make us more water-use conscious than we might be otherwise. Beyond that, though, it’s never made sense to me to pull so much pristine water out of the ground only to flush it down the toilet or let it run down the drain. Sadly, convenience invites thoughtless use and waste, and I confess that I sometimes waste water myself. The point is that we shouldn't need the threat of drought to feel inspired to conserve water. If we had to pump water by hand or haul it from a stream, I’m sure we’d waste far less of it.

Do you have some water-saving tips not listed here? I'd love to hear them.