Water Conservation

There is no doubt everything is going up these days, including water and sewer bills. Unlike most things, you have the power to control what you pay for water (and sewer if you live in PRA’s sewer service area).

Conservation not only saves you money, but it also helps ensure this precious life sustaining resource will be available for our children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren.

PRA helps in this way by providing an inclining rate schedule in 5,000 gallon increments (see rate table). Just by taking a few simple steps, you could reduce your costs by several dollars.

What contributes to your water bill?

• Laundry
  • Most older model washers us 20-45 gallons per load
  • Newer front loading machines use 8-15 gallons per load
  • Always wash full loads
• Showers
  • Most showers use 20-30 gallons per shower
  • Shorten the time your in the shower and purchase a new restrictive shower head
• Tub Baths
  • Standard tubs use 30-40 gallons per bath
  • Newer, deep seated ‘jetting’ tubs can use 4 times as much
• Dishwashers
  • Dishwashers use 15-30 gallons per wash
  • Newer models can reduce that to 11 gallons
  • Always was full loads and use the rinse and hold cycle (if there is one) instead of rinsing the dishes in the sink
  • Hand rinsing and hand washing can use up to 5 gallons per minute for the duration of the wash
• Toilets
  • Older model toilets use anywhere from 3.5-7 gallons of water per flush
  • The new models use 1.6 gallons per flush
  • Replacing older units with more efficient units not only saves you money on public water and sewer, but if you have private sewer (septic or sand mound) it also reduces the wear and tear on the system as well
  • Also, because of the working parts, toilets are the biggest use of water from leaks. When a toilet leaks because the flapper valve on the float doesn’t seal or shut off, you are running thousands of gallons of water directly into the sewer
• Garbage Disposals
  • Use up to 5 gallons per minute per use
  • If possible, compost your scraps of food and reduce the amount of waste you put down the disposal
• Car Washing
  • Most garden hoses produce 5 gallons per minute
  • If you do wash your car at home, always use a hose sprayer with an automatic shut off
• Lawn Watering
  • Can range from 7 gallons per square foot of yard up to 40 gallons
  • When watering beds and pots, use a slow drip hose that will make sure the water gets into the ground
  • Never water during the day and never use oscillating sprinklers which allow over half of the water to evaporate
  • Always use native plants so watering does not have to be done on a regular basis
• Dripping/Leakings Faucets or Hoses
  • Always check your faucets for leaks or drips
  • Always shut your outside water off at the faucet and not the hose end
  • Many times in the hot weather the hoses will leak or the spray nozzle will get stuck in an open position, leading to a large amount of leakage and an extremely high water bill (see chart below)

With a little planning and effort, we can all save water and money.