With global warming and consequent climatic changes including the melting of glaciers, the time will soon come when scarcity of potable water will also begin to hit humanity hard.

And as the old saying goes, a stitch in time saves nine, so we must make efforts from now itself to do our bit towards finding ways to reduce wastage of water. The WHO advocates that a minimum of 25 liters is required per person to meet their daily needs. Unfortunately in developed countries like the US, the average water use per day is around 262 liters, about ten times more. In developing countries, it’s difficult to get an idea of exact water usage as many households don’t even have functional meters, aside from leaking pipes and unauthorized use of water. Here are a few useful tips on ways to conserve water at home:

Ensure your water meter is functional. When you can actually see how many liters of water you are consuming in the bill, it provides an incentive to reduce wastage.

Buy water-saving appliances and sanitary products. The older models of washing machines, showerheads, toilets and taps weren’t designed with water-saving in mind. So when replacing these things, ensure you buy toilets that use 3-6 liters max of water; taps with aerators use less water too along with the new-gen washing machines.

Check for dripping taps, toilet cisterns or water pipes. A dripping tap can waste up to 15 liters a day, and that’s a lot of water wasted.

Use a watering can instead of a Hosepipe: Water your garden the good old way with a watering can as hosepipe lose up to 1,000 liters of water an hour. Mulching your plants and watering only early morning or late evening can help in saving water and reducing evaporation.

Store the run-off water: Use a rain harvesting system and conserve run-off water to be used in gardening or washing the car. You can save up to 5,000 liters a year this way.

Use your washing machine optimally: Run your washing machine only when it’s a full load; you can save up to 10 liters of water this way.

Go for a shower: Showers use about 6-45 liters of water per minute, depending on the model of the showerhead. Go for the aerated showerheads which use less water and opt for shorter showers; close the knob while soaping to prevent wastage. Avoid bathtubs as they use up too much water.

Turn off the tap: A lot of water is wasted while brushing; keep the tap turned off till it is needed only. This saves about 6liters per minute!

Aside from saving you some money on your bill, reducing water wastage also saves on the energy required to treat the water and more importantly – saving on natural resources.