How can I conserve water inside my home?

EPA says "The average American family uses more than 300 gallons of water per day at home. Roughly 70 percent of this use occurs indoors." Its Start Saving Water page adds that the bathroom is "where over half of all water use inside a home takes place." So the bathroom is where to spend your effort. The two biggest single users there are the toilet and the shower.

Here's the order to work in:

1. 1Leaks. EPA says "The average family can waste 180 gallons per week, or 9,400 gallons of water annually, from household leaks."
2. 2Toilets. The largest indoor user.
3. 3Showers and bathroom faucets. Second and third.
4. 4Kitchen and laundry. Smaller per fixture, but easy to trim.

Not sure what your household actually uses? Mesa's water conservation page links a "Know Your H2O Water Calculator" that shows "how much water your household should be using." Your own bill and meter are better proof. The water meter leak test tells you whether water is moving when nothing is on.

Toilets come first for a reason. EPA says "Toilets are by far the main source of water use in the home, accounting for nearly 30 percent of an average home's indoor water consumption." It also says "Older, inefficient toilets that use as much as 6 gallons per flush also happen to be a major source of wasted water in many homes."

Two moves, in this order:

• Fix the leak. EPA says "Most toilet leaks are due to old or worn-out toilet flappers." A leaking flapper can run silently. Drop a little food coloring in the tank, wait, and see if color reaches the bowl. Our page on replacing a flapper and fill valve shows the fix, and how to fix a running toilet covers the rest of the causes.
• Replace an old toilet. EPA says WaterSense toilets use "1.28 gallons per flush or less," which it puts at "20 percent less water than the current federal standard of 1.6 gallons per flush." It says an average family can reduce the water used for toilets by 20 to 60 percent by replacing old, inefficient models. If you're unsure whether yours is worth saving, see how to know when to replace a toilet. Dual-flush models qualify too; how a dual-flush toilet works explains the two buttons.

The old reputation that low-flow toilets need two flushes belongs to the 1990s. EPA says the WaterSense labeled toilets sold today "far outperform traditional toilets from the 1980s and 1990s." Look for the label rather than the packaging claims.

Showers are next. EPA says showering accounts for "nearly 17 percent of residential indoor water use" and adds up to "nearly 40 gallons per day" for the average family. It says standard showerheads use 2.5 gallons per minute, and WaterSense showerheads must "use no more than 2.0 gpm." EPA says the average family could save 2,700 gallons a year by installing WaterSense labeled showerheads, and those savings "reduce demands on water heaters."

A showerhead swap is a hand-tool job. EPA suggests checking, and replacing if needed, the washer or o-ring inside the showerhead while you're at it. If your flow feels weak after a swap, see why shower pressure is low.

Bathroom faucets are the easiest win. EPA says WaterSense bathroom sink faucets and accessories use a maximum of 1.5 gallons per minute, which "can reduce a sink's water flow by 30 percent or more from the standard flow of 2.2 gallons per minute." It says the average family can save 700 gallons of water per year with those models, and that "Achieving these savings can be as easy as twisting on a WaterSense labeled aerator." The aerator is the small screen on the spout tip. EPA only has faucet criteria for bathroom sinks and bar sinks, not kitchen faucets, so a kitchen aerator won't carry the label. If one faucet runs weak after you install a new aerator, our page on low flow from one faucet explains why.

Arizona sets its own rules on what new fixtures can flow. See low-flow fixture requirements in Arizona before you buy.

### What does a bathroom makeover add up to?

EPA's statistics page says "Giving a home's main bathroom a high-efficiency makeover by installing a WaterSense labeled toilet, showerhead, and faucet aerator can pay for itself in as little as 1 year." That is EPA's national estimate, and your payback depends on your household and your rates. The same page says "We can all use at least 20 percent less water by installing water-efficient fixtures and appliances." It also helps that you can do this room by room. Start with the fixture that wastes the most, see how the next bill reads, and move on. If you'd like an early warning for leaks as well, see how a smart water shutoff valve works.

These are smaller, and most of them are habits. From EPA's list:

• Dishwasher: use it, and run it full. EPA says "Dishwashers typically use less water than hand washing."
• Hand washing: plug the sink or use a wash basin, and scrape plates instead of rinsing them first.
• Drinking water: keep a pitcher in the refrigerator instead of running the faucet until it's cool.
• Laundry: wash full loads or use the load-size setting. When replacing a washer, EPA says ENERGY STAR certified models "use about 30 percent less water than standard models."

EPA also says "Letting your faucet run for five minutes while washing dishes can waste 10 gallons of water." One practical note from the plumbing side: dishwasher and washer supply hoses are a common place for leaks, so how often to replace washing machine hoses is worth a look while you're in there.

Most of this is a screwdriver-and-an-afternoon job. Call a licensed plumber when:

• The meter keeps moving after you've checked every fixture. That points to a hidden leak; see the hidden signs of a water leak.
• A toilet keeps leaking after a new flapper, or the flange or shutoff valve is corroded.
• You want a toilet replaced, or a shower valve that won't stop dripping.
• Your bill climbs with no change in how you live. High water bill with no visible leak is the next stop.

HQ Plumbing & Air handles toilet repair and replacement and leak detection. We're licensed and insured, we give free estimates, and you get the price up front before work starts. If water is running where it shouldn't and you can't stop it, that's an emergency, and we're available 24/7.

Here's the short version. Find and fix the leaks, replace the biggest wasters, and let the small habits fill in the rest.