Water Saving as Easy as 1,2,3

Almost half of the toilets in the United States use 3.5 gallons of water per flush, even after a federal mandate in 1992 limited all new toilets to 1.6 gallons. Which means Americans are wasting water.
But there are ways to cut back on the waste, and it’s as easy as 1, 2, 3, or toilet, shower and sink. The Environmental Protection Agency promotes water efficiency and enhances the market for efficient products, programs and practices using the WaterSense label.

1. Toilets
Several manufacturers that actively support WaterSense are taking the federal mandate of 1.6 gallons of water per flush to a new level. Kohler Co. has developed toilets which use only one gallon of water, and there are several models available at the 1.28 gallons-per-flush level. Dual flush toilets allow users to choose a level of water — 0.8 gallons for liquid wastes and 1.6 gallons for solids — with improved flushing technology, meaning consumers are not going to lose out on performance or design.

2. Showers
The standard rate of water flow in the shower is 2.5 gallons per minute. That can be cut in third by installing a high-efficiency showerhead, and many showerheads can be adjusted to get the high-pressure power massage, if wanted.

3. Sinks
Faucet aerators are the screens water passes through as it leaves the spout. The replacement of a 2.2-gallons-per-minute aerator with a 1.5-gallons-per-minute aerator reduces water usage by 30 percent.