Saving Every Drop: 6 Easy & Smart Ways to Conserve Water in Your Bathroom!

All those who turn on the showerhead and skitter out of the cold water’s way while waiting for the hot water, raise your hands. Great. Welcome to the club I was the reigning queen of until a couple of weeks ago.

Did you know that an average showerhead uses around 10 litres of water per minute? Yes, and multiply that by the amount of time you spend belting out the latest rendition of Cardi B with the shampoo bottle for a mic. What we forget at times is that one day, we will be left standing with soap in our eyes and the proverbial egg on the face while the taps run dry.

Since we have you here for water conservation, why not try going chemical-free in your beauty regime? Here’s our range of organic and handmade skincare products, face packs and scrubs.

The force is so strong with my shower that it could put a Jedi to shame. We have a solar water heater, and during monsoons, it takes about 10 minutes to heat the water. So a few weeks ago, while waiting for the hot water to arrive, I started collecting the water that would otherwise have gone down the drain. I ended up with three buckets full of water!

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This is how much water one wastes during showers in a week. Enough water to use in the kitchen for three days for a family of four. Enough to water a garden of about 50 plants. Enough water to soak, rinse and wash the utensils left after a full meal by four people.

But this cannot be a ‘The-Better-India-article if it does not give suggestions to save the environment, right?

• Let’s begin with showers. And take the bucket bath challenge! Yes, one should start taking more bucket baths than showers to save water. A 10-minute shower consumes nearly 100 litres of water. A simple showerhead adapter will save 60 per cent of this amount without compromising on the flow of the water. All you have to do is fix it on the shower pipe and forget about it! (Except when you want to congratulate yourself on being a water-warrior!) You don’t have to go hunting for the adapters. We got you. Click on this link to see which model suits your needs the best.

• While you are at it, why just stop at a showerhead? Install such adapters in your basin too. Everyday activities like brushing teeth, washing your face or hands waste a lot of water. The faucets save litres of water without you having to take any efforts every day. Follow this link to get your water saving adapters.
• A group of school students amazed me with a simple solution they implemented in their toilets. While a normal large flush consumes about 10 litres of water, in reality, it needs only a small portion of it. Since the students could not re-engineer the flush system, they placed a water bottle in the flush tank to restrict the amount of water-filled. If you have a flush tank that can be opened, why not try this idea to save water? And if you are not up for an experiment, try this tested water-saving toilet bank instead.

• Don’t do your laundry frequently, especially if you use a washing machine. Collect enough clothes in your laundry bag to fill the machine before starting the machine. Not only will this save a lot of water but also your efforts in washing clothes. You can go a step ahead and replace your chemical detergents with organic ones. These zero-waste powders will reduce your micro-plastic output and leave your clothes soft and fragrant!
• If you get white residues of calcium or magnesium on your bathroom tile or buckets, washing them with water might not be the solution. This residue is a result of the hard water in your tank and cleaning it is only a temporary solution. What we suggest is to nip the problem in the bud. Soften your hard water with this filter and notice the change in your water quality within weeks! (Psst… an added benefit is that the soft water will help your skin and hair too!)

Don’t let your bathroom routines exhaust the environment. Water conservation is an important initiative we all must actively adopt in these trying times. If you save about 40 litres of water every time you shower, can you calculate how much water you save in a year? The number itself should motivate you to take proactive steps towards dedicated water conservation efforts!

May the Force Be With You!

You may also like: Hair Care to Flowers: 7 Ways to Reuse Kitchen Water in Beauty, Gardening Regimes

(Edited by Saiqua Sultan)

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