OCR Text |
Show Volume THE OGDEN VALLEY NEWS I1, Issue XIV Page 7 15 July 2000 The Water Wise Checklist Try this checklist to see where you stand with your water habits, and what you can do to improve them. __ 1. Water your lawn only needs it! when it Watering frequently can be very wasteful, as it doesn’t allow for cool spells or rainfall that can reduce the need to water. A good way to see if your lawn needs water is to step on the grass. If the grass springs back when you move your foot, it doesn’t need water. Change your sprinkler clocks to suit weather conditions. (Remember less water is needed in spring and fall.) __ 2. Deep-soak your lawn. When you do water your lawn, do it long enough for water to seep down to the roots where it won’t evaporate quickly and where it will do the most good. A light sprinkling, which sits on the surface, will simply evaporate and be wasted. A slow, steady fall of water is the best way to 1rrigate your lawn. Shallow watering also encourages shallow root systems. as wasteful as leaks in the water meter line; even more wasteful. __6. Plant drought resistant trees and plants. Visit your local nursery to see the many varieties of trees and plants that thrive in Utah and require far less water than other species. __7. Use a broom to clean driveways, sidewalks and steps. A broom is the proper tool for cleaning these areas. Using a hose wastes hundreds of gallons of water. __ 8. Put a layer of mulch around trees and plants. A layer of mulch (3-4 inches) will slow the evaporation of moisture and inhibit weeds! __9. Don’t run the hose while washing your car. Soap down your car with a pail of soapy water. Then use the hose to rinse it off. __10. Teach your children that your hose and sprinklers are not toys. There are few things more cheerful than the sound of happy children playing under a hose or sprinkler on a hot day. Unfortunately, there are also few things more wasteful of precious water. __11. Check your toilet for leaks. A leak in your toilet may be wasting more than 100 gallons of water a day. To check, put a little food coloring in your toilet tank. - If, without flushing, the coloring begins to appear in the bowl, you have a leak. Adjust or replace the flush valve, or call a plumber. 12, Stop using your toilet as an ashtray or wastebasket. Every time you flush a cigarette butt, facial tissue or some other small bit of trash down the 3. Water during the cool part of the day. Avoid watering between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. During the cooler morning and evening hours, there is less evaporation and wind is generally lighter. 4. Don’t water the gutter. Position your sprinklers in such a way that water lands on your lawn or garden, not on concrete where it does no good. Avoid watering on windy days when much of your water may be carried off before it ever hits the ground. 5. Check for leaks in pipes, hoses, faucets and couplings. Leaks outside the ouse may seem bearable since toilet, you waste five to seven gallons they don’t mess up the floor or drive of water. you crazy at night. But they can be just __13. Replace your old toilet. Toilets are the biggest water users inside the __19. Use your automatic dishwasher lets use approximately lons of water. _20. If you wash dishes by hand, don’t leave the water running for rinsing. If you have two sinks, fill one with soapy water and one with rinse home. Replace your old toilet with a new ultra-low-flow toilet. These toi1.6 gallons per flush as opposed to older style toilets that use five to seven gallons per flush. The new toilets are readily available and come in many styles and colors. __14. Take shorter showers. Long, hot showers waste five to 10 gallons of water every unneeded minute. Limit your showers to the time it takes to soap up, wash down and rinse off. ___15. Install watersaving showerheads. Replace your old showerhead with a new low-flow showerhead that uses 2.5 gallons per minute. A good low-flow showerhead produces a great shower. Try 1it! You’ll like it! (And you’ll save water, 100.) __16. Turn off the water after you wet your toothbrush. After you have wet your toothbrush and filled a glass for rinsing your mouth, there is no need to keep water pouring down the drain. ~_17. Rinse your razor in the sink. Before shaving, partially fill your sink with a few inches of warm water. This will rinse your blade just as efficiently as running water and far less wastefully. 18, Check your faucets and pipes for leaks. Even the smallest drip from a worn washer can waste 50 or more gallons of water a day. Larger leaks can waste hundreds of gallons. only for full loads. Every time you run your dishwasher, you use about 25 gal- water. If you have one sink, gather all the washed dishes in the dishrack and rinse them with an Inexpensive spray device. __21. Don’t let the faucet run to clean vegetables. To wash vegetables, put a stopper 1n the sink and fill with a few inches of clean water. __22. Keep a bottle of drinking water in the refrigerator. This ends the wasteful practice of running tap water to cool 1t off for drinking. __23. Use your automatic washing machine only for full loads. Your auto- matic washer uses 30 to 35 gallons of water in a cycle. That’s a lot of water for three T-shirts. YOUR SCORE [f you ‘ve checked 19-23 boxes, you’re doing an excellent job saving water, energy and protecting our environment. From 12-18 means you’re doing a good job, but there’s room for improvement. Less than 12 means you need to change your habits. Note: Provided courtesy of the STATE OF UTAH NATURAL RESOURCES Division of Water Resources. Lawn Watering Gulde % Lawn watering uses nearly half o? the water around homes. Most of us tend to water too often and leave the sprinklers on too long. Turf studies have shown that most lawns only need to be watered once every 3 or 4 days to stay healthy and green. Watering every day creates shallow roots. Watering infrequently develops deep roots and healthier turf. Grass roots grow deeper into the soil and become stronger with less watering. If grass does not spring back after being stepped on, it’s time to water. Water only when needed. Usc the waterin guide. Your lawn may need more water when it’s extra hot or less when it’s cool. Water less when it rains. Avoid watering on windy days or midday when the evaporation level is the highest. Try to water during the early morning hours. Proper lawn watering can save a lot of water- and that saves you money. For more information on water conservation call (801) 5387299. Note: Provided courtesy of the STATE OF UTAH NATURAL RESOURCES Division of Water Resources. Visit Rainbow Country PIONEER —July 14-24 — Both Founded By OGDEN'S COWBOY MAYOR HARMAN W. PEERY 1892 - 1961 Season 5510 L DAYS 2200 N 745-2400 Eden @ Rainbow Sardens MOUTH OF OGDEN CANYON « OPEN DAILY AT 10 AM. = (801) 621-1606 5 B S B FE A BT E N E B EEEEEEMN ) |