2Make tunacans dodouble duty

Lawns only need about one-half tothree-quarters of an inch of waterat a time. To determine how long ittakes your irrigation system to putout half an inch of water, placetuna cans around the yard andmeasure the water collected inhalf an hour. Place a dozen cansaround your yard to test for evendistribution of water.

3Sprinkleyour yardwith care

Install water-efficient sprinklers and a rainsensor switch to override your system when itrains. Check timing device settings regularly. Install low-volumesoaker hoses or drip irrigation systems for planting beds withshrubs and flowers. Make sure you are watering your plants andnot the street or driveway.

4Celebrateyoursurroundings

Landscape with water thriftyornamental grasses, plantsand trees. Group plantstogether based on similarwater needs. Mulch to retainmoisture and reduce weeds.

1Water yourlawn like awinner

Saving Water OutdoorsMore than half of residential water use occurs outdoors. Watering wisely outside the homepromotes healthier lawns and landscapes and will save some folks atleast 50 percent of the water they use outdoors.

12SimpleWays to

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Watering your lawn in the earlymorning minimizes evaporationand waste. Lawns only needwatering once every two tothree days in the summer andonce every seven to 10 days inthe winter.Ahearty rain caneliminate the need for wateringfor up to 10 days in the winter.

S O U T H F L O R I D A W A T E R M A N A G E M E N T D I S T R I C T

2Make tunacans dodouble duty

Lawns only need about one-half tothree-quarters of an inch of waterat a time. To determine how long ittakes your irrigation system to putout half an inch of water, placetuna cans around the yard andmeasure the water collected inhalf an hour. Place a dozen cansaround your yard to test for evendistribution of water.

3 Sprinkleyour yardwith care

Install water-efficient sprinklers and a rainsensor switch to override your system when itrains. Check timing device settings regularly. Install low-volumesoaker hoses or drip irrigation systems for planting beds withshrubs and flowers. Make sure you are watering your plants andnot the street or driveway.

4 Celebrateyoursurroundings

Landscape with water thriftyornamental grasses, plantsand trees. Group plantstogether based on similarwater needs. Mulch to retainmoisture and reduce weeds.

1 Water yourlawn like awinner

Saving Water OutdoorsMore than half of residential water use occurs outdoors. Watering wisely outside the homepromotes healthier lawns and landscapes and will save some folks atleast 50 percent of the water they use outdoors.

12SimpleWays to

SaveWater

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Watering your lawn in the earlymorning minimizes evaporationand waste. Lawns only needwatering once every two tothree days in the summer andonce every seven to 10 days inthe winter. A hearty rain caneliminate the need for wateringfor up to 10 days in the winter.

SOUTH FLORIDA WATER MANAGEMENT DISTRICT

Meet yourwater meter

Find out if you have a leak in your home by readingyour water meter before and after a two-hour periodwhen no water is being used. If the readings aredifferent, you have a leak. If you have a well, listen tosee if the pump kicks on and off while the water is notin use. If it does, you have a leak.

10 Use foodcoloring to save water

Detect toilet leaks by removing the lid from the toilet tank,remove any colored cleaning agents, flush to clear waterin the bowl, then add a few drops of food coloring to thetank. If the tank is leaking, color will appear in the bowlwithin 30 minutes. To avoid staining the bowl, flush assoon as the test is complete. A leaky tank can waste 200gallons of water each day. Replace worn, corroded orbent parts. Don’t use the toilet as a waste basket.

5Avoid buzz cutsand backachesRaising your lawn mower bladeto its highest setting encouragesgrass roots to grow deeper andgrass blades to hold moisturelonger than with a closely clippedlawn. Cut off no more than one-third of a blade of grass at a time.Apply fertilizers sparingly and usefertilizers that contain slow-release, water-insoluble forms of nitrogen.

6Buy a nozzle for the nose of your hosePlace a self-canceling shut-offnozzle on your hose to controlthe flow of water so you onlyuse what you need. Rememberto turn the water off at thefaucet to prevent leaks.

Repair dripping faucets by replacing washers. If your faucet is dripping at the rate of one drop per

second, you can waste 20 gallons of water eachday. A steady stream of water the size of a pencilcan waste from 7,200 to 13,000 gallons of watereach day (depending upon water pressure).

If you don’t have an automatictimer on your sprinkler, use akitchen timer to remind you toturn off the water. Leftunattended, a garden hose canwaste as much as 600 gallonsof water in just one hour.

By timing your showers to keep them underfive minutes and installing ultra low-flowshowerheads, you can save water. The olderthe showerhead, the more water it uses. Newshowerheads deliver 2.5 gallons of water perminute. Older fixtures can deliver as high asnine gallons per minute.

12Shower yourselfwith savings

Saving Water IndoorsFixing leaks and replacing old plumbing fixtures with water-saving ones could save a family of four 30,000 gallons of water each year.

11 Delayhouseholdchores

Run automatic dishwashers only when fullyloaded. Set clotheswashers to theappropriate waterlevel for the sizeof load you arewashing.

7 Save timeand savewater

8

9 Make a faucetwasher awater saver

For more information onhow you can conservewater, visit us online atsfwmd.gov or call (800) 662-8876.