It’s no secret that many parts of South Africa have been suffering a considerable water shortage crisis with severe water restrictions since the last significant rains. As responsible citizens, it should be a primary concern to take it upon ourselves to be more aware of water wastage in and around our homes. Water conservation should be an essential practice in all regions of South Africa, regardless of whether or not restrictions have been imposed, as every little bit saved, ultimately contributes to the bigger picture.
In addition to saving on your water bill every month, mindful water conservation also helps to prevent local water pollution in nearby reservoirs, dams, lakes, and rivers.
Here a few simple tips to saving water around your home:
1. Plant drought-resistant gardens
If you are planning on re-designing your garden and uprooting most of the existent shrubs and foliage, make sure you replace these with drought-resistant grass and native plants which require less watering. Consider building plant slopes which help reduce water runoff, retaining more water.
2. Deep soak your lawn
This may seem counter-productive in the world of water conservation, but in the long run, it will save water. Deep soaking your lawn allows moisture to soak down to the roots, where it will encourage a deep-root system, instead of a shallow root system, which requires frequent watering. A simple tip is to place an empty tuna can on your lawn, once the can is full of water from your sprinkler, your lawn is deep soaked!
3. Insulate your water pipes
How long do you spend hopping around outside your shower, waiting for the water to warm up? In that time, water is wasted, which we hope you have been catching in a bucket! Insulating your water pipes with pre-slit foam will help to heat up your water pipes faster, saving copious amounts of water that would normally be lost over time.
4. Harvest rain water & install seamless gutters
While the installation of a water tank is relatively simple, there are important things to remember, such as measuring your roof’s exact dimensions, to keep the barrels on a cinder block base, keeping the barrel(s) covered and ensuring your gutters are sealed seamlessly, of good quality, sturdy and installed with filters for a clean supply of water.
For seamless household gutter supplies, installation and maintenance throughout Pretoria and Gauteng, take a look at our product offering or contact Easy Flow Gutters.
