Don’t
water the side of your house or fence, your sidewalks, driveway or gutter.
Adjust your sprinklers so that water lands only on your lawn or garden where
it belongs --- a possible savings of 500 gallons each month.
Water at night or early
in the morning. Less water evaporates when the sun is down – early morning
is best. The peak water consumption hours should be avoided (9 a.m. to 4
p.m.)
Don’t water the lawn on windy days when the evaporation level increases.
You can waste up to 300 gallons in one watering.
Install an automatic
timer that doesn’t forget to turn the water off. An automated sprinkler
timer doesn’t get distracted by that long-distance phone call or other
household duties. And, let’s face it…sometimes the brain of a machine or
computer is more reliable than the human brain.
Use desert plants in your landscaping – you’ll still have beautiful color
and foliage, but won’t need all that water. When first establishing your
desert plants, you’ll need to water them every three or four days, but by
the time summer arrives, they only need water once a week. Of course, the
best time to establish these plants is in the spring months, but it’s never
too late to make the change to start conserving water.
Water your lawn only
when it needs it. Step on your grass – if it springs back when you lift
your foot, it doesn’t need water. Consult the weather page – many include a
lawn watering guide to give you an idea of how much water your lawn needs
that day.
Longer grass – 2 ½ to 3 inches – means less evaporation which can save you
between 500 to 1,500 gallons each month depending on the size of the lawn
area.
Replace broken and
missing sprinklers to save your lawn and conserve water. A missing
sprinkler head can lose over 12 gallons of water per MINUTE.
If water runs off your lawn, split the watering time to reduce run off.
Allow at least 30 minutes between watering times for the ground to absorb
the water.
Suggestions paraphrased from an article
by Mitchell Vantrease,
Sun
City Daily News-Sun
