Save water, with Lady Meerkat

I do these regularly over Summer. Most water is consumed by our gardens but if you don’t have one there are still a few tips here you could use.

You will need:
1-2 litre jug for kitchen
plastic bowl that fits in your sink
30 litre or so (about size of laundry basket) plastic bowl
2-3 litre plastic jug / or sliced 2 litre plastic milk bottle, for bathroom
10 litre watering can
15 litre (standard size) bucket

~ When you boil the kettle and have excess water left over, pour it into the kitchen jug, let it cool and use it on the garden / in bird bath / on pot plants / dog/cat bowl. You could even drink it. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with this water so why throw it away?
~ When you run the tap for hot water, run it into the kitchen jug, and use as above, or to rinse dishes before putting into dishwasher
~ Rinse veggies into kitchen jug
~ When rinsing a bag of salad leaves (Mellipop :) !), add water to bag, twist shut, slosh about, then empty water into garden etc.
~ Always scrape off your dirty dishes into rubbish/compost before washing
~ When washing your hands, put bowl in sink to hold the water then reuse it on garden / pot plants
~ When using a shower recess, catch the water to reuse on the garden. Stand in big plastic tub, or use bucket if recess is not large enough. Use bathroom jug to scoop up water into your watering can.
OR if there has been enough rain on the garden, use shower water to flush toilet. Pour water into bowl not cistern (this may take some practice to get it right). There are people in the world who don’t have access to clean drinking water yet we use it to flush our loos!
~ Adopt the 2 pee system, commonly known as ‘If it’s yellow, let it mellow, If it’s brown, flush it down’. Probably not well suited to shared households or warmer weather.
~ When rinsing your mouth with mouth wash, instead of spitting into sink and flushing it away with water, spit into toilet bowl. Leave it there – don’t flush it, even if it’s the amber Listerine, or that pink plaque control stuff. What’s worse: dilute coloured water in your toilet bowl or wasting water?