Indoor Conservation

Every day the average American can splash, pour and flush between 40 and 130 gallons of water down the drain, while even more is used on farms and in factories.  In the Clackamas River Water Providers service area, the average person uses 75 gallons of water each day, and a family of four typically consumes around 320 gallons per day.  We use water to cook, take showers, clean and drink. The residential water use chart shows how a typical household uses water indoors.

There are a number of ways you can learn how to save water indoors whether it is through fixing leaky faucets or leaky toilets, to installing new low flow fixtures and appliances which can reduce your indoor water usage by up to 50%, to learning how to use your water meter to check for leaks.

One the main floor

• Dishwasher.  Water accumulated on the floor near the unit could be a sign of a leak.  Call your dishwasher repair service.
• Refrigerator ice-making unit.  A leak in the ice making unit will cause excessive accumulations of ice in the freezer, and may also produce small puddles of water under the refrigerator.  Call your refrigerator repair service.
• Bathtubs and showers.  Check the spout and shower head for dripping water.  A new washer may be needed.  You may be able to do this repair yourself by unscrewing the faucet and replacing the washer with the same size.  But before doing this repair, close your home’s main shut off valve.  If necessary, call your plumber to make the repair.
• Toilets. Your toilet may have a silent leak.  Drop a little food coloring in the tank.  Wait about 10 minutes without flushing.  If color appears in the bowl you have a leak.