This post is not suggesting that by following the 6 simple ways below will stop the water bills from coming into your mailbox. Their arriving is certain, yet you don’t have to pay as much as you used to for water alone. And the only way is actually to reduce your use of water at home, particularly the taps and the flushing system. Yes, that simple. The practice is not as easy as it sounds, though. There will always be times when you are lured to open the tap and let the water run (you need it, anyway). Here’s how to minimize it, based on my tried-and-true experience:

1. Have an extra bucket in your bathroom.
Every time you take a shower, put the bucket near you. Yes, some water will splash and in the end slowly fill in the bucket. That’s the purpose. Use that water anytime you need to flush. Seriously.

2. Keep a bucket of gray water for occasional use.
After you do the dishes and after you wash your clothes, you get at least a bucket of gray water. Don’t throw the water away. Just like number one, you can use this water to flush. Do you see now how you can save some clean water by doing this?

3. Use only one glass to drink each day.
Don’t change the glass you used in the morning with another glass for the afternoon. The more you change your glass while it’s only for your personal use, the more water you need to wash the extra glass(es).

4. Reuse any kind of water.
Instead of watering your plants with clean water, use another kind of gray water that you can get from cleaning the vegetables, for instance. Water from cleaning the meat is also good for plants, according to several studies. The point is to extend the age of any kind of water at your home by using it more than once.

5. Only do the dishes when there are more than three pieces.
Wait until you get at least three pieces of dishes to wash so that more clean water you can save instead of washing one at a time.

6. Only wash your clothes when there are about ten pieces, and wash with hands.
The similar thing applies to washing your clothes. Wash in bulk and with hands. Washing machines suck much more clean water than with manual method.

These frugal ways of saving clean water in order to reduce water bills require disciplined practice to make them as daily habits, but totally worth every penny.

Article by Diar A.
Freelance blogger/editor (http://thegaudia.com). Editor of http://pinjam-bumi.blogspot.com (a blog in Indonesian language on learning the Earth-friendly lifestyle)