Projects to Save Water

Rainwater Harvesting

• Rainwater harvesting can be a simple do-it-yourself homeowner project to save water. All that is required is a location to collect rainwater runoff. Water spouts from roof gutters and drains on a house or garage are good sources of runoff. Position a large barrel under the runoff point to collect rainwater and use this water instead of pumping water from the ground to water plants and gardens.

Drought Resistant Planting

• Designing a landscape that uses drought-resistant plants, trees and grass is another simple project that will reduce the amount of water used to keep your yard green. Palm trees, sea grasses and succulent plants like cactus and aloe all need less water than traditional landscape plants. Coupled with rock and stone gardens and pathways, these landscapes save water.

Bucket Showers

• Everyone is capable of this simple, daily process to save water. By keeping a small plastic bucket in your bathroom, you'll have an easy receptacle to catch the water at the beginning of your shower while you are waiting for the water to turn warm from cold. The captured water can be used to maintain household plants or small garden beds.

Solar Stills

• A solar still is a project that only requires simple construction to capture water much like a cloud does in nature with the process of evaporation. Structures are built with a glass surface to collect water vapor as it rises with the power of the sun. The best part of this project is that the structure has no moving parts, so there's nothing to wear out; all that is required is a little bit of sunshine each day.