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Saving Water Indoors

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Even though we gave our clients many "indoor" water saving ideas we realized that we couldn't monitor our client's indoor water use in the same way that we could monitor their outdoor water use. Outside there is an automatic irrigation clock that regulates how much water is used and for how long. Inside the home no such clock exists!

Indoor water management is left entirely up to the individuals living inside the home. How long is the water left running during showers? Or when the family brushes their teeth? Is the water left running during household chores? When I was a boy my mother left the water running in the kitchen sink the whole time she was cleaning.

Our newsletters suggested these ideas to our clients: Take 3 minute showers. Fill up the bathtub only halfway full when bathing. When brushing teeth, use a glass of water rather than running water in the sink. Fill up the dishwasher completely before running it. Consider using paper plates. Place a filled plastic container into the toilet tank. Install water saving shower heads. Install restrictors into all of the sink faucets. Keep a bottle of cold water in the refrigerator rather than running the tap until the water gets cold enough to drink. Insulate indoor pipes to reduce the possibility of breaks and to conserve energy. The list goes on and on.

Indoor water management allows more choices than outdoor water management. Most homeowners are more familiar and comfortable with indoor water saving systems than they are with outdoor water saving systems. It's easier to turn off the tap or to run the dishwasher with a full load than to go outside and set the automatic irrigation clock. Outdoor water management needs to become as comfortable and familiar as indoor water management. That is how we, The Happy Gardener, approach it. To our customers, becoming familiar with operating the clock becomes second nature. Mystery and helplessness are replaced with an irrigation schedule and PCD'S.

Water Management has not yet been fully recognized and given the credit it deserves. Water Management will continue to help our lawn and landscapes survive through drought restrictions. Here is a chance to allow it to become widespread.


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April 1992 Newsletter

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...End of chapter 6



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