Save Water, Protect Your Home and The Environment
Year-round water saving ideas for the home
- Install water-efficient toilets, low-flow showerheads and faucet aerators in your kitchen, bathrooms and laundry room.
- Keep a jug of drinking water in the fridge to avoid waiting for cold running water.
- If you have a dishwasher, only wash full loads and use the energy saver or shortest cycle.
- Whether you are preparing food or brushing your teeth, never let the tap run continuously.
- Fix leaky taps and toilets. Check for a toilet leak by placing a few drops of food colouring or a dye test tablet in your toilet tank, wait 10 minutes and if the water in your bowl changes colour, you have a leak that needs repair.
- Use a high-efficiency front loading washing machine, and run only full loads.
Seasonal tips for the spring
With the warm weather upon us, many Toronto residents are starting their spring cleaning. To get you started, here are some tips from Toronto Water to help you save time and water while protecting your home and the environment.
Gardening
- Disconnect your downspout and use the rainwater to water your grass and gardens.
- No extra watering required during the spring, the rain is enough.
- Install a rain barrel and use the rainwater to water your grass and gardens.
- Leave the grass clippings on the lawn.
- Sharpen your lawn mower blades.
- Aerate your lawn to let it breathe. This will also reduce thatch build-up.
- Repair your lawn by over-seeding with a seed mixture of ryes and fescues.
- Apply 5 – 8 cm (2½ – 3 inches) of mulch to your gardens.
- Sweep sidewalks and driveways clean instead of using a running hose.
- Start planning your water-efficient, natural garden using native plants and trees.
- Increase the amount of green space on your property. This beautiful addition to your home will help absorb rain water, protecting your basement and local waterways from excess stormwater and flooding.
Basement flooding prevention
- Disconnect your downspouts that empty into the City's sewer system and direct the rainwater to your lawn and garden or into a rain barrel.
- Clear eavestroughs and downspouts of debris.
- Install a back-water valve and a basement sump pump.
- Use soft-surface landscaping (e.g. porous pavement, shrubs).
- Ensure the ground is sloping away from your home's foundation walls.
- Seal window wells and fix leaks in basement walls and around windows.
- Increase the amount of green space on your property. This beautiful addition to your home will help absorb rainwater, protecting your basement and local waterways from excess stormwater.
- Homeowners can also take advantage of City subsidies of up to $3,200 per property to assist with the cost of installing certain flood protection devices.
Car washing
The dirt on cars can contain toxic chemicals, heavy metals, oil and grease. When you wash a car in your driveway or on the street, that dirty water runs into the storm sewers and straight into local waterways, contributing to water pollution and impacting Lake Ontario's water quality.
To avoid having dirty water run into the storm sewer system, consider these options for washing your car:
- Use a commercial car wash facility (automatic or coin). These facilities are required to follow a set of practices determined by the City, including treating wastewater and discharging it into the sanitary sewer system where it will receive further treatment.
- Dispose of the wastewater into the sanitary sewer. By using a pail, washcloth and only a small amount of water, and then wiping the car dry, the waste water can be contained in the bucket and disposed of into the sanitary sewer through a laundry sink or toilet. Once in the sanitary sewer system, the water will go to a City wastewater treatment plant.
- Find a location where the wastewater won’t flow into the storm sewer such as a gravel surface where the wastewater can be absorbed.
All of these options will help protect public health and aquatic environments from the harmful effects of dirty water entering the storm sewers.
To report a flooded basement or suspected spills into the storm sewer, call 311, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Seasonal tips for the summer
Early bird gets the worm - water lawns early in the morn to reduce water lost to evaporation. Check out www.toronto.ca/watereff/landscaping.htm for more tips.
Slow down the sprinkler! And let water soak in to your lawn. If water is running off your lawn, it's time to stop. Check out www.toronto.ca/watereff/landscaping.htm
Disconnect downspouts from the sewer system and use rainwater for grass and gardens. Make the job easier with a rain barrel. Check out www.toronto.ca/watereff/landscaping.htm
Washing your car this weekend? Check out tips to avoid having the dirty wash water enter local waterways: www.toronto.ca/water/protecting_quality/pollution_prevention/car_washing.htm