Published: Jun 28, 2013 | 21:09 PM

Most Water Use is Outside

Did you know that the average-sized household in the IRWD service area uses about 345 gallons of water per day? And that is not necessarily due to taking showers, washing dishes, flushing toilets, or doing the laundry. Two hundred gallons of that 345 figure, or 50 to 60 percent, is used outside for watering your landscape.

"One way to determine if you are using too much water is to look at your bill," said IRWD Water Use Efficiency Analyst Nathan Adams. "If you fall within the inefficient, excessive, or wasteful category, chances are too much water is being applied to your landscape."

There are three ways to reduce your landscape’s drinking problem[NA1]  and IRWD offers incentives to help you address outdoor water use efficiency:

• Your plant palette dictates water usage. Grass requires much more water compared to native and California-friendly plants.  Consider replacing grass areas which are seldom used, like the area next to driveways first.
• Make monthly adjustments to your watering schedule. Automatic irrigation timers are efficient only if the run times are set according to weather and climate conditions. For suggested irrigation times, go to www.irwd.com/alwayswatersmart/weekly-irrigation-schedule.
• Efficiency is king – if your sprinklers are watering the driveway, sidewalk, or the street, water is being wasted and causing runoff.  Fix leaks, adjust spray patterns and install efficient rotating nozzles and drip irrigation where possible.

IRWD has a host of programs to help you become more water efficient:

•  Take advantage of our turf removal program, which will pay $1.50 per square-foot of grass removed for a minimum of 250 to a maximum of 10,000 square-feet.  Visit:

www.irwd.com/alwayswatersmart/rebates/turf-removal-rebate-program.

• Go to www.irwd.com/alwayswatersmart/garden-resources to check out native and California-friendly plants that are suited to our mild winters and warm climate. These plants are low-maintenance and require very little water.
• Replace your old water-wasting sprinklers with rotating spray nozzles and receive a $3 rebate per nozzle. Go to www.irwd.com/alwayswatersmart/residential-rebates[NA2]  for information and a list of where to purchase the nozzles.
• Replace your old irrigation controller with a weather-based irrigation controller. Customers may receive a rebate of up to $425 per timer. Go to www.irwd.com/alwayswatersmart/residential/residential-rebates for information and a list of where to purchase the timers.

For more information about IRWD water efficiency programs, please visit our website.