Did you know that some government experts estimate that as much as 50% of water used for Outdoor irrigation is lost to evaporation, wind, and similar natural occurrences? That’s a whole lot of water. There are a whole lot of ways to best conserve water outdoors in Minnesota, and we’ve collected some of our favorite tips here just for you.

Lawn Maintenance

1. Keep lawn fertilizer use to a minimum. They help with plant growth, but also increase overall water consumption. When you use fertilizer, use the smallest necessary amount.

2. Research drought tolerant plants. If you want to take water conservation very seriously, consider planting only drought tolerant plants in your yard so you can have the beauty of nice landscaping without the uptake in water usage.

3. Adjust your mower blades. Adjusting your Lawn mower blades to a higher setting can provide helpful shade to the roots, leading to an increase in soil moisture and less need for water.

4. Keep your lawn arrangement strategic. By placing things strategically in your lawn, you can save water. Actions like directing downspouts toward bushes or trees that need water or grouping bushes with similar water needs can help you on your journey toward better water conservation.

5. Keep up with the weeding. Weeds are fighting your grass and other plants for nutrients, water, and the like. Regular weeding keeps the competition down so less water is needed to keep your preferred plants alive.

6. Don’t waste clippings. Spreading lawn clippings on your lawn is a great way to keep it healthy by cooling the grass so it requires less water to stay vibrant.

Watering

7. Water your lawn during early morning or late evening. Watering during cooler times of day leads to less water needed because less water is lost to evaporation.

8. Drip irrigation systems are best for lawn watering. There is a lot less water Waste using drip irrigation systems instead of hoses or sprinklers to water your lawn.

9. Aerate your lawn periodically. By strategically poking holes in your lawn to allow for aeration, water reaches the roots instead of just the topsoil. This allows less water to do more work.

Pool Maintenance

10. Manually clean your pool filter. Pool filters can get dirty just like any other, but the typical act of backwashing a filter can waste up to 1,000 gallons of water without even completely cleaning it out. Removing and hand-wiping your filter down can lead to results just as good without the waste.

11. Use a pool cover. Evaporation on uncovered pool can lead to hundreds of gallons of wasted water each month. Something as simple as covering your pool when it’s not in use makes a big difference.

12. Don’t overfill your swimming pools. Overfilled swimming pools lead to a lot of water loss just from general use. You would be baffled at how much water gets wasted just from kids being kids and splashing about in too full pools.

Outdoor Cleaning

13. When washing things outdoors, don’t leave the hose running. We recommend purchasing a squeeze nozzle for the end of the hose so you can easily control water flow during needed washing.

14. Use a broom to clean outdoor pathways. It’s convenient to just hose down your outdoor walk and pathways, but the amount of water waste their can be surprising. A nice sweeping does just as well.

15. Consider using commercial car washes. With all the road construction constantly going on in Minnesota, our cars get dusty faster than most. When your car needs a wash, consider a commercial car wash instead of doing it on your own. Many commercial car washes recycle their water so you can get a great clean without worrying about waste.

General

16. Know where the master shut-off valve is. We know that, as Minnesotans, burst and frozen pipes are a real winter concern. Know where the valve is, so in case of catastrophe, you don’t waste gallons of water scrambling to find it and shut it off.

17. Winterize your outdoor spigots. Minnesota gets cold. Really cold. Winterizing outdoor spigots involves turning them off, draining them, and protecting them with an outdoor faucet cover to help avoid harmful freezing and bursting that happens in super low temps.

18. Kill two birds with one stone. Not literally, mind you. Doing things like washing pets or things like your kids’ bicycles outdoors in a spot where your lawn needs water can help conserve water by giving it multiple uses at once.

19. Skip the ornamental fountain. We understand, ornamental fountains look cool, but the amount of water waste due to evaporation with those types of installations can be great. If you can’t resist, consider fountains that don’t shoot water into the air, because those are the guiltiest parties when it comes to evaporative waste.

20. Be leak vigilant. Keep vigilant when it comes to checking outdoor faucets, drains, and pipes so if a leak occurs, you can have it patched up before it leads to too much waste.

Water conservation is important for everybody, and keeping these tips in mind can help you save cash and keep your water use to a healthy minimum. If you find some of your outdoor drains, pipes, or faucets are behaving improperly, you can always contact the certified experts at Ben Franklin Plumbing MN to help solve your problems.

The post 20 Minnesota Outdoor Water Conservation Tips appeared first on Benjamin Franklin Plumbing.