Water conservation is an important part of looking after the world around us. Parents often find that by teaching their children how to save water, they end up fostering an enduring interest in conservation and our planet – as well as saving little money. Here at Persil, we care about water conservation and saving water – you can find out more about sustainability and laundry here.
This article explains the importance of water conservation and provides some useful water-saving tips to help you and your child at home.
SAVING WATER THROUGH GOOD LAUNDRY PRACTICE
There are many easy ways to save water when doing loads of laundry. In general, wash fewer, fuller loads instead of a greater number of half-empty loads. Sort your laundry to minimise the number of loads – that way, a lone white school shirt hiding under a pile of bright clothes can be washed with other whites, and doesn’t end up in the drum all by itself.
Wash at full loads — This is the key to water-saving through laundry. It’s a waste to run the washing machine only to launder a few articles of clothing. Make sure your kids know this, and that they know to bring out all their dirty laundry at once for the fullest loads possible.
Sort your laundry effectively — Create multiple laundry baskets in your household to help the sorting process: whites, darks, bright colours, heavily soiled, and delicates. Teach your kids to put their laundry into the right baskets, and reward them if they do it correctly. This way, each kind of load will be as full as possible.
Create a schedule for washing different loads — This approach can also help maximise each load size. For example, if Wednesday is the day for washing dark clothes and Saturday for washing whites, your kids will know when to save up which kind of laundry and when to bring it out. Washing one full load of coloured clothes once a week is much better than washing two partial loads every four days.
Use the half-load button — If you have this cycle option, and if your load is a small one, this is an easy, essential way to conserve water! In addition to saving water, you can also save on energy by running the machine on quick wash or at lower temperatures. Persil has designed detergents like Persil Liquid, which work brilliantly on the toughest stains, even in a quick wash at temperatures as low as 30 degrees. Discover more about Persil’s plastic pledge here.
HOW TO SAVE WATER AT HOME: IN THE BATHROOM
Of course, good laundry practice is only one way to conserve water. Here are some great tips on saving water for kids when they’re having a wash themselves!
Take short showers — Long, hot showers can use up a great deal of water and energy. If your kids get accustomed to taking only five-minute showers, they’ll be saving a lot of water over the course of many years!
Waiting for the shower to heat up? Put a bucket in it to catch the water — This is a great way to conserve water with your kids, as the contents of the bucket can then be used to water house or garden plants together.
Turn off the tap when it’s not needed — Kids often leave the tap running when brushing their teeth or soaping their hands. Teach them to turn it off and they’ll be saving water and your bills in the long run.
These are just some easy water-saving tips that you and your kids can use to make a difference. Which of these did your children like the best? Let us know how you save water at home!