it s no secret that we need to pay closer attention to how much water we re using and wasting cape town and many other areas are currently undergoing severe interventions for the drought the worst natural disaster to hit the country in 30 years the rest of the country has become acutely aware of what could lie ahead if we don t start saving our water be part of the solution by implementing these water saving tricks in your home cut down on bath time get the family used to showering which uses a fifth of the amount of water that is needed for a bath as much as you can make a no bath rule in your home and when you do shower place a bucket in the shower with you to collect the grey water you can use this to water plants or flush the loo later on invest in a low flow showerhead too to reduce the amount of water being used limit the dishwasher use dishwashers use a huge amount of water make sure you re not running it for just a few dishes here and there only run it when it s absolutely full invest in a steamer instead of boiling your veggies invest in a steamer it means a lot less water needed to create the steam to cook them plus it s a healthier way of cooking just place the steamer on top of a pot of a small amount of boiling water check for leaks see if you have any hidden water leaks by taking a reading on your water meter at a time when no water is being used check it again two hours later if it doesn t read exactly the same there is a leak says santam fix all leaks as soon as possible stop running the tap when you re washing dishes when you re brushing your teeth when you re shaving make sure the tap is turned off mindlessly leaving the tap running while you do something in the sink can waste a huge amount of water attach a water tank to your drainpipe this can collect rainwater for you to use elsewhere to water plants wash your car or clean dishes they re affordable and available in all good hardware stores try a waterless carwash there are many companies that offer water free car washes try these out in stead of using your hose at home to wash your car and check out the green machine for your own alternative put a basin in your sink keeping a small plastic basin in your sink will mean you can collect any water that does happen to run out from the tap while you re washing your hands rinsing a dish or waiting for the water to heat up use the water you collect for drinking if it s clean or to water the garden you can also keep it in a spray bottle and use this to rinse dishes that didn t get too dirty