Water Usage

Toilets account for 27% of every US citizen’s indoor water use.

If every appliance in the US was a water-efficient model, the country would save a whopping 3 trillion (yes, trillion with a “T”) gallons of water every year. That’s enough water to fill 75 billion bathtubs, or fill Florida’s Lake Okeechobee three times over!

The typical American family uses 69.3 gallons of water in the home every single day.

The average person needs approximately 4 gallons of water a day to survive.

The typical American home wastes more than 9,000 gallons of water per year just waiting for the water to heat up.

The average drip from a faucet will fill an 8oz. glass of water in 15 minutes. This works out to 180 gallons each month and over 2,160 gallons a year of wasted water.

Low-flush toilets save more than 18,000 gallons of water on average each year.

More Interesting Water Facts

Planet Earth boasts a mind-boggling 326,000,000,000,000,000,000 gallons of water (that’s 326 million trillion in case you were wondering).

A whopping 97% of Earth’s supply is salt water contained in the oceans and seas.
Of the remaining 3%, only 1% is available to life as drinking water. The other 2% is frozen in ice at the poles.

Our bodies are made up of over 75% water.

The average American uses 140-170 gallons of water per day.

Americans drink over 110 million gallons of water every day.

If every faucet in America had a leak that dripped once per second, the US would waste 928 million gallons of water every day.

You could refill an 8oz. glass of water 15,000 times for the same cost as a 6-pack of soda.

A dairy cow drinks three gallons of water to produce one gallon of milk.

An average American family’s food intake each year takes 3.3 acre feet of water to produce.

Using a dishwasher takes 9-12 gallons of water – less if energy efficient. Washing by hand, if you leave the water running, takes twice as much.

Bonus Plumbing Facts

The Chinese invented toilet paper in 1391AD for the Emperor’s use. They produced 720,000 2×3 foot sheets yearly for his private use. The first US toilet paper was packaged under the catchy name “The Therapeutic Paper”. It contained aloe and was sold in packs of 500 sheets for 50 cents. Scott began selling tissue on a roll as we know it in 1890.

The Plumber’s Union has one significantly famous member known far and wide for accomplishments outside the field – Albert Einstein. After claiming he would be a plumber if he could do it all over again, the Union made him an honorary member in 1942.

The oldest known plumbing system from antiquity was discovered in the Pyramid of Cheops in Egypt and dated all the way back to 2500BCE.

Time to Make the Call (773) 633-6139

Water conservation and environmental awareness are important to the future sustainability of life as we enjoy it today. We have a responsibility to ensure that future generations can depend on these resources to provide the same quality of life we take for granted today. Every little thing we do matters, every step we take is a step in the right direction – including a green approach to plumbing. When you’re ready to make the move to green solutions, call the experts at Vanguard Plumbing & Sewer, Inc. at (773) 633-6139.