If you’re trying to cut back on expenses but forgot about your water bill, you’re missing lots of potential savings. These 8 tips will not only help your carbon footprint, but help you save money too.

1. Install Low-Flow Appliances

While installing new appliances – such as a toilet, washer, or dishwasher – might seem contradictory when you’re looking to save money, the water you save over time will offset the cost of higher efficiency appliances. If you aren’t ready for such a drastic change, you can still install water-reducing showerheads and faucets; low-flow fixtures reduce usage but maintain function.

2. Retrofit Your Toilet

Instead of replacing the toilet, you can buy a kit at the hardware store that will get your toilet to use less water every flush. You could also do it yourself: fill a 2-liter soda bottle with gravel or sand and place it in the toilet tank. Your toilet tank will hold less water, meaning less water wasted per flush.

3. Take Faster Showers

As nice as it can be to stand under a flow of hot water, this habit can be costing you a lot of money. Take a “power” or “military” shower instead: Jump in, get wet, turn off the water, soap up, then turn the water back on and rinse off.

4. Turn off the Faucet

How often do you leave the water running while you are doing other things? Does the water run while you are washing your teeth? Is the water running while you are gathering dishes? Turn off the water! Think of it as money running down your drain and you might be a little more conscientious.

5. Run Full Loads

Whether it’s the dishwasher or the washing machine, don’t run partial loads. Don’t overload the machine so it won’t agitate, but make sure you aren’t wasting water on only a few items.

6. Collect Excess Water

How much water runs down the drain while you’re waiting for it to get hot? Find other uses for this water. Collect it in a bucket and use it to fill the dog’s water dish or water your houseplants. You can even use it to flush the toilet.

7. Seal All Leaks

If any of your appliances are leaking, it’s going to be a drain on any potential savings. Check carefully around the sealing on your toilet, shower, dishwasher and washing machine to make sure the seal is good.

Have you tried to cut back on your water bill? What worked, what didn’t? Let us know in the comments section below.

Jessica Bosari is a PerkStreet Customer Columnist, as well as the Site Manager and Editor for billeater a blog with money-saving tips to lower your bills. When she’s not gathering money-saving tips, Jessica is feeding her geeky side with sci-fi movies, tech gadgets, useful apps and productivity tricks, just to keep things interesting. Read more of Jessica’s great financial advice on Perkstreet’s blog, or view her other money-saving tips at billeater.com.