Friday, June 4, 2010

Frugal Tip Friday: Dish rinse water re-use

I have given up on the dishwasher! I have banned it's use in my house. It is more eco-friendly and frugal to use the dishwasher because it uses less water than hand washing, but the darn thing just doesn't work! I have tried everything I can think of and nothing is working, so, I give up! I will just hand wash from now on. And that is fine with me. But what to do with all that "wasted" water?

Well, my solution is to save my rinse water and reuse it. I wash my dishes in the sink but then use a dish pan to rinse them in. I then reuse that rinse water to water my outdoor plants. After I have done the dishes, I allow the water to cool to room temperature. Then that evening, I water my garden with it. It doesn't get all the plants but it gets about half of ours. The little bits of food in the water act at compost/fertilizer and the small amount of dish soap acts as a pest detergent. So not only is it frugal and eco-friendly but reusing something that you would otherwise have just run down the drain, but it is also beneficial to your plants!

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