Inspired By Plumbing: Teaching Your Kids About Conservation & Responsible Behavior

The plumbing system in your house provides a myriad of ways you can teach your children not only about household plumbing, but about subjects such as water conservation and responsible behavior. They'll learn practical knowledge they can use throughout a lifetime. 

Teaching About Conservation

Loading the Dishwasher

Show your children the most efficient techniques for loading the dishwasher and explain why it's best to only run the appliance when it's full. Otherwise, a family uses more water running small loads more often. 

Opening the appliance after the wash and rinse cycles are complete saves electricity since the items inside now can air dry.

Washing Dishes by Hand

If you don't have a dishwasher or when you want to wash a small number of items, that's another chance to demonstrate a water conservation method. Teach your kids to turn the rinse water on and off rather than leaving it running the entire time. 

Brushing Teeth

Again, avoiding letting the water run conserves resources and keeps the utility bill lower. As the kids brush, they can keep the water off until they're ready to rinse. 

Watering Outdoors

While watering your lawn or gardens with a sprinkler or hose, show your kids the most efficient methods for getting the job done. For instance, watering before the heat of the day is best since water has more time to soak into the ground without evaporating in the sun. 

If you live in a region where outdoor watering is restricted, such as to every other day, explain to your youngsters why this regulation is important. You have the opportunity to talk about arid climates and drought conditions.

You might also have your kids help you install a rain barrel under a downspout so they can use this free water in watering cans. Rain barrels also provide a way of pointing out how inconsistent nature can be; sometimes those barrels run dry. 

Teaching Responsible Behavior

Washing Dirty Hands

Your children need to learn when it's important to wash their hands. For example, they should wash before eating and after playing in dirt. Show them the right amount of soap to use without being wasteful and how long to run the water for effective rinsing. 

Avoiding Flushing Certain Items

Whether your house is connected to a municipal sewage system or you have a septic tank, there are many items that should never be flushed. They can lodge among tiny tree roots that have grown into the sewer pipe, which causes backups. They can clog up a septic tank and they are no good for the municipal sewage treatment plant. Instruct your children never to flush things such as:

• dental floss
• sanitary wipes
• hair from the shower trap or the hairbrush

It's not entirely unheard of for a youngster to think flushing a small toy is a compelling activity. Let your kids know why that's unacceptable. 

Telling an Adult About Plumbing Problems

Make sure your children don't ignore or try to hide a plumbing problem. They might realize they caused the problem or they might be afraid you'll suspect them, and they don't want to get in trouble. Explain the importance of telling you if a sink or toilet overflows, even if they made it happen. 

Calling a Plumber

Your children won't be calling a plumber without your permission, but you still can explain when it's important to bring in a professional. When a plumber comes to your house for repair or installation work, let the kids watch from a distance at which they won't be in the way. They may find it fascinating to see the replacement of an old, leaky faucet with a new one or the snaking out of tree roots in a sewer line.

Practical Use

All this informal education will be useful to your youngsters as they become adults. It also will help you prevent plumbing issues in your house. Everyone will be happier when the plumbing functions properly and when problems that could have been avoided do not occur. However, if a plumbing problem does occur, navigate to this web-site to contact a plumbing company for emergency repairs.