71% of the Earth's surface is covered in water, and yet fresh clean water is over of the many resources that we must fight to preserve. Water preservation starts right at home and in your open body, which is up to 60% water. Conserving water is something you can start doing right now, and it's something you can keep doing for the rest of your life.

Know Your System

What systems in your home use water, and how? There's the plumbing system of sinks, toilets, taps and showers, but what else in your home works with water? The water heater, and maybe even your heating system, in certain homes. There's the dishwasher and the laundry systems. If your refrigerator has an ice maker, there's that as well. How do these systems work and what do they need to run effectively? What are the benefits of a water softener or different water filters? These are all questions you should ask yourself, especially if you are a homeowner.

Know Your Usage

As you get to know your systems, you should also be watching your usage. In many places, the water bill only comes once every 3 months, but usage is generally measured more regularly than that. What does your water usage look like? When does it spike and when is it less? It's likely that your usage will rise and fall slightly, depending on the season, for a variety of reasons. If, however, you notice a sudden spike in your usage, you may have a problem, like a leaky pipe or a toilet that's running when it shouldn't be.

Think Sustainably

When you know how your system works and what your normal usage is, then you can really start to think sustainably. What can you do to reduce the number of chemicals and pollutants that go into your water? Where can you cut back on your water usage? If you plant your garden differently, can you get away with watering less often? What habits do you have that can be changed? Don't think too dramatically, remember. You want to think sustainably. What changes are affordable and achievable? What changes can you sustain over the long term? Water conservation isn't a sprint, it's a marathon, and a marathon takes maintenance.

Maintain

Maintenance is key. When you watch your usage for the kind of spikes that indicate problems, you should get them fixed right away, but regular maintenance can often prevent those spikes from ever happening in the first place. When a system is getting old, you may even need to replace it, but remember that every replacement is an opportunity to upgrade. Dishwashers, washing machines, water heaters and other water-using systems are getting more efficient all the time. Don't just replace your systems, update and upgrade them to make them more efficient.

Monitor

Knowing your usage isn't a one-off situation. Knowing what your usage should be or can be is the yardstick you use to measure your continuing usage, but there's no point having a yardstick you aren't using. Keep track of your water usage, and constantly challenge yourself to meet new goals.

Moderate

All things in moderation applies to water conservation too. Obviously you want to moderate your usage and moderate the impact you have on the local lakes and rivers, but a moderate, sustainable, long term plan will always be better than a radical plan that falls apart after a few months or years. Even a small change can make a big difference if you can keep it up for long enough.

Water conservation is a vital part of the fight to save the planet. That is why it's important not just to do what you can at home, but also ask your local, state and federal government to do more. 71% may seem like a lot, but 96.5% is salty ocean water, undrinkable for humans. Of what remains, how much is polluted or wasted each year? What can you do to reduce the waste and pollution of your water?