About the water shortage around my area

**lwlynch** · 10-18-2007, 12:19 PM

Now, you know the old saying you never know what you got till you can't get it anymore...
Well here in GA we are on a total water ban and the future doesn't look wet (good one right)
I have nothing in my yard right now worth warranting watering so pretty much I can't be in threat of getting a fine or my water turned off.
I try to conserve what I can. I am doing my part.
Wonder what happens when it gets past the just not watering stuff? Do they raise the price of water. Allot a certain amount? Just curious
Also, I have a 15' splash pool out back full of water. Starting to get a bit of algea but not much. A pack of shock and it would be up and going. I think that I have decided that I will not drain it until this water ban stuff has passed. I mean in the least I could use it to flush the toilets, right?
Do you think I made a good decision, or would it even matter?
I am also going to start picking up a gallon of bottled water every week, for drinking and saving my milk cartons for other water.
Crazy right?

**justpeachy92** · 10-18-2007, 12:28 PM

I am in NC and we are dry too. Our area has less then an 80 day water supply left. If that runs out I don't know what will happen. Our house has a well, but I have no idea how much water we have down there. I try to use as little as I can, only doing full loads of dishes and clothes. We have low flow showerheads on the shower, and my hubby has made it so the toilets use less water when you flush. My van hasn't been washed since July, it needs it bad. My flower beds have survived the drought because I use the kids bath water to water them, instead of letting it go down the drain I use a bucket to drain it and haul it outside.

**lwlynch** · 10-18-2007, 12:30 PM

I think personally that it is going to worse before it gets better.
Lets all pray for rain.. lots of it.

**kcsmom76** · 10-18-2007, 12:45 PM

I'm in NC too and it is so bad. I heard on the news the other night, that if things don't change, we will all be put on a certain amount of water every day and then it will get shut off. I don't know how they will do that???

I have been praying non-stop for rain. I thought we would get some today, but if we did it hasn't been much.

I also heard on the same news cast, that the ground is so dry that when the rain is above it, the rain dissipates before it hits the ground. Kind of a catch-22.

**amecoy75002** · 10-18-2007, 12:53 PM

We had it bad in Texas until we flooded ! First no water - then too much. We were so low in some of the lakes that they actually MOWED the lake bottom to cut the grass that was growing when the mud got sunlight! Funny Funny things go on around here. Some of the lakes were so low, you could actually see the houses and stuff that they left when they flooded and made the lake. Cool!

We could only water 1 day a week and for a short period of time. This was established by your location on the water map. You were expected to use at least 10% less than last years bill and were hit with fees if you didn't. Since it is just dh and I we were never in danger of fines. I kept my veggies and flowers alive by using graywater - drained the washer into a rainbarrel and then lugged buckets out to garden - caught all water run when rinsing dishes, gettting water hot and showering and added to water barrel for garden. Did not wash cars for months.

I feel your pain and hope that your dry spell ends soon!

**my4littlebuffaloes** · 10-18-2007, 12:57 PM

I lived in CO for 15 years. It was a perpetual drought. We had water restrictions every summer. Eventually they just raised the rates big time to get people to conserve. But then people conserved so much that they had to raise the rates again in order to make enough money to cover their bills. LOL Ridiculous! Good luck! I would definitely buy water each time you are at the store. You never know how bad things are going to get.

**baxjul** · 10-18-2007, 01:27 PM

We are always in a drought here also. It hasn't helped that there have been so few hurricanes for the last couple of years! I mean really, that is were the most amount of rain comes from.

**frugalfriend** · 10-18-2007, 01:57 PM

Originally Posted by my4littlebuffaloes

I lived in CO for 15 years. It was a perpetual drought. We had water restrictions every summer. Eventually they just raised the rates big time to get people to conserve. But then people conserved so much that they had to raise the rates again in order to make enough money to cover their bills. LOL Ridiculous!

Can I ask which part of CO you lived? I knew they had had droughts here and we can only water outside every other day (if we choose to) but I was still pretty surprised to get my first water bills and they were 3 times as much as it was in CA!

Louise ~ I think you're doing everything you can. Can't hurt to keep bottled water on hand though.

**ktsmama** · 10-18-2007, 02:05 PM

I am certainly praying for rain here in SC. I can not remember it ever being this dry and going this long without rain.

Saying prayers for Georgia, too!!

**freyadog** · 10-18-2007, 02:16 PM

Originally Posted by lwlynch

Now, you know the old saying you never know what you got till you can't get it anymore...
Well here in GA we are on a total water ban and the future doesn't look wet (good one right)
I have nothing in my yard right now worth warranting watering so pretty much I can't be in threat of getting a fine or my water turned off.
I try to conserve what I can. I am doing my part.
Wonder what happens when it gets past the just not watering stuff? Do they raise the price of water. Allot a certain amount? Just curious
Also, I have a 15' splash pool out back full of water. Starting to get a bit of algea but not much. A pack of shock and it would be up and going. I think that I have decided that I will not drain it until this water ban stuff has passed. I mean in the least I could use it to flush the toilets, right?
Do you think I made a good decision, or would it even matter?
I am also going to start picking up a gallon of bottled water every week, for drinking and saving my milk cartons for other water.
Crazy right?

My sister is in Dawsonville, Ga. and she called me this morning. There was a tiny drizzle going on there. So bad. Their small community area is on well water but from what she is saying if I have it right, they can turn something off and then turn to county water. I think thats what she said.

Here in Va. it is getting so dry. The last month or so dh hasnt mowed the grass nor the ridges trying to keep stuff from turning into dust.

I always keep 2 liter bottles filled with water, about 20. Then we have 4 55 gal. plastic drums full. we havent seen the use to fill the 325 gal drum but looks like we might had better think about it.

**smk0817** · 10-18-2007, 02:28 PM

We've been stocking up on bottled water as well. It was sprinkling here around lunch time (central NC) but now the sun is out and it's HOT. Maybe, just maybe, that will fire up some afternoon thunderstorms.

On a side note, I was reading the paper this morning and there was a picture of the lake we usually go to with our boat. It has almost completely dried up. It's gettin' scary folks!

**my4littlebuffaloes** · 10-18-2007, 02:44 PM

We were in Aurora. It was very bad a few years ago, however the last year we were there things were better. I hope you don't have to deal with that.

**dolphinlfier** · 10-18-2007, 03:11 PM

I live in NC also. I know that I have really been thinking about ways to conserve. But then when I go into the city to go to work I see that they are watering there grass!!!! I was shocked!!!

I just hope that everyone takes this seriously!! I need to stock up on water myself....

**Luv2BeFrugal** · 10-18-2007, 03:22 PM

Oh my...that's so scary. I hope it rains there soon!! I'd definitely keeps stocking up on water!!

**jamie79** · 10-18-2007, 04:03 PM

I would love to send all of you the rain that we have been getting for the last 4 days with more to come over the next couple of days.

When we were stationed in Puerto Rico we didnt have running water on a regular basis for 6 months. We bought a water cistern. Has anyone thought of doing this?