It is crucial to emphasize the management of water at the household level to ensure the availability of potable water. The current study presents the adoption of ideal practices of household water management by rural women with their reasons for adoption or non-adoption. Three practices of procurement, preservation, and conservation of water were included in the definition of water management. A total of 200 women were personally interviewed from four villages of the Ludhiana district through a self-structured interview schedule. The results highlighted that all the respondents were using safe sources for procuring water. Nearly half of respondents kept their bore wells above the recommended depth due to a lack of knowledge. About 41 per cent of the respondents were found to have no knowledge about the minimum distance between the water source and septic tank. Although the majority of the respondents (91.5%) reported cleaning their water storage tank at least once, regular cleaning was done by merely 52 per cent of respondents. Ninety-seven per cent of respondents did not know the method of cleaning the tank. The highest majority (86.5%) reported never cleaning their household water pipes. Furthermore, most of the respondents were non-users of water tank alarms and dual-flush toilets. Although 78 per cent of respondents were using water tap aerators, none were aware of its water-saving purpose. Thus, an effort should be made to educate people about the importance and methods of water procurement, preservation, and conservation at the household level. Personal and group discussions, lectures, demonstrations, home visits, etc. supplemented by print, electronic, and mass media can be used to accomplish this. The findings of the study also shed light on the reasons for the adoption and non-adoption of water management practices which could guide the future researchers and extension agents while planning their endeavours to promote the adoption of these practices.