Every Drop Counts....Simple Steps to Save Water

Our tips to help you save water

• Water only what your plants need - Most of the water wasted in your garden comes form watering your plants more often than needed or having an inefficiently arranged irrigation system. Make sure that if your irrigation system is on an automatic timer, it is turned off after rain, or buy a rain-sensor. Check pipes regularly for leaks and splits. Place sprinklers appropriately so that you are watering your garden - not the driveway - and turn them on at night or in the mornings and evenings to minimise evaporation. Don’t put more than about two centimetres of water on your garden - that’s enough to fill a bucket or can two centimetres deep; any more than this won’t do anything for your plants.
   

• Avoid watering the garden during the heat of the day. Several short waterings are better than one long one.
   

• Cover your pool to reduce evaporation. 
   

• Wash your car like a pro! - Professional race-car groomers don’t get out a hose and a scrubbing brush when they are cleaning their cars; instead they use a dry-washing agent and wax. This takes great care of the paintwork and keeps the car looking its glossy best. Take a leaf out of their book and conserve water while you pamper your Peugeot or treat your Toyota.  
   

• Wash your car on the grass and water your lawn at the same time. 
   

• Consider installing a rainwater tank - Rainwater is free! With a good sized rainwater tank you can replace around half the water you use from the mains just through using it in the laundry, toilet and garden.  Click here for information on our Rainwater Tank Rebate Scheme.

• Plant smart! Try planting different varieties of hardy, drought resistant plants, particularly on steep slopes where there is a lot of runoff. Succulents, cacti and desert plants are easy care and provide interesting shapes and textures for your garden. 
   

• Put mulch or compost on your flowerbeds - The organic matter above the soil will help to trap in moisture, prevent weeds from growing, and provide important nutrients to your plants. 
   

• Get to the root of the matter - Put your lawnmower onto the highest setting, allowing your grass to grow a little longer. Giving your lawn a slightly less severe haircut lets the roots grow deeper and adds surface area to the grass blades so they hold more water and don’t need irrigating as often.    

Outdoors

• Cover your pool to reduce evaporation.
   

• Wash your car on the grass and water your lawn at the same time. This also protects the environment by preventing the cleaning agents from flowing down along the stormwater drains and out to sea.

• Plug the leaks! You can instantly cut up to 10% off your indoor and 50% off outdoor water usage by stopping silent leaks. Check your water meter over a two hour period when no water is being used in your house. If the reading on the water meter changes, you have a leak. Don’t send the environment and your wallet down the drain along with all that unused water - give the plumber a call instead. You’ll be surprised at how easy and inexpensive it is to make your plumbing water-tight again. 
   

• Tighten your taps - A tap dripping at the rate of one drop a second will waste 20 litres of water per day, so repair them quick smart! It’s as simple as screwing on a new washer. 
   

• Fix up your flusher - Your toilet is the largest water user in your home and the older it is, the more water you will be wasting with every flush. Check the holding tank on your toilet for leaks by putting a few drops of food colouring into the tank and then checking half an hour later to see if any of the colour has leaked into the bowl. Replace any corroded or bent fixtures, or if you want to be super-conservative, replace your entire old toilet with a new, more efficient model.   
   

• Choose (5 minute) showers over baths. Don’t turn on the shower until you are ready to get in.
   

• Wash wise - Your washing machine is the second largest consumer of water in your home - replace it with a more efficient model, or delay loads of washing until you have enough to fill the machine. Front loading washing machines use up to 40% less water than top loaders. Use the washing machine only for full loads and think about what really needs washing.
   

• Time for a change - Consider changing showerheads and taps to water saving models- these aerate the water coming out so you get the same pressure, using significantly less water. Replacing a single flusher on your toilet with a dual flush system can save up to 8 litres per flush, so the cost of installing these new fixtures is somewhat balanced by the savings you’ll get on the water bills! 
   

• Go LOW with the flow - The higher your water pressure, the faster you will waste water. What’s more, people who use rainwater tanks will be pleased to know that less water pressure also lessens the hydraulic load on your wastewater system. 
   

• Install a toilet dam - It’s as easy as putting a brick or a two-litre milk bottle in the toilet cistern to reduce the volume of each flush.  Or even use the half flush if you have this option. 
   

• Dual flush toilets – Use the half flush where possible. This is a major area that we can conserve water.

   

• Low flow showerheads – Low flow shower heads or flow reduction devices use the maximum of 9 litres per minute compared to up to 24L per minute in showers without low flow showerheads or device.

   

• Kitchens – Did you know that one drip per second equates to 7,000 litres of water per year!!! The main areas to look for water usage in the kitchen include sinks, dishwashers, waste disposals and icemakers.
   

• Get rid of your waste disposal unit - Put food scraps on the compost heap and rubbish in the bin. Litres of water go down the drain every time you use the waste disposal system. 
   

• Running on idle - Minimise the time you leave the water running when you aren’t using it. For example, turn off the tap while you are brushing your teeth, put the plug in when washing your hands, rinse your dishes in a basin of water and turn the shower off while you shampoo your hair.     
   

• Turn the hot tap down, not the cool tap up - It’s the smallest things like this that make the biggest difference.
   

• Use a water-efficient dishwasher (with AAA water conservation rating). Don’t rinse the dishwasher before loading – instead you can soak dishes in a sink. Fill your dishwasher before putting a cycle through.