Understanding water usage, and how to save

When you look at the water usage on your bill, it’s often hard to relate the figures back to your day-to-day activities and identify whether or not your bill is accurate, or whether there might be a problem somewhere on your supply. If you think you might have a leak, follow these steps to find out.

Whatever situation you’re in, there are likely to be ways that you can cut down on your water use. This will help you to save money on your water bills, and ensure your business is as water-efficient as possible, as the issue of water scarcity grows.

Here’s a table of the average water use (in litres) of different activities and appliances… they might be a lot higher than you think!

Baths 80

Shower (5 mins) 45

Power Shower 90

Toilet 6

Teeth Cleaning/Hand & Face washing 15

Sink 10

Commercial Sink 100

Washing Machine 80

Commercial Washing Machine 130

Dishwasher 25

Cooking & Food Prep 15

Hose Usage (10 mins) 150

Jet washer (per hour) 400

Spinkler (10 Mins) 150

Dripping tap 4

Here are a few tips to save water as a non-household organisation:

Educate your employees around water efficiency – why it’s important to save water!
Consider investing in water saving devices, such as urinal controls, efficient flush toilets, and automatic taps
Take monthly meter readings, and regularly check for leaks (you can find simple leak test instructions here)
Make use of our no-saving, no-fee water audits