Tips to save water at home and work

Did you know the majority of water consumed at home is used for washing, cooking and flushing toilets?

10 mindful habits

Getting into the habit of saving water is easier than you think. Watch the video below for ten mindful habits that you can start doing today.

Ten mindful habits to help you save water

Fix drippy taps

Fixing dribbly taps saves litres of water. One drip per second can waste up to 12,000 litres of water from a single tap, per year.

The most common reason for a leaking tap is a worn tap washer that can no longer create a tight seal. It's important to change worn tap washers as soon as possible to ensure we're not letting clean water go down the drain.

Watch the video below to find out how to change a tap washer.

How to change a tap washer

Watering your garden

Check the forecast, then water.

Watering your garden can keep your plants thriving during the warmer months, but how often is too often and what's the best time to water?

Under Permanent Water Saving Rules, you can wash your car or water your garden on any day at any time using a hose with a trigger nozzle. Having a trigger nozzle helps save water because you can turn the water on and off instantly as you work your way around the garden.

There are also time limits on when you can use watering systems under Permanent Water Saving Rules.

Trigger nozzle program

You can get two free trigger nozzle from us. Collect yours from our Traralgon office between 9am and 4.45pm Monday to Friday (closed on public holidays) or call us on

1800 050 500 and we can post one out to you.

 

Tips for watering your garden

Saving water around the pool and spa

Smart Approved WaterMark’s pool and spa page has simple tips on how to minimise the amount of water used in your pool and spa.

It includes information on how to reduce water loss with pool covers, shade, shelter from wind, appropriate filters and fast fixes for leaks.

These actions can help you avoid the need to ‘top up’ your pool.

Reuse greywater

Greywater is water that has already been used in your home. Instead of letting it go down the drain into the sewer system, greywater can be captured and used in certain circumstances outside your home.

Greywater is managed by councils, with each council having different regulations regarding the storage and use of greywater. As it has already been ‘used’ in your home, it is important to store and use it correctly to avoid the water-borne diseases we see in countries without adequate sanitation.

There are a number of dos and don’ts when using greywater. For instance, it should not be used to water vegetables that you will eat raw, or during wet periods when it won’t soak into the soil.

Take a look at the video below to find out more.

Greywater recycling

Switch to a water-saving showerhead

Regular showerheads use up to 20 litres a minute, but water saving showerheads use only 9 litres a minute.

We offer a showerhead exchange for our customers to help you save water at home. Each customer can receive one water saving showerhead. To order yours, phone 1800 050 500 or visit our Traralgon office during business hours. 

It can be hard to tell if you have a water saving showerhead. Use this simple test to see how much water your showerhead uses each minute:

  • Get a 10 litre bucket (a normal household bucket)
  • Get something you can use to time 1 minute
  • Turn on your shower and start your timer
  • If the bucket fills in about half a minute, you have an old style showerhead
  • If it takes about a minute to fill the bucket, you have a water saving showerhead

Our water saving showerheads are not suitable for low pressure (eg gravity fed), or instantaneous hot water systems.

Watch the video below to find out how to change a showerhead.

How to change a showerhead

Washing your car

Washing your car at a commercial car wash can be very water efficient, but there are things you can do at home to keep your car sparkling without using much water.

The Water Conservancy's car washing page has tips on washing your car at home and explains the commercial car wash scheme. 

Tips to save water when washing your car