Level 5 water restrictions are now in force, which means the towns' new daily consumption target is 150 litres per person per day.
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To help the community meet those targets and to change water usage behaviour Walcha Council has begun a new campaign 'Let's all be nifty with our 150'.
Over the coming weeks, Walcha Council will release a series of articles to illustrate what 150 litres per day looks like.
"Our water consumption in the home is made up of some key areas," said Walcha Council general manager Anne Modderno.
"They all boil down to how often we turn our taps on, and how water-efficient our taps, fittings and appliances are. For example, how many loads of washing we complete a week, number of times we flush our toilets, and how we respect water when we turn our taps on for things like hand washing, cooking and brushing our teeth.
There can be huge differences in the water efficiency depending on what types of appliances we use
- Anne Modderno
"There can be huge differences in the water efficiency depending on what types of appliances we use and how long we use them for. Such as showers and showerheads, front loader v. top loader washing machines, and dual flushing toilets."
This week Walcha Council is focusing on the shower, and all Walcha households will receive a three-minute timer to help keep track of how long their showers are.
"The length of our showers can make a massive difference in our water usage," Mrs Modderno said. "Our nifty challenge number 1 is can you beat the timer?"
Tips for saving water in the shower:
- Take shorter showers. Limit time spent in the shower to soap up, wash down, and rinse off. Shorter showers save on energy costs associated with heating water.
- Use a shower timer. All Walcha households will receive a free 3-minute water shower timer that attaches to the shower wall or showerhead to use to help you track how long you are in the shower.
- Use a bucket to collect water while waiting for the shower to get hot.
- Shave your legs before taking a shower. Use running shower water to rinse off.
- Insulate hot water pipes. This avoids wasting water while waiting for hot water to flow through and saves energy.
- Consider an instantaneous water heater if your existing water heater is located some distance to the bathroom. Talk to a plumber first to make sure it will work adequately with your showerhead.
In addition to the length of your shower, the type of shower head you use can also make a difference in the volume of water used in the three minutes says Mrs Modderno.
"Modern water efficient showerheads use no more than 9 litres of water per minute, while old style shower heads use up to 20 litres per minute."
"So a six minute shower could use between 35L to 60L of extra water every shower, and between 12,000L and 25,000L of extra water every year - depending on the efficiency of your shower head. Every minute means more water.
Visit www.smartwatermark.org for more water saving advice.
Calculate how much water you use here by using the Capetown calculator developed when residents were forced to cut back to 50 litres per person per day during their recent chronic water shortage.
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Vanessa Arundale
Everyone has a story to tell and I like to help them do it.
Everyone has a story to tell and I like to help them do it.
