Hosepipe ban, power washer, water butt, pump - X-post

I heard on the radio that you can actually use a hosepipe and as much water as you like to clean your patio, but not to water the garden or wash the car. It was a "isn't this ban stupid" type stories.

MBQ

AFAIK the ban only prohibits washing cars with a hosepipe, or watering the garden. Pressure washing flags should be OK.

According to Karcher

googling "hosepipe ban pressure washer" does, however, throw up other links implying that pressure washers are not allowed.

MBQ

Mine worked just fine from a bucket. Used water surprisingly slowly, too. Make sure the water is filtered, though. You don't want bits of leaves and twig in the washer.

Christian.

Indeed. I've put off laying a lawn for over a year due to water shortage, even though the hosepipe ban has only just come in. Given that things don't seem to be changing, we're now considering laying plastic grass!

Christian.

Eh? So are you saying that they suck water - they don't require any pressure [at the input end]?

As someone who has saved rainwater for years, and moreover who's now on a meter so has an even greater interest in "water conservation", I'm keen to know.

BTW my last pressure washer (29 quid at B&Q 18 months ago) packed in (just gone dead) -- exactly as predicted by An Expert on the DIY group. I was thinking of getting another cheapo job, next time I'm at B&Q or Aldi. I hardly used the last one at all, but for one or two jobs (like sluicing salt from under the car, or blasting garden furniture clean) it was great. (I use buckets of rainwater and a special brush for the car: _really_ good.)

John

one off cleaning the patio uses a very limited ammount of water and very few people do it.

Running the sprinkler for an hour 3 times a week uses a huge ammount of water and many people do it.

Very simple really!

pk

We don't have grass ...the hens ate it all.

Hurrah! No more weeding, no more watering and feeding to make it grow then mowing to make it short...

Mary

"Christian McArdle" wrote

If my Other Half wasn't so protective about his blessed lawns, I'd have clover instead of grass for our front lawn. It faces north and is over such rubbishy, stony soil that it's either thick with moss when shaded in winter or dried out to a crisp in a hot summer spell. Clover seems to stay green whatever the weather - you can mow it less often, forget the weed and feed and scarifying, and have the bonus of red and/or white fowers. Seems logical to me, but will he even entertain the idea? Not a chance. :-/

That is exactly what I'm saying.

Mine is just such a cheapie from the same shop at the same price. Except that it has lasted for years despite horrendous abuse (like being left outside unprotected over winter full of water).

Christian.

Rules vary with water company. Take care.

Being true for Thames Water doesn't make it true for other water companies, though.

Same for Southern Water :-))

Mike

You are allowed to fill swimming pools and paddling pools though! Why doncha just lay your lawn, bung a couple of paddling pools on it, fill em up and puncture the sides? :-)

Let the air out ;-) Don't puncture. You will need them for the same exercise next week ;-))

Mike

No they don't. Water companies do not make the law.

YPWMV. Mine says explicitly "will not suck water from a water butt". Now, if it means that it requires a positive head by this, ...

I have however run it from ~50m of hosepipe, connected to a hot water tank maybe 1.5m above where I was working.

It claims 360l/hour, which'd work out to 6l/min, or 100ml/s. On actually measuring the output into a bucket, I get more like 60% of this.

Nope.

So long as they don't exceed the powers granted to them by the privatisiation legislation, they're as allowed to be as selective as they wish, in which particular provisions they choose to enact.

They'll want to balance any possible savings againt the possible public relations cost, when deciding on any particular measure.

The possibility of a campaign encouraging water customers to withhold or delay payment etc. won't be entirely absent from their minds for a start. As it is, the water companies, many foreign owned, have a disastrous PR image.

michael adams

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