water consumption

[alan_m]

On 29/08/2020 14:14, [e-mail] wrote: >

You obviously don't live in the SE of the country - bugger all rain for

3 months!

[Jeff Layman]

+1

According to my rain gauge, we had 90mm of rain in around 14 weeks from the beginning of May. Add to that an 18+metre ash and similar size beech extracting water from the garden, and so far this year I reckon I've used about 40 - 50 m^3 mains water on it. I've just had a water meter fitted to my garden tap to cut down on the waste water cost, as Southern Water will allow me to subtract that from their bill.

[alan_m]

About 110mm here since the beginning of April and 25mm of that fell in the last few days in a couple of showers! I lost satellite reception for around 5 minutes due to rain fade a couple of nights back.

[tabbypurr]

Then 3 months at once. Anywhere in the UK one can use rain for most bogwater. Top up the feed with mains if/when rain runs out.

Greywater is also usable, but it does result in needing to clean more.

NT

[Fredxx]

Perhaps you're simply unclean? :-)

[PeterC]

I use rain water for the main, daily, flush - got enough for about 7 weeks without getting sediment. Shower is on 3.75kW for >90% of the year, so when the incoming water is cool a shower takes ~7.5 l and ~0.25kWh. My useage is ~0.3 cu m/week; would be nearer 0.4 if using the flush more. During summer '18 I looked at wiring the 2 elements in the shower in series to give just over 2kW (the shower at 3.75kW was almost painful), but there's a lot of hard linking via the protective features - might do it without the case but not in situ.

[PeterC]

I use Ecover/BioD/similar stuff in the washing machine, so the 2nd. and 3rd. rinses would be perfectly OK for garden, flushing etc., if ICBA to do it.

In early '90s I had the H&S Data sheet for Ecover w/u liquid; pH approx. 5.5 neat and under Ingestion "don't drink too much of it at once"! That was about when Fairy etc. had Bitrex added to stop brats from imbibing it.

[Allan]

detached house, 1 person, Yorkshire; mostly showers and water butt for garden

25 cu me per year About £200/year

[alan_m]

Seems expensive for water. For that amount I would pay £69/year and an extra £84/year for sewage.

In the last 12 months I used approx 70 cubic metres, terrace house, one person and a few miles from the driest part in England. Auto watering of window boxes from the mains in summer. Some watering of the garden from the mains. Mostly showers in summer, 1:4 bath:shower in winter.

My cost: water + sewage = approx £260/year

[Allan]

You seem to have an attractive rate!

I averaged figures my figures above over a longer period.

If I use the most recent 4 quarterly bills (12 months) (to June 2020) I used 26 cu me for £205 (water and sewerage)

It seems my £ per cu met has remained steady at about £8 per cu met over a long ish period.

Standing charges can make a disproportionate (large) effect for low usage (my standing charges are approx 66% of my total bill). My supplier, Yorks Water, doesn't have a low use tariff; e.g. Anglian Water used to have a Solow tariff but they ceased that tariff in 2015.

there should be an obligation for water companies to provide an incentive tariff for low use to save water?

Perhaps it's time for some competition with being able to switch water suppliers (as there is with gas and electric) for domestic customers. It gets talked about but never seems to happen for domestic customers (it's happened for commercial customers).