Castle Street works: Part of Castle Street will be closed from 09:00 on Monday 11 May for essential leak repairs, starting after the morning rush hour. Traffic from Sand Street will be diverted left down Commercial Street, with diversions clearly signposted. We apologise for any inconvenience caused.

Save water at home

Five easy habits to start today:

  1. Make it a quickie: Aim for four minutes or less in the shower. While you’re waiting for the water to heat up, collect it in a bucket for watering plants.
    Why it works: Every minute uses about ten litres of water.
  2. Tap that. Turn the tap off while you’re brushing your teeth.
    Why it works: You can save 15 litres per day by not leaving the tap running.
  3. Twice is nice: Use leftover water from washing vegetables to water your plants.
    Why it works: Reusing the water means that the same water does two jobs.
  4. Size matters. Make sure it’s a full load when you run your dishwasher and washing machine to maximise water and energy use.
    Why it works: Half-load programmes still use around three quarters of the water and energy of a full load.
  5. Just right: Only boil the amount of water you need for cooking or making a hot drink.
    Why it works: The water will boil faster, saving water and energy.

In the kitchen

  • Always use the plug and don’t let the tap run when you’re washing your hands or washing up. Use a washing up bowl in the sink
  • Avoid rinsing dishes before loading them into the dishwasher. Scrape them clean instead. (Modern dishwashers work better on dirty dishes.)
  • Keep a bottle or jug of water in the fridge instead of leaving the tap running while it gets cool
  • When you buy a dishwasher or a washing machine, choose one that is energy efficient – saving both water and electricity. Machines with an ‘A’ rating sign are the most efficient
  • Use cooking water from vegetables, eggs, pasta or rice to water plants. Make sure it’s cool and contains no salt or oil

In the bathroom

  • If you have a bath, you could save water and energy by making sure you don’t over-fill it, or better still, share it with a friend. A full bath can use around 80 litres of water
  • If you have a dual-flush toilet, use the shorter flush whenever possible
  • Use plugs in washbasins when you have a wash or clean the bathroom, rather than leaving the tap running.
  • If you’re installing a new bathroom, choose water-efficient taps and dual-flush toilets

Around the house

  • Use a bucket and sponge when you wash your car. Washing a car with a hose could use anything up to 300 litres of water
  • Fix leaking taps as soon as possible. A dripping tap wastes up to 200 litres of water per day
  • Replace worn tap washers – a quick and cheap way of saving water
  • Make sure water pipes and external taps are insulated in time for winter. Burst water pipes and leaks can cause serious damage as well as waste water
  • Insulate hot water pipes to reduce the amount of water that you need to run to get hot water from your tap. This will save energy too

Swimming pools

  • Use a pool cover to reduce water loss from normal evaporation
  • Repair any swimming pool leaks. Even a small leak could lead to a lot of waste
  • If it’s a heated pool, turn down your pool water temperature. Warmer water evaporates more quickly
  • Manually clean your filter. You’ll do a more thorough job and use less water
  • Maintain the correct chemical balance and circulation to help keep your pool in good condition and reduce the need for refilling

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