8 easy checks to reduce your water bill

Simple checks for around the home to reduce water usage.

Written by Thomas Dukes, Banrock Plumbing.

1. Check your water meter.

This simple check is the easiest and best way to tell if you have a leak at your property. By doing this you will determine whether you urgently need a plumber.

The first step is making sure all your water consuming appliances are turned off. Ensure that the taps are turned off and that no one in the house is going to use them in the next 30 minutes.

The second step is to locate your water meter and write down the reading. Allow 20 minutes to pass and then take a second reading. Compare the two readings, if the second is higher than the first you may have a leak. If you are unsure, wait an hour and take a third reading.

A small increase in the reading may indicate a leak. A large constant increase may indicate a burst pipe.

2. Check your garden reticulation and controller settings.

Many people set and forget about their reticulation and don’t regularly check their reticulations function or controller setting. These settings can often be reset to factory settings by power outages. The controllers have a small battery backup but these normally need changing as often as your smoke detector.

Every month, ensure that your controller settings are only set to your designated watering days (check the Water Corporation’s website to find yours). When your reticulation is running, do a quick check to make sure there are no popped joins that could be wasting large amounts of water. While you are at it, check that all your sprinklers are working.

3. Taps and toilets.

Check your taps for leaking and check the toilet for running water into the bowl. This one sounds obvious, right? What a lot of people don’t realize is just how much water a dripping tap can waste in a day. What seems like very little in the moment slowly adds up to hundreds of dollars at bill time.

4. Check youR hot water system.

When was the last time you looked at your hot water system? Do you know where it is? It’s worth a look! The hot water system is often part of the house that is taken for granted.As one of the frequently used and expensive parts of a house it is defiantly worth a check every one or two months!

What to look for? Check for any leaks on the pipes and valves. Note any signs of moisture damage and corrosion, if it gets worse on your next check, get a plumber to check it out. Gas units often have small condensation ports below the unit, it is normal for water to drip from these ports when the burners are in use.

5. Check your evaporative air conditioner.

Evaporative air conditioners need maintenance. If yours hasn’t been checked by a professional for a few years it will be worth getting it done. If there is water constantly flowing from the air-cons drain pipe this is a red flag that it is contributing to a high water bill!

6. Monitor your pool.

Swimming pools are a big contributor to the household water bill. If you’re always filling up your pool it might be worth checking for leaks or look at methods for reducing evaporation.

7. Time your showers.

This is a classic way to reduce water consumption. Time your showers and find ways to reduce the time you need to run the water. A water saving shower head will grant you extra time in the shower by reducing the volume, but I often find that it doesn’t give as good of a clean as a standard shower head. It may be worth comparing the two to see if it is worth the trade off in your routine.

8. Check your appliances.

Older appliances will generally consume more water than their modern replacements. When shopping for appliances check for higher ratings for water, electricity and gas consumption. Remember it all adds up!

If you are in the Ellenbrook area, get in touch with us to discuss reducing your water bills.

Written by Thomas Dukes.
Banrock Plumbing