How to conserve water – the ultimate beginners guide
Saving water is crucial. We’re at critical levels of why we need water conservation to be a part of our daily lives. The water companies and those organisations recommended by the government have a duty to promote ways consumers can conserve water easily. They’re the authorities making sure targets are being met before 2050. If they don’t meet their targets they’ll be penalised and it may even be too late to turn things around. So, their expert advice is the best out there to trust to make the most savings, as they have a mission to succeed!
In the words of Sir James Bevan, chief executive of the Environment Agency:
There’s a lot of advice out there, a lot to take in and it can feel bewildering. When things become like this, they can be hard to set in motion. You read one article, then another. You try one thing then the other. But it doesn’t really happen as you don’t have a reference to the best advice at your finger tips.
To save you time in searching through all the individual websites, we have collated all the experts advice and listed it in one place. There are links to each source so that you can find out more. Responsible local councils also use these types of tips to share, as they are the ones known to have the best impact.
We have also provided a downloadable reminder sheet so you have a reference at hand every time you’re at a source of water. Keep this “at a glance” reference on your smartphone or, if you need to, you can print it off to put on your fridge or notice board. We obviously recommend the first option to save paper, and it means you always have it with you wherever you go as a reminder.
But how do you get started?
As with any change, it will take time and practice.
These tips are in no particular order and you don’t do them all at once. It’s a comprehensive list, as you would expect from an ultimate guide, but it’s not meant to be taken in all at once. It’s there to keep safe and keep coming back too.
Once you are happy with one you check it off and do another. We encourage you to take things at your own pace, but try to do as many as you feel comfortable with daily, until they become a habit. When the few you have tried come naturally to you, you pick a couple more to try until they become a habit and so on.
This is not meant to be a read once and forget about sort of guide. If it was a book it would be in the reference section, available to be continuously taken off the shelf and read over and over again, a little bit at a time, so that each tip becomes a habit, one by one. That way you’ll be saving water, saving money and overall helping the planet a little bit at a time. A little bit each day now will have massive benefits for the future.
If you read this post on why we need to start saving water now, you will understand why we all need to start doing our bit today!
Don’t forget, by saving water you also reduce the amount of carbon put back in the environment, as you lower the amount of energy needed to heat the water in the house / business premises, but also the amount of energy needed to retreat the wasted water to make it safe again.
Here are 32 simple ways to save water in the home or garden:
- Take a shower (4 mins and under) rather than a bath
- Don’t waste shower water – only have it running when rinsing
- Switch to a water efficient shower head
- If you do have a bath, don’t overfill it
- Switch off taps when water isn’t being used and don’t turn on fully
- Change your teeth brushing habits – only have the tap running when rinsing
- Put a plug in the sink instead of keeping the tap on
- Use the half flush option first on dual flush toilets
- Fit a cistern displacement device (CDD) to your toilet
- Make sure you periodically check for leaks in the toilet
- Invest in a bowl for the kitchen sink
- Fix dripping and leaking taps
- When buying new appliances or water fittings, look for water efficient labels
- Fill up washing machines and dishwashes before switching them on
- Put a lid on pots and pans
- Keep a saucepan next to the tap to catch waste water
- Keep water for drinking in the fridge
- Only fill the kettle with the exact amount of water you need.
- Limit your meat intake
- Install automatic or sensor taps
- Create your own hosepipe ban
- Recycle your bath, shower and washing up water by using it for plants and lawns
- Make the watering can your tool of choice
- Install a water butt
- Get out the bucket and sponge for car washing
- Cut your grass to a minimum of 4cm or above
- Let the lawn go brown once in a while
- Choose plants suitable for dry conditions
- Face plants and greenery away from the south
- Maximise water retention when potting up plants and around the rest of the garden
- Look after your outside taps
- Stop leaks and minimise evaporation in ponds
These will be discussed in more detail throughout the post so you can learn more about why each one is an important starting point to saving water.
Have your own tips? Make sure you add them to the comments below! The more the better.
School children are being educated on the importance of water saving through schemes such as the Green Schools initiative in Ireland. But we all need to be doing our bit also, not just rely on the next generations.
You can download your reminder sheet by clicking on the image below:
Keep the Water Cycle Running – Water Efficiency (Scottish Water):
How to conserve water in the home
A soak in the bath can be great, but by switching you’ll save around 50 – 62 litres a time. Showers use between 5 – 35 litres per minute depending on your shower, therefore every min less saves a lot of water. Hence the 4-minute or under guide. By following this tip, you can save over 150 litres of water per week. Be aware however, that a power shower can use more water than a bath and use almost twice as much water as gravity-fed showers!
To make sure you are not over doing the time in the shower there are free timers available to order. If everyone used a shower timer, we would save enough water to supply 1 million homes every day!
Recommended by: (Affinity Water; Albion Water; Bristol Water; Cambridge Water; Cholderton & District Water; Hafren Dyfrdwy; Dwr Cymru; Essex and Suffolk Water; Independent Water Networks; Northumbrian Water; Portsmouth Water; Scottish Water; Severn Trent; South East Water; South West Water; Southern Water; SES Water; United Utilities; Waterwise; Wessex Water; Yorkshire Water) also the sources of figures and facts provided.
Make sure you only switch on the shower when you are ready to use it. If you do need to run it shortly before, could you place a bucket under the water to collect and reuse in the garden? Another thing to think about is could you turn off the shower whilst you are shampooing or using soap, then switch it back on briefly to rinse?
Recommended by: (South West Water)
If you like to feel the pressure of the flow on your back when showering whilst at the same time saving water, then switching to an aerated shower head could be just the thing for you. These types of product reduce the flow but don’t compromise on pressure, therefore still giving you the feel of a normal shower. They maintain the pressure by mixing in air with water to produce a steady, even spray.
Some water companies are providing these to their local areas free of charge.
Recommended by: (Cambridge Water; Dwr Cymru; Scottish Water; South West Water; Southern Water; Waterwise; Yorkshire Water)
How To Measure The Flow Rate Of Your Shower:
If the need arises for a bath, try and use less water in it. A full bath uses around 80 litres of water each time. It’s reported that if you reduce your bath water by just an inch you would save between 5-30 litres each time. Keep checking the temperature as you fill it so you don’t need to add water at the end to cool down or heat up.
There are free bath water measurers available from certain water companies.
Recommended by: (Affinity Water; Cambridge Water; Waterwise) also the sources of figures and facts provided.
It is a great idea to be mindful of how long you have the tap on when you aren’t actually using the water. Peoples tap behaviour can vary, especially for tasks such as washing your hands or brushing your teeth. Taps can vary in flow volume, from 2 – 25 litres per minute.
Do you need to turn the tap on fully? If you only slightly turn the tap on you will use up to 50% less water each time and just a trickle can work just as well as a full blast. Adding a tap aerator can help to reduce the flow, similar to the shower. Always make sure taps are turned off fully as a leaking or left on tap will waste so much water.
Recommended by: (Dwr Cymru; Independent Water Networks; Independent Water Networks; South West Water; Waterwise) also the sources of figures and facts provided.
How to measure the flow rate in your taps:
Brushing your teeth is an essential task, performed at least twice a day. Most running taps will use on average 6-9 litres of water per minute. Leaving the tap running when brushing your teeth wastes on average 8,000 litres of water a year and a family of 4 could save over 17,500 – 35,000 litres of water a year. So, encourage others in your household to do the same. You could use a glass of water for rinsing your teeth and brush to regulate the amount of water you use.
You can order a free 2 Minute Crocodile Toothy Timer or 2 Minute Tiger Toothy Timer from a range of local water companies to help kids learn the important message.
Recommended by: (Affinity Water; Albion Water; Bristol Water; Cambridge Water; Cholderton & District Water; Hafren Dyfrdwy; Dwr Cymru; Essex and Suffolk Water; Independent Water Networks; Northumbrian Water; Portsmouth Water; Scottish Water; Severn Trent; South East Water; South West Water; Southern Water; SES Water; United Utilities; Waterwise; Wessex Water) also the sources of figures and facts provided.
For washing and/or shaving you can save water by putting a plug in the sink rather than having the tap running. This can save around two litres of water each time.
Recommended by: (Cambridge Water; Dwr Cymru; Essex and Suffolk Water; Independent Water Networks; Northumbrian Water; South West Water) also the sources of figures and facts provided.
As part of the building regulations part G, it is recommended to supply new toilets with a half flush option depending upon which water efficiency approach they are following. This is usually the smallest button of the 2 available or it will have a symbol to show which is the half flush. Whenever you can you should use the half flush button.
Dual flush toilets typically use 4-6 litres of water opposed to the old style flush systems which use a massive 13 litres per flush. The average toilet is flushed five times each day per person in the household.
Around a third of the water we use in the home is used to flush the toilet with a single flush toilet. Fitting a dual flush toilet mechanism on an old toilet could save over 50,000 litres of water a year for a family of four!
Recommended by: (Affinity Water; Cambridge Water; Essex and Suffolk Water; Northumbrian Water; Portsmouth Water; South East Water; South West Water; Southern Water; SES Water; Waterwise; Yorkshire Water) also the sources of figures and facts provided.
A CDD can save 1 litre per flush on an old style single flush toilet, saving up to 5,000 litres a year. This is simply placed into the cistern on any lever handled toilets. These are free from many water companies.
Recommended by: (Affinity Water; Albion Water; Cambridge Water; Cholderton & District Water; Essex and Suffolk Water; Independent Water Networks; Northumbrian Water; Portsmouth Water; Scottish Water; South East Water; South West Water; Southern Water; Waterwise; Yorkshire Water) also the sources of figures and facts provided.
It’s important to regularly check for leaking cisterns. Leaking toilets are one of the most common causes of unexpected high water use in the UK. When a toilet is leaking, water dribbles away down the back of the pan, so it can easily go undetected if you’re not looking for it. A single leak can waste up to 400 litres of water a day – the equivalent of five full bathtubs!
Whilst checking for leaks here it may be a good time to check your home for any other internal plumbing issues.
To detect a slow leak in your toilet simply add a few drops of food colouring in your toilet cistern. Don’t flush the toilet for an hour or so. If the food colouring is present after that time, you have a leak. There are also free Toilet Leak Detection Tablets and LeakyLoo Toilet Leak Detection Strips available from a lot of local water companies to help detect any leak.
A leak is easy to fix though! You could find a recommended approved plumber to call from websites like www.watersafe.org.uk or if you fancy a bit of DIY take the parts to a hardware store and ask the staff to help replace them.
Recommended by: (Albion Water; Cambridge Water; Cholderton & District Water; Hafren Dyfrdwy; Essex and Suffolk Water; Northumbrian Water; Severn Trent; South West Water; SES Water; Waterwise) also the sources of figures and facts provided.
Don’t leave the tap running to clean dishes or vegetables, use a bowl of water instead. This can reduce water wastage by 50%. You can also use the used water in the garden.
Soaking vegetables makes them easier to peel and a running kitchen tap wastes on average 6 – 9 litres of water a minute. When using washing up liquid make sure you use it sparingly. Too much and you will may need to rinse off the excess, wasting water unnecessarily.
Recommended by: (Affinity Water; Albion Water; Cambridge Water; Cholderton & District Water; Hafren Dyfrdwy; Dwr Cymru; Essex and Suffolk Water; Essex and Suffolk Water; Independent Water Networks; Northumbrian Water; Portsmouth Water; Scottish Water; Severn Trent; South East Water; South West Water; Southern Water; SES Water; United Utilities; Waterwise; Wessex Water; Yorkshire Water) also the sources of figures and facts provided.
A dripping tap can waste more than 60 litres of water per week or in extreme cases it can waste enough water in a day to fill a bath. You could save over 5,500 – 10,000 litres of water a year by fixing your taps.
Replace tap washers when they become worn. This is usually the only thing you need to stop a dripping or leaky tap. Southern Water give basic details here of how to fix a dripping tap https://www.southernwater.co.uk/do-it-yourself. If you need to find an approved plumber visit www.watersafe.org.uk
Recommended by: (Affinity Water; Albion Water; Cholderton & District Water; Cambridge Water; Hafren Dyfrdwy; Dwr Cymru; Essex and Suffolk Water; Independent Water Networks; Northumbrian Water; Portsmouth Water; Severn Trent; South East Water; South West Water; Southern Water; SES Water; Yorkshire Water) also the sources of figures and facts provided.
If you’re buying a new appliance or water fitting, look at the Eco-label for water and energy consumption such as the Waterwise Recommended Checkmark if they are available.
The best washing machine models will typically use less than 7.5 litres per kg. Less efficient washing machines use up to 14 litres per kg. Newer washing machines and dishwashers can use as much as 50% less water and energy than older models.
Recommended by: (Affinity Water; Cambridge Water; Dwr Cymru; Independent Water Networks; South West Water; Waterwise; Yorkshire Water) also the sources of figures and facts provided.
When washing your clothes or dishes, only run your washing machine and dishwasher with a full load – this uses less water than two half loads. Clothes washing now accounts for 15% of water we use in our homes. Each washing machine cycle uses up to 100 litres of water and dishwashers up to 50 litres. Experiment with different settings on your dishwasher, many modern machines offer ‘Eco’ or ‘Economy’ setting which use less water and energy.
It may not be well known but a modern dishwasher can be more efficient than manual hand washing as they use less water to get the job done. Detergents are highly effective which means you can avoid pre-rinsing dishes, just make sure that all food remnants are scraped into the bin. By not rinsing food residue down the drain it keeps sewers clear of blockages.
Recommended by: (Affinity Water, Albion Water; Bristol Water; Cambridge Water; Cholderton & District Water; Hafren Dyfrdwy; Dwr Cymru; Essex and Suffolk Water; Independent Water Networks; Northumbrian Water; Portsmouth Water; Scottish Water; Severn Trent; South East Water; South West Water; Southern Water; SES Water; Waterwise; Wessex Water; Yorkshire Water) also the sources of figures and facts provided.
How to save water and use it wisely (Dwr Cymru):
When using saucepans make sure you use the lid that came with it. Because less water is lost through evaporation, you don’t have to use as much in the first place. Your veg will also cook quicker so everyone’s a winner.
Taking it a step further, steaming veg not only saves more water it keeps more of the nutrients in it, yet another win-win.
Recommended by: (Cholderton & District Water; Waterwise)
If you think about it, we run the tap before using water for a number of reasons. This could be running the hot water tap waiting for it to heat up, or running the cold tap until the water gets at the perfect temperature to drink.
Keep a saucepan next to the tap and catch the water you don’t use before it goes down the sink. This water can be used for rinsing vegetables, watering house plants or for use in the garden.
Recommended by: (Cholderton & District Water; Independent Water Networks)
Drinking water is essential for life. This is certainly one area you shouldn’t cut back on. There is a way to make sure that you don’t waste water running the tap to get that cold drink though. Keep a jug or a bottle of water in the fridge. Waiting for the tap to run cold can waste more than 10 litres of tap water a day.
Recommended by: (Albion Water; Cambridge Water; Cholderton & District Water; Essex and Suffolk Water; Northumbrian Water; Scottish Water; South West Water; Southern Water; Waterwise) also the sources of figures and facts provided.
This has 3 benefits. Saving water, saving energy and making a better tasting drink. Don’t go too sparse though, you need to make sure the element is covered.
By not overfilling the kettle you can cut its energy use by a third. Too much water in there means water that isn’t going to be used is heated up, a real waste of energy. Reboiling the kettle means that the water has used double the energy for the same amount needed.
Only boiling the water needed could save the UK more than £1 million a week!
By boiling water only once it also makes the perfect cup of tea. A second boil depletes the water of oxygen. Oxygen in water helps flavour!
Recommended by: (Affinity Water; Albion Water; Cambridge Water; Cholderton & District Water; Dwr Cymru; Essex and Suffolk Water, Independent Water Networks; Northumbrian Water; Scottish Water; South East Water; Southern Water; United Utilities; Waterwise; Yorkshire Water) also the sources of figures and facts provided.
How can this save water? Well the OECD report around 70% of freshwater abstracted is being used by agriculture around the world. The livestock sector is currently using about 20% of freshwater for feed production.
- To produce 1Kg of beef, 15,415 litres of water is required
- To produce 1Kg of pork, 5,988 litres of water is required.
- To grow 1Kg of vegetables, 322 litres is required.
- To grow 1Kg of wheat, 650 litres of water is required.
- For every litre of milk produced, a cow needs to drink at least 3 litres of water. For high performing cows, the water requirement corresponds to 150 litres of water per day.
Recommended by: (SES Water; Waterwise) also the sources of figures and facts provided.
This is a great water saving tip, especially in a public place like work. These are certainly water saving taps. There are some great advantages to installing sensor taps. You’ll be aware that people’s behaviours vary when washing their hands, brushing their teeth etc. Some will leave the tap on when using the soap or whilst brushing.
It’s advised that for a proper hand wash, you should take a minimum of 20 seconds. Using a tap of 10 litres per min around 5 times a day, that’s just under 10 litres a day of water used if the tap is left on. The majority of which is not used as the soap is lathered on the hands.
These taps can be set so that they only provide water when required. Instantly turning on and off. A sensor tap works well here as the sensor is positioned so the water flows when the hands are placed in the right position and stops straight away when they are not. No guess work, they supply exactly the right amount of water required each time. An automatic tap works in the same principle but the setting is fixed and not dependent upon the users habits. For example, once it is pressed it stays on for a period of time, even if the user has finished. These can be set for very short periods but it means you have to keep touching the faucet, which can hinder hand hygiene.
Sensor taps should be promoted in all businesses to save money on their water meter bills, but there are some options that are suitable to be installed in the home.
Recommended by: (Waterwise)
How to conserve water in the garden
Instead of waiting for the national bans when the summer is hot, try to restrict your use of the hose as much as possible. When using a hose, it uses as much water in an hour as the average family of 4 uses in a day and a half.
If you do use a hose then have a trigger nozzle attached which will halve the amount of water used as you can control when water is released rather than just letting it flow. Using a trigger nozzle can save 225 litres a week. These water saving devices are free from some water companies.
Recommended by: (Affinity Water; Albion Water; Cambridge Water; Hafren Dyfrdwy; Essex and Suffolk Water; Independent Water Networks; Northumbrian Water; Scottish Water; Severn Trent; South West Water; Southern Water; United Utilities; Waterwise; Yorkshire Water) also the sources of figures and facts provided.
Just because you don’t want it anymore doesn’t mean that your garden can’t make use. Reusing your bath water, shower water (put a bucket where you stand to catch excess), washing bowl water and water collected in pots & pans can go a long way when watering your houseplants or garden.
It is important to note however that this is dirty water and should be used immediately, not saved for future use. It should never be used on edible plants or near children and make sure the water doesn’t have bleach or disinfectants mixed in. Finally make sure the water has cooled down before using.
Recommended by: (Hafren Dyfrdwy, Independent Water Networks; Severn Trent; South West Water; Waterwise; Wessex Water)
South West Water – be water wise (South West Water):
Your plants and grass will get all the water they need without excessive waste if you use a watering can. Another top tip is to do this either early in the morning or during the evening when it’s cooler as there’s less chance of water evaporating in the mid day heat. Watering the base of the plant so that it gets straight to the roots means using less, but helping the plant more.
As another reminder, check the forecast before watering. Do you really need to water when rain is forecast?
Recommended by: (Affinity Water; Cambridge Water; Cholderton & District Water; Hafren Dyfrdwy; Dwr Cymru; Essex and Suffolk Water; Independent Water Networks; Northumbrian Water; Portsmouth Water; Scottish Water; Severn Trent; South West Water; Southern Water; SES Water; United Utilities; Waterwise; Wessex Water; Yorkshire Water)
A water butt is a great way to collect rainwater, which plants and fish prefer anyway, and you can use it to water your garden or wash the car.
A standard water butt can collect approx. 5,000 litres of rain water per year. Sources suggest that around 85,000 litres of water fall on your roof each year. This seems like an imperative investment to catch it before it goes down the drain.
You can fit a water butt directly to sheds and greenhouses; right where you need the water. Remember to always keep them covered as small children and animals could fall in.
Recommended by: (Affinity Water; Albion Water; Cambridge Water; Cholderton & District Water; Hafren Dyfrdwy; Essex and Suffolk Water; Independent Water Networks; Northumbrian Water; Portsmouth Water; Scottish Water; Severn Trent; South East Water; South West Water; Southern Water; SES Water; United Utilities; Waterwise; Wessex Water; Yorkshire Water) also the sources of figures and facts provided.
Save up to 125 litres of water a time with a bucket and sponge when you wash your car rather than a hosepipe.
Recommend by: (Affinity Water; Albion Water; Hafren Dyfrdwy; Independent Water Networks; Portsmouth Water; Severn Trent; Scottish Water; South West Water; Southern Water; SES Water) also the sources of figures and facts provided.
Rather than looking at getting a bowling green effect, your lawn will be a better moisture retainer if you leave the grass a little longer, covering more of the soil and preventing evaporation. Especially in dry periods, as it will allow the dew to be trapped.
By resetting your lawn mower blades to 4cm or above it encourages a dense bushy growth with new shoots being grown, rather than shocking the grass with an extreme cut and encouraging the blades to grow straight up rather than multiply.
Another top tip is to leave the lawn cuttings on the lawn – it will naturally return moisture and nutrients to the soil creating a healthier, moister garden.
Recommended by: (Affinity Water; Cholderton & District Water; Dwr Cymru; Essex and Suffolk Water; Northumbrian Water; South West Water; Southern Water) also the sources of figures and facts provided.
Did you know that it’s OK to let your lawn go brown? It helps it build up resistance to wear and tear. It will also recover immediately after rainfall sooner as it conditions itself to take on nutrients better.
Recommended by: (Albion Water; Cholderton & District Water; Independent Water Networks; Southern Water; Waterwise) also the sources of figures and facts provided.
There are some beautiful plants out there that thrive in dry conditions so you haven’t got to keep watering them. Good for the environment and good for your workload! When out shopping choose plants that thrive without constant watering and look for the full sun symbol on the plant labels which indicates their tolerance to dry conditions.
Good plants to choose include:
Alyssum, Geraniums, cornflowers French and African Marigolds, Petunias, Aquilegia, Campanula, Heuchera lavender, Sea Lavender, thyme, evening primrose, rock rose, Californian poppy, pinks, buddleia, hebes, Gazania (Treasure Flower), Cosmos, Mexican Sunflower, Alonsoa (Mask Flower), Argyranthemum, Bidens, Nicotania, Zinnia, Osteospermum, Senecio, Buddleja davidii (Butterfly Bush), Box, Broom, Elaeagnus, Holly, Privet, Jerusalem Sage, Ruscus (Butcher’s Broom), Ivy, Russian Vine, Clematis, Campanula (Bellflower), Echinacea, Flax, Gaillardia, Thrift, Toadflax, Common sage, Lemon thyme, Perovskia ‘blue spire’, Rosemary and Verbena.
Recommended by: (Affinity Water; Cholderton & District Water; Independent Water Networks; Portsmouth Water; South East Water; South West Water; SES Water; United Utilities; Waterwise; Wessex Water) also the sources of figures and facts provided.
If you have parts of your garden that are south-facing it’s advisable to avoid planting in these areas or at least provide some shelter from sun and wind. Move containers, hanging baskets and pots into shady areas where possible. Plant trees and shrubs or use hedges and climber-covered trellises to form cool green walls.
Recommended by: (Affinity Water; South West Water;Wessex Water)
Avoid bare terracotta pots and containers where possible as these tend to leak more water than others that are made from glazed terracotta, plastic, ceramic, metal or wood.
Use a small amount of gel crystals with fine textured compost. They absorb water and can help retain the moisture in the soil. These are available for free from some water companies.
There are WaterStick Moisture Probe for Plants available for free from some water companies which let’s you know exactly when the plant needs watering.
Bury a short length of pipe into your pot; if you water into the tube the water goes directly to the roots where the plant needs it most. Use mulches like bark chips or gravel to retain moisture and keep weeds down. It will help to reduce evaporation by up to 75%.
Recommended by: (Affinity Water; Cholderton & District Water; Dwr Cymru; Essex and Suffolk Water; Independent Water Networks; Northumbrian Water; Portsmouth Water; South West Water; Southern Water; SES Water; United Utilities; Waterwise; Yorkshire Water) also the sources of figures and facts provided.
Leaking taps are a major source of waste water. In winter time, outside taps and pipework are prone to freezing and then bursting through damage. By covering up the taps and lagging the pipework, it can be prevented.
Recommended by: (Albion Water; Scottish Water)
A leaking pond means you have to keep topping them up. Check how many times you are having to do this and then check for leaks.
To stop water evaporating away from the pond it should have floating plants covering one half to two thirds of the water’s surface.
If you have an automatic replenishing pond that’s greater than 10,000 litres you have to be on a water meter.
Recommended by: (Essex and Suffolk Water; Northumbrian Water) also the sources of figures and facts provided.
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