A HOME finance expert has revealed how Brits can save money on their water bills.
Earlier this month the average combined water bill rose from £417 to £448, according to Water UK.
There are ways to reduce your water bill by hundreds of pounds
Tom Church has revealed his tips and tricks
Speaking exclusively with HOAR, Tom Church, Co-Founder of money-saving community LatestDeals.co.uk, shared his extreme tips to save on water.
If you’re on a water meter these tips can help you cut back on your usage and save money…
Don’t Flush
Yes, I’m being grossly serious. It is the funniest and yet most effective water saving tip. I discovered it last year in TikTok comments.
A user called Manuela wrote, “If it’s yellow let it mellow, if it’s brown flush it down.”
At first I laughed and scrolled on. Then I wondered if she was being serious and kept coming back to it.
I had never seen any money experts recommend this because it feels too silly – you can’t be serious! – And yet, millions of people don’t flush the toilet at night after a pee because of disturbance from the noise. So it’s not a completely new phenomenon.
The average toilet uses nine litres of water with every flush. Skipping a flush on a pee can save a huge amount of water if you can put up with the hygiene consequences of letting it “mellow”.
Catch your shower water and re-use it
When you have a shower put the plug in. You can re-use that water in a number of ways. First, sorry kids, your children could have a bath in it.
It wasn’t too long ago that running a single bath for multiple people to use was completely normal.
Second, if you use organic pH neutral soaps, the water is completely fine to use for watering plants.
You can either scoop it up with a bucket or watering can, or if a hose is long enough suck it through to water your plants in the garden.
An extra tip is when you’re running taps waiting for cold water to turn hot, collect that water in a bucket and use it in the garden. But remember, shower water is not usually safe for drinking and cooking.
Fix the leaky loo
It’s not just water companies that have leaking pipes, but leaking toilets can also be a huge waste of water.
You can get a free leaky-loo testing kit from Save Water Save Money. It’s a strip that you stick inside your cleaned toilet overnight to test whether there’s anything leaking.
It may not be visible to the eye, but if the strip changes then you know you have a leak. It may be as simple as tightening the nut or changing the washer.
According to WaterSafe at the bad end a leaking toilet can waste up to 400 liters of water a day, or five bathtubs full costing £300 a year.
Boil Measured Cups of Water
Normally touted as an energy-saving tip it works for water too. Pour tap water into the cup before pouring into the kettle so you only use what you need.
Alternatively, you can get a One Cup hot water dispenser that just boils – you guessed it – one cup at a time.
Or, as one cheeky member of LatestDeals.co.uk said, “I just fill up a giant thermos at work using their water and bring it home.”
Re-use Cooking Water for Soups and Gravies
Boiling vegetables? Don’t throw that water away. Use it again to make soups and gravies. Chuck in a stock cube and you’re done!
Even better than boiling vegetables though is to microwave them instead.
Most vegetables such as peas, carrots and legumes can be microwaved. This requires no water at all. Alternatively, you can steam them which uses less water too.
Get Water Saving Freebies
Save Water Save Money and other water saving sites can give you loads of freebies. I’ve got:
- Water saving shower head
- Shower timer
- Free universal plug for sinks
- Free leaky loo tester kit
- Free water saving gel that stops thirsty plants from wasting water
- Free aerator for kitchen tap so it uses less water
