Taps
Bathroom taps
- Leaving a tap running wastes water and can waste energy too
- A running tap uses about 5 litres of water per minute so turn off the tap when brushing your teeth and use a glass for rinsing
- A dripping tap can waste up to 12,000 litres a year. So if your tap is dripping get it fixed
- Don’t rinse your razor under a running tap. Filling the basin with a little warm water is just as effective and less wasteful.
Kitchen taps
- Don’t use running water to defrost frozen food. Ideally place food in refrigerator to defrost overnight.
- When washing dishes by hand, don’t rinse them under a running tap. If you have two sinks, fill the second one with rinsing water. If you have only one sink, stack washed dishes in a dish rack and rinse them with a pan of hot water.
- Use washing-up liquid sparingly as this will reduce the amount of rinsing required when washing dishes by hand.
- Use a plugged sink or a pan of water so that you don't need to run the tap continuously.
- When boiling vegetables, use enough water to cover them and keep the lid on the saucepan. Your vegetables will boil quicker and it will save you water, power, and preserve precious vitamins in the food.
- Flow-controlled aerators for taps are inexpensive and can reduce water flow by 50%.
Choose a top rated tap
Before buying a new tap, check the manufacturer’s water efficiency labels. Australia’s Water Efficiency Labelling and Standards (WELS) scheme allows consumers to compare the water efficiency of different products using a star rating system. By buying more water efficient products you can save money on water and electricity bills and help the environment!
Learn how to install a flow controller on your tap!
A typical household tap can use around 16 litres of water every minute, depending on your water pressure. That's an awful lot of water going down the sink while you're washing your hands or rinsing plates.
But did you know, that taps with flow controllers, can reduce water flow rates by more than 50%, without reducing your water pressure at all? They not only save you water but also use less energy, which means lower bills and less impact on the environment.
Learn how to change a tap washer!
Did you know, that a dripping tap can waste around 12,000 litres per year? That’s a lot of water and money down the drain. And yet it’s easy and cheap to fix it.
New washers are readily available in all hardware stores.
Learn how to change a tap washer on an outdoor tap
Changing a washer on an outdoor tap is a little bit different. But it is still pretty easy. New washers are readily available in all hardware stores. This video explains more.
