With the 2023/24 Continuous Household Survey (CHS) published today in relation to Household Water Usage, NI Water is offering some handy tips on how save water and money in our homes to help conserve water while also helping the environment.

The CHS highlighted 55% of people in Northern Ireland shower six to 10 times per week and 48% of people shower for between two and five minutes each time they use the shower. 58% of people own a dishwasher and 16% use it every day. The report also shows 99% of people own a washing machine, with 22% saying they use it every day. And 67% of respondents say they use a hosepipe or bucket to water plants, while 52% use them to wash their cars.  

NI Water education officer Anna Killen said: “When you start to think about how much water you are using each day – showering, cleaning dishes, washing our cars, watering our plants or tackling that mountain of washing - you start to realise just how important water is and the actual amount we use every single day.

“We might think that after what felt like a very wet summer this year that there is more water than enough to go around. But with climate change, everybody can play their part to protect the water resources we all rely on so that we all have enough to use when we need it most. And by conserving water you also help the planet in general by saving energy that is needed to clean the water.

“NI Water has a handy online ‘Get Water Fit’ water audit https://www.getwaterfit.co.uk that suggests some water saving challenges you can take at home. We can also help you with some free water saving items to help you avoid using extra water, including shower timers and toothy timers.  Also think about using a waterbutt in your garden to harvest rainwater that you can then use to water your plants and wash your cars with.”

Some water saving tips from NI Water:

• Turn off the tap when brushing your teeth - a running tap can use 6 litres of water per minute. Use a timer while brushing your teeth to ensure you don’t waste any extra water too. You can also use a shower timer to avoid extra water being used
• Use a bowl for washing vegetables - then you can reuse this water for plants
• Make full use of your washing machine and dishwasher - half load programmes use more than half the water and energy of a full load, so wait until the machine is full before switching it on
• Fix leaking taps - A dripping tap can waste more than 60 litres of water per week
• Keep a jug of water in the fridge - instead of letting the tap run cold. NI Water recommends water in the fridge needs to be changed every day or used within 24 hours
• Use a watering can instead of a hose - A hose uses over 500 litres of water an hour enough to fill 12 baths
• Use a waterbutt - they are a great way of harvesting rainwater, which can then be used to water plants, wash cars or wash windows. 

Ends

Notes to editors

• The Household Water Usage factsheet 2023/24, published today [Wednesday 2nd October 2024] is a publication produced by the Analysis, Statistics and Research Branch (ASRB) of the Department for Infrastructure (DfI), and presents findings from the 2023/24 Continuous Household Survey (CHS).
• The publication is available on the new Water Usage Research webpage 

Media enquiries to the NI Water Press Office via email to press.office@niwater.com