Water Saving Heroes
Here are two examples of how our customers have made saving water a part of their every day life. You can meet all of our Water Wise For Life Heroes by clicking the link to the right.
The Charkas Family
The Charkas family work together to make water saving a daily part of their lives. Suzanne Charkas checks her water usage by reading her meter regularly and is proud of the fact that her family of three is using as little drinking water as possible.
Suzanne says, “We’ve virtually halved our water consumption without spending an extra cent in the process. Ideally I would love to install a water tank and other water saving devices but even without these, we just made a conscientious effort to use less water and it hasn’t cost us anything.”
Inside the home, the family:
- have installed a water saving showerhead
- take shorter showers – even less than the recommended four minute shower!
- collect used shower water in buckets, using it later to clean their home
- only use the washing machine and dishwasher on a full load.
Suzanne thinks the area they’ve saved the most water is in their garden. "I only use water from the washing machine to water my garden and it is green and beautiful. We no longer have grass and the garden is based on ground cover and hardy plants, pebbles and mulch,” she says.
Margaret Trounce
In her mid sixties, Margaret Trounce is a self confessed water saver. She says her family think she is a little mad, but she feels good about doing her bit. An avid gardener, Margaret advocates talking to others about saving water and sharing ideas wherever possible.
Margaret says, “Look around your house and work out what you can do. For example, put a timer in the shower for a four minute shower, place a jug under taps to collect the cold water before it runs hot and only run your dishwasher when it has a full load.”
Margaret has installed a water efficient showerhead and is enjoying the benefits of its 3-star rating. When she’s in the shower, she collects water in buckets and uses it for flushing her toilet.
Outside her home, Margaret’s garden is thriving. When washing her clothes on a full load, Margaret collects the rinse water into a large plastic rubbish bin, which is supported on a trolley. Her husband has attached a tap at the base which she connects to a hose. When it’s full, she wheels the trolley into position to where she wishes to water. Her garden is lush and green and her plants are loving her for it! Margaret uses the greywater in line with EPA Victoria requirements and does not let it sit in the bin for more than 24 hours.