I don't often give much thought to water although Wateraid is one of my favourite charities. It's just that sparkly stuff which appears when I turn the tap clockwise. However, this last weekend two things happened - first I got the annual water bill and secondly the drain which deals with water from the kitchen is not happy. This has meant that I can't use the washing machine, the dishwasher or the kitchen sink. Instead I've had to wash up in a bowl then carry the water outside to an alternative drain. This is not my idea of a fun way to run my life.
I decided straightaway to keep cooking to a minimum and to use batch cooked meals from the freezer when I am fed up with sandwiches. Microwaving results in far easier washing up than does cooking from scratch.
However, I decided to look at my water bill in more detail than I normally would. I have a metered supply and I pay £17 each month by direct debit so that's about 56p per day, My bill tells me I use 37 cubic metres annually. (The £17 is also surface water and waste water disposal.)
I consider I am careful rather than frugal with water. I take navy showers; the loo often has yellow water in it, I make sure I wash only full loads in the washing machine and the dishwasher. However, disability makes hand watering in the garden very difficult and I'm not keen on the other measures suggested on some other blogs. One friend think's it hilarious that I bother with "if it's yellow, let it mellow" whilst another tells me there is no way that using a dishwasher can be economical with water no matter what the manufacturers tell us.
I wondered how my water consumption compared with the national average so I checked with the Consumer Council for Water. The average water consumption for a single person household is 54 cubic metres. My 37 cubic metres doesn't look bad at all.
PS I'd just finished writing this post when I got a phone message to say that the plumber is on his way. Normal kitchen activity can be resumed!
