Play Your Part in Conserving Our Most Precious Resource
Conserving our country’s most precious resource, water, begins with you!
Even though New South Wales is currently under Level 1 water restrictions, SCA (NSW) encourages every strata resident to play their part in reducing their water consumption.
Water Consumption in Strata Schemes
One of the biggest challenges in strata communities is that many don’t have individual water meters installed, so many owners and occupiers are unable to calculate their own individual water consumption.
In recent years, Sydney Water has created a best practice benchmark for water consumption, which should be considered by all strata schemes assessing their impact on our shared water resources.
According to Sydney Water, the most common areas for water consumption in apartments and other strata title properties are as follows:
- Showers – 51.5%
- Toilets – 7.7%
- Leaks – 7%
- Washing machines – 6.8%
Some Tips for Saving Water
We advocate that all strata schemes do more to reduce their water footprint and work towards best practice standards.
A few ways that you can do this include:
- Hire a plumber to conduct a check for any leaking pipes, taps and toilets. Owners’ corporations are responsible for common property, which includes garden taps, and owners for their private lot.
- Choose water efficient products when installing new taps, showerheads, dishwashers and washing machines. It’s recommended that showerheads have a 3-star rating, dishwashers have a 5-star rating and washing machines are front loaders with a 4.5-rating or higher.
- Encourage residents to practice helpful water saving habits, such as turning off the tap while brushing their teeth and using economy mode for dishwashers and washing machines.
- For strata schemes with outdoor swimming pools, management should ensure they’re covered up when not in use to minimise evaporation and keep the water level at halfway in the skimmer box.
- Use brooms and rakes whenever possible to clear pathways and driveways, instead of hoses. Consider water saving nozzles and install water saving sprinkler systems throughout gardens.
For more water saving tips, head over to the Sydney Water website by clicking here.