How Much Water You Use - GWMWater

Keep track with a water audit Our Water Audit Kit Brochure is designed to help you work out how much water your household uses and where. Or use this online water calculator to see how much water you use at your place.

It can very surprising to learn how much water you're using in a day. Have you ever thought about how much water your shower uses? Or how much running the dishwasher every night contributes to your bill? It's good to be aware of how much water your daily activities are using - once you know you're a lot more conscious of how you can save water.

The toilet

• A dual flush cistern uses 3 litres for a half flush and 6 litres for a full flush.
• A single flush cistern uses 9 to 11 litres per flush.

The shower

• A water-efficient showerhead uses approximately 9 litres per minute.
• An older style showerhead uses approximately 19 litres per minute - that's 10 litres more!
• Having a daily 5 minute shower with an older style showerhead uses about 36,500 litres of water a year.

We recommend keeping your showers to under 3 minutes and installing a 3 star water-saving shower head.

The bath

• A bath uses between 50 to 150 litres of water per fill, depending on the water level.

Dishwashing by hand

• It takes around 15 to 18 litres of water to fill a kitchen sink.

Dishwashers

• Modern dishwashers use around 15 litres for a fast cycle and 20 litres for a normal cycle. Check your manual to find out how much your dishwasher uses.

Washing machine

• A modern front loading machine uses 50 litres on a normal cycle.
• A top loader uses 120-150 litres on a normal cycle.
• A twin tub uses approximately 70 litres of water on a normal cycle.

General use

• For handwashing, brushing teeth, cooking and household cleaning you will use around 18 litres per person per day.
• Leaving the tap running while brushing your teeth uses about 5 litres of water.

Watering the garden

• A garden sprinkler uses approximately 1000 litres of water an hour. Put a rain gauge near the sprinkler to measure the amount of water.

Dripping taps or leaking toilets

• A dripping tap can waste up to 200 litres of water a day.