We all know that Cape Town, and South Africa, is facing a drought. Yet, some city residents continue to misuse water behind closed doors, filling pools, watering gardens and not closing or fixing dripping taps.
With our current dam levels at 44.3% and the city reporting a figure of 859 million litres of water being used daily during the first week of January – that’s 59 million litres above the city’s daily target! – authorities are on high alert and have issued more water restrictions.
Ensure you comply with the restrictions by using these tips:
Monitor your water consumption
Make sure you know where your water meter is located and how to read it. The average home should use less than 1 000 litres of water per day.
Keep tabs on your taps
According to the city, a dripping tap can waste up to 30 litres of water a day. Ensure your taps are fully closed, replace your tap washers if you have a dripping tap and fit tap aerators to reduce the flow.
Water your garden wisely
There’s no need to water your garden daily. Instead, skip windy days and water the garden only before 9 am and after 6 pm (or even later on long summer days).
Use alternative water sources
The water you just used to do the laundry? That can be repurposed to water your garden and potted plants, and even wash your car. Speaking of cars, there’s tons of waterless cleaners available to get the job done and many of them even work to help clean indoors. And if you’re thinking of cleaning your paved areas with water, think again – it’s illegal to hose down paved areas in Cape Town.
Install a greywater system…
Greywater is a combination of bath, shower and washing machine water that can be reused to wash your car or water your plants. It’s advisable to not use kitchen water as this could be damaging to plant life. If you’re concerned about hygiene, don’t be: if the water is reused as soon as possible, bacteria does not have enough time to produce.
Or a borehole/wellpoint
A borehole or wellpoint is eco-friendly and energy efficient as it accesses pure water from underground. The initial costs of installation are high but the long-term benefits are great and it will even up the value of your property.
Residents can report water contraventions by mailing [email protected] and for more water-saving tips, visit capetown.gov.za.
PhotographyEdouard TAMBA/Unsplash