Top tips for conserving water at home

Irish Water is urging people to limit water use. Here are a few things you can do to help

Homes and businesses Dublin use on average 565 million litres a day, Irish Water said.

* Stop running the tap when you brush your teeth, wash or shave. This will save as much as 20 litres of water a time – if there are four people in the house and you all brush your teeth twice a day you will save almost 200 litres every day.

* A single flush of your toilet uses almost nine litres of water so only do it when absolutely necessary – you’ll be the best judge of when that is. Consider adding a brick to your toilet cistern. It will displace the water and reduce the amount it needs to get things moving.

* Keep a jug of water in the fridge so you don’t have to run a tap to make your drinking water cool enough.

* While baths are frowned upon in lean times, it does depend on the power of your shower and the length of time you spend in it. A typical bath uses about 150 litres of water while a six-minute shower will use about 60 litres.

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* Shower faster – you can get yourself clean in three minutes if you push yourself.

* Use a basin or a plug stop in the kitchen. You will use less water when washing dishes or vegetables.

* Run your dishwasher every second day and not until full.

* Check your outdoor taps and pipe leaks. Then fix the leaks.

Conor Pope

Conor Pope

Conor Pope is Consumer Affairs Correspondent, Pricewatch Editor