Water meter or not?

[quanglewangle]

We are going through one of our periodic 'should we get a water meter' phases so I thought I would share the pain.
Our water company charges £3 m³

My garden usage is approx

• greenhouse 7 months 210 days 20 l/day 4200l say 4.2m³
• lawn 5 times 1.6 m3 each time, say 8 m³
• potatoes 1 m³
• onions 1 m³
• sweetcorn 1m³
• odds and ends 1m³

that is about 16 m³ costing £48

But
Although we get 1000 mm rain a year only about 300 mm falls in growing season so I need to store perhaps 8 m³ to get through a dry summer

Options

• Lagoon - possible but ugly and concerned about pets/children falling in. say £600 with liner/digger hire
• IBC 1m³ tanks times 8 plus pumps, pipes etc £1000 also ugly
• do nothing and pay the fixed water rates

What do folks think? (by all means shoot down my figures)

[Nicos]

We are metered and it’s actually a good thing because it makes us conscious of how much treated water we use.
During dry spells I tip out most of the used washing up bowls of water onto the nearest flower boarder.
If we don’t have guests then I symphon off the bath water onto another flower boarder which is directly below the bathroom window.

It does seem a waste of resources paying for water to be purified and then hose it onto the veggies.
We have 4 IBCs and a few other large tanks which are never quite enough but I feel good about saving rainwater in them. The hosepipe is only used for veggies if we run dry.
Mulching also comes into its own when you know you have a limited amount of ‘free’ water. It’s not really free though is it when you’ve paid out for all the storage containers!

We paint the IBCs with brown Ducksback ( serves as a camouflage but also helps reduce algae build up) …then shield it from view using heather screening with a pretty flowerbed at the base.

They aren’t ugly like that.

[Nicos]

Urm…can I ask why you water your lawn?
Also - do you really need water pumps for the IBCs?…ours are gravity fed.

[quanglewangle]

Urm…can I ask why you water your lawn?
Also - do you really need water pumps for the IBCs?…ours are gravity fed.

We are on a bit of a slope and the areas we would collect from are downhill from where we would need to irrigate.

[Snoop Puss]

QW, do you really only use 20 l a day watering your greenhouse? That doesn't seem like very much. What do you have in there?

Outdoors, my tomato plants get through at least three litres a day each from mid June to mid September. I once told a friend this and he thought it was next to nothing, but I know my figures to be right because I water by hand using a watering can.

[quanglewangle]

We water the lawn because we consider it an important feature and have nearly, several years after a leather jacket/badger attack, got it back to a state we can start playing croquet again. (not really big enough but fun)

[quanglewangle]

QW, do you really only use 20 l a day watering your greenhouse? That doesn't seem like very much.

You are probably right. I had 50 l / day to start with but thought that was too high for the whole seven n months. So maybe 40 l / day average is nearer the mark

[Nicos]

We water the lawn because we consider it an important feature and have nearly, several years after a leather jacket/badger attack, got it back to a state we can start playing croquet again. (not really big enough but fun)

Well that’s a good enough reason! We all need some fun in our lives….

[Snoop Puss]

I don't know, QW. I reckon even that might be an under-estimate to be honest. How many tomato, aubergine and other plants do you have in there? I know they won't all need watering the same amount all year round, but when they're small, I water mine what seems to be a disproportionately large amount just to make sure there's enough for the roots. You've got a better idea than me, for sure, though.

[quanglewangle]

I don't know, QW. I reckon even that might be an under-estimate to be honest.

Thanks. This is exactly the sort of feedback I was after.
I will monitor /record for a bit.

And as for me having a better idea about it than you... Don't be fooled by a confident tone.

[mothhawk]

How much water do you use in the house? That will be metered too, yes? Do you have a bath, or shower? How many times a day do you flush the loo? How many loads of washing/dishwasher loads? It all adds up. Then there's the waste water, surface water, and highway drainage charges to add in, too.

[quanglewangle]

How much water do you use in the house? That will be metered too, yes?....

I am relaxed about our domestic use. There just two of us, both old; no bath in the house, only two low flow showers; washing machine is modern and used once a day on eco cycle (takes hours but is in outhouse); dishwasher similar, once a day on eco cycle (needs lots of cutlery and crockery to last all day); dual flush loos.

I think the garden is where the bulk of the water goes.

I realise that water cost is only an element of the water company bill.

[Snoop Puss]

When my parents moved over to a metre, their bill plummeted. Just the two of them as well. It made them feel better about watering the garden because they were being charged on the basis of what was being used.

[Jungle Jane]

I heard the other day,I think on the Martin Lewis tv programme,if you have less people than bedrooms in your home you should be on a water meter….also give a meter reading for gas & electric on or just before the 31st March when prices go up. I was reading just now that some food banks are rejecting potatoes & root veg because people can’t afford the energy to boil them,said Iceland boss Richard Walker,in the news today

[quanglewangle]

.also give a meter reading for gas & electric on or just before the 31st March when prices go up.

Nothing in this post constitutes advice

Years ago at a time when inflation was very high we used to lock in electricity prices by sending in higher than actual readings. kWh in hand were better than £ in the bank. I suspect AI would spot such tactics today.