Is it worth using rain water to fill your toilet cistern?

[steve64]

• Average water consumption in unmetered households supplied by Southern Water increased between 2000-1 and 2004-5 to 162 litres per person per day.
• Average water consumption in metered households decreased to 140 litres per person per day.
• If you take the worse case scenario and I use 160 per day per person
• 160 litres * 4 persons = 640 litres = 142 gallons per day.
• Multiply by 365 days = 51,830 gallons divide by 220 = 235 cubic meters at £1.35 per meter = £318 for the water +the standing charge
• At £68.00 = £386.00 for my water if I use the average per person NASTY!!!!!! Especially when my bill is £235 per year now!!
• That could be £151.00 more. My house would have to be 111 cubic meters under the average to break even!
• Being green can be expensive.
• Steve
• Romford Essex

[DaisyDaisy]

I collect rainwater in a bucket up to the bathroom to flush the loo with, once sometimes twice a day.
My water is metered (I didn't have top pay for the meter to be installed) and last year I was paying £10 a month by direct debit. When the annual statement arrived I compared it with last year and I'd actually used 3 units (whatever that is?) more than the previous year - despite being very very careful, including starting the rainwater flushing

The statement also informed me that my monthly payment would be increased to £11.

However, a couple of weeks later I received a cheque from the water company for £108 as a refund , because my payments had been more than the water consumed - so I bought a couple of more rain barrels., and look forward to an even bigger refund next year (more barrels?).

I found that in this dry summer 4 rain barrels is enough for 1 person - by the time I got to the bottom of the last one it rained again.

[steve64]

On the 23 august I put my own water meter with a reading of 166 cubic meters.
Now the reading is 169!! I have had family to stay over the holidays. Still 3 cubic
meters is a lot of water!
I hope I can get my average a lot lower than 3 cubic per week?

Steve
Essex

[steve64]

In 16 days have used 7 cubic meters of water, and that's not including the two meters off stored water from the wooden water butt. I had now idea I was using so much!!
I have started to fill the water butt with bathwater and am using it to flush the toilet I have a couple pictures on a web site. Click on the link to see how I have done it?

www.selfsufficientish.zoomshare.com

The site is free for me to host. So there is a lot of adverts but free is free!

Steve
Essex

[the.fee.fairy]

that is a gorgeous water butt!!

I don't understand how you're filling your toilet with the water though. Is it a downstairs loo?

[steve64]

Thanks, I like it but my wife thinks I’m mad!
Yes it is a down stairs toilet; I have put some more pics on the link below.

http://allotments.wetpaint.com/page/OFF+GRID

Steve,
Essex.

[Millymollymandy]

Great pictures and info - but!!!! after reading about how many times you flushed the loo per day and seeing the next photo of crayfish I thought they might have come up your loo or something!