How to Save Water In The Workplace (And Save the Environment)
How to Save Water In The Workplace (And Save the Environment)Saving water doesn’t just mean saving money on your bills! With the cost of living increasing, you may be looking for ways to reduce your water usage to minimise costs. However, it is also important to consider the impact of water waste on the environment. By looking at ways to save water, you’re not only saving money, but you’re also saving the environment.
Workplaces are among the biggest water consumers. With staff and visitors using water in various ways, it’s easy to see how water can be wasted in an office building if not monitored carefully. To save you a few pennies and protect the planet, why not take a look at our 9 ways to save water in the workplace?
1. Monitor Water Usage in the Office
The biggest question you’re probably asking yourself is, “How can we save water?”. Well, apart from your water bill, are you monitoring the water usage in your office? By tracking the amount of water being used in a day, you can see when water is being used and if there are clear patterns that show water waste.
One way to track water usage is to install a smart water meter. This can provide real-time readings so you know exactly how much water your business uses and where you can save water.
2. Regular Maintenance and Check for Leaks
With over 3 billion litres of water wasted each day in England and Wales due to leaks, it is a no-brainer that you should check your water system for leaks and fix them as soon as possible. Regular maintenance can help with this!
With a consistent routine in place of checking your water system, you will be able to spot any potential problems before they become worse and cause issues in the future. You should regularly check your water system, from your taps to your pipes, to check there are no leaks in the system that are hard to spot.
3. Put Up Some Signs
It’s all well and good monitoring your water usage, but if changes aren’t made, you won’t see any improvement! Staff in your workplace should be educated in proper water usage practices. For example, they should not leave taps running when not in use, put dishwashers on when there are only a few items in them, or excessively boil the kettle.
One way to remind staff to follow these practices is to put up signs near water stations. For example, a sign in the kitchen can remind users to only turn on the dishwasher at the end of the day and only when it is full. Educating your staff can reduce the amount of water waste from the source.
4. Dishwashers Aren’t the Only Appliances to Watch
Only turning on the dishwasher when it is full will save water and energy. But there are other appliances to look out for. For instance, if your office uses kettles, you should try to fill them only with the amount of water you need, so you’re not boiling water for the sake of it.
This doesn’t mean down to the millilitre, but you shouldn’t fill the kettle to its maximum if you only make one cup of tea! Using only the exact amount of water will prevent people from reboiling the same amount and others from pouring excess water down the drain, only for them to fill it back up to boil more water.
5. Install Automatic Taps
Nowadays, you have probably seen automatic taps everywhere, especially in public toilets. This ensures washroom users don’t forget to turn the tap off after using the sink, another big contributor to water waste. So why not install them in your office space if you haven’t already? This could be a quick fix if you have already identified your washrooms as a key cause of water waste.
6. Dual Flush Toilets Save Water
Another fixture that has grown in popularity is dual flush toilets. As another common feature of washrooms, you have probably seen them in public toilets, or maybe you have one at home! These water-saving devices for toilets have two different buttons that trigger a long full flush and a short flush.
The average amount of water used in a traditional single-flush toilet is approximately 13 litres per flush, whereas a dual-flush toilet only uses 5 litres per flush. That’s a substantial difference, especially when it comes to saving water. With 43% of water used in toilet flush in an office, installing dual flush systems can be a simple method of quickly reducing your water consumption.
7. Have You Tried Waterless Urinals?
Traditional urinals use over 87,000 litres of water a year. But have you thought about installing a waterless urinal? A waterless urinal eliminates the need to flush after use by implementing a trap system with liquid sealant to capture urine and prevent odours. Removing the need for flushing can save thousands of litres of water a year, saving you money in the long run.
8. Don’t Use the Toilet as a Bin
It goes without saying that rubbish shouldn’t be flushed down the toilet. However, sometimes, if there isn’t a bin, people will flush hand towels and toilet paper used to dry their hands down the toilet. This is an unnecessary use of water that can be easily solved by installing a bin in the washroom!
9. What About Rainwater?
Rainwater is a free source of water! If possible, you could collect rainwater in water butts. This can reduce the amount of water you use for tasks that don’t require clean water, such as watering indoor or outdoor plants or flushing toilets.
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Benefits of Saving Water
Cost Savings
Saving water means saving money. You can reduce your water bills by reducing the amount of water your workplace uses. Even though implementing water-saving devices for toilets and other areas can have a higher initial cost, the money saved from the reduced amount of water you will be using can outweigh this initial cost.
Protecting the Planet
Of course, the other benefit of saving water is to protect the planet. Conserving water helps protect natural resources. You may be surprised to learn that only 5% of the Earth’s water is actually suitable for drinking. With a finite amount of water available to us, we should be more vigilant about the amount of water we use on a regular basis.
Meeting Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Goals
Businesses are now more than ever put under the microscope about their sustainability targets. By saving water, ESG targets can be achieved. For example, a business’s water footprint will be reduced if it minimises the amount of water waste in its workplace.
Additionally, climate change can increase the risk of floods and droughts, which can disrupt water availability. By installing water-saving devices, businesses can adapt to the changing environment and address climate-related risks.
Long-Term Sustainability
By prioritising water conservation today, future generations can also have clean water readily available, driving long-term sustainability. With the average employee's water consumption being approximately 50 litres per day, businesses must play their part to ensure water wastage is reduced and promote sustainable water practices.
Join Us in Saving The Planet
At Woosh, we want to create cleaner and greener washrooms. We play our part by ensuring we use biodegradable chemicals, which can easily be broken down when they enter the water system, causing no harm to the environment.
If you want to join Woosh in saving the environment, why not take a look at our Waterless Urinal Service to reduce your water usage or our air fresheners that contain no CFCs, causing no harm to the environment?
Get in touch with our Wooshologists today to find out how we can work together to make your washrooms a more eco-friendly place.
How to Save Water FAQs
What wastes the most water?
Toilets are the biggest culprit when it comes to water waste. From only using full flushes when not needed to using the toilet as a bin, toilets are used unnecessarily, causing more water waste.
One way to combat this is to install a dual-flush system in your toilets. This will ensure short flushes can be used when needed, reducing the amount of wasted water. Additionally, making sure bins are available to people in public washrooms will also minimise the need to use the toilet as a makeshift bin.
How much water is wasted in the UK?
Research shows over 3 billion litres of water is wasted every day in the UK. This can be through leaks or even just letting the taps run whilst brushing your teeth. The amount of wasted water can be reduced by implementing measures such as educating staff in workplaces or educating your children about saving water and installing water-saving measures such as dual-flushing toilets to ensure large amounts of water aren’t unnecessarily used.
Why should we save water?
Saving water doesn’t just save money but also the environment. Freshwater is a finite resource, with only 5% of the Earth’s water suitable for drinking. With many areas around the world facing water scarcity due to overuse, pollution, and climate change, it is crucial we all play our part and only use the amount of water we need.
How to reduce water usage?
The key ways to save water in the workplace are to:
- Check for any leaks
- Educate staff and put up signs as reminders
- Only use appliances, such as dishwashers, when they are completely full
- Install automatic taps
- Implement dual-flush toilet systems
- Utilise waterless urinals
Why not take a look at our saving water infographic for more information?
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