Investing in a water butt can help to put a dent in your rising water bill, and protect against drought.
There’s really no way around it, if you live in the UK, you’re used to rain, and lots of it.
According to the Office of National Statistics it rains approximately 156 days a year here. What’s more, the UK is only getting rainier, in the colder months at least. National climate change projections show that winters are set to get 30% wetter by 2070, but this doesn’t mean an increase in our water supply. With summers set to get 60% drier, river levels are predicted to drop by 80%. This means excess winter rainfall won't make up the difference and water shortages are highly likely.
Harvesting rainwater helps decrease your annual water usage,.saving you money on your water. Using water butts also helps contribute towards a water secure future in the face of a climate crisis.
Save on your water bill
Collecting rainwater with a water butt can save you hundreds of pounds per year, making a dent in those mounting bills and giving a sense of water security. Rainwater is a plentiful source when captured and stored correctly, and can be used for a wide range of tasks via a capturing process that requires minimal effort and long-term cost.
Swap Sprinklers for Hoses and Buckets
Sprinklers are extremely water intensive. They use approximately 1000 litres per hour which is the equivalent of 12 baths worth of water. This costs the user approximately £3 for a 60 minute session. While this may not seem like much on a one off basis, if you use your sprinkler for less than a third of the year (100 days) it adds an extra £300 to your annual water bill!
Why not replace your daily or weekly sprinkler session with a watering can, and fill up with the rain collected in your water butt. Our water butts have a handy, built in tap, so you can access your rain water easily. Your garden will thank you too as rainwater contains nutrients, which are removed from standard tap water via filtration, that will nourish your plants and soil. You can easily hook hosos up to an EvenGreener water butt too as they are compatible with most hose attachments.
Car Washing
Did you know that the averagd professional car wash can use up to 386 litres of water per vehicle? That’s more than double the daily usage of a UK resident! Washing your car at home, using collected rainwater will save you money and a lot of water. A typical bucket hand wash uses around 30 litres of water, which becomes cost free if rainwater collected in a water butt is used instead of tap water.
Pressure Washers
Handy as they are, pressure washers use a whopping 45 litres of water per minute. A ten minute drive clean uses up to 454 litres of water and costs around £1.50. That’s the equivalent of a week's worth of showers for one person being added to your water bill, for just 10 minutes of cleaning. With a water butt you can easily connect up your pressure washer using an aqua stop connector, saving on water costs and tapping into a more natural and sustainable water source.
Pets and Boots Cleaning
You can also use our water butts for domestic tasks thanks to the handy built-in tap. Coming in from a muddy walk with the dog? Use the water butt to rinse off your boots and your furry friend with just a quick twist of the handle. Rainwater, though not drinkable, is a clean source of water making it perfect for outdoor cleaning tasks, and pet baths!
Save Water By Reducing Leaks
Did you know that six out of the ten properties in the UK are at risk of flooding?
A changing climate has brought the UK some of its wettest winters on record. December 2015 saw flooding on an unprecedented scale, whilst February 2020 was the rainiest February in over 100 years. The cost and impact of flooding is devastating, costing billions and endangering lives. Flood claims increased by 9000% in 2020 and this trend has continued, and floodiag has been listed as the ‘greatest natural disaster risk’ to the UK.
In the UK 2.4 million people live in immediate flood risk areas.[/caption]
Investing in a water butt or water tank can also help protect your property against flooding. Water butts will capture excess rainwater running down your drainpipes, so that it doesn’t build up inside the house, or overwhelm your drainage system. Water butts also help manage the flow of water into gardens, preventing lawns from becoming oversaturated. Garden flooding can destroy your plants, and ruin paving and lawns, even if it doesn’t reach your house interiors.
Investing in a water butt helps secure your garden and home from increasingly heavy rainfall, whilst saving money and water to secure your future, and the planets.