Auditel Consultant:
Chris Gordon

Water – costs more than you think!

13 Nov 2008 | Filed under: Water

At Auditel we get involved in water projects both large and small. For many of our clients Water is a relatively small cost and one that is given very little thought, partly becuase there is an assumption that you use what you use, and partly because it still remains an uncompetitive market.

Whilst the competition element has still to be resolved (it had planned to be introduced by now), you can greatly reduce water consumption, and as importantly with the the help of some insider knowledge there are lots of opportunities to challenge the assumptions on which your Water board bands and charges you.

Here are some interesting gems that may raise the issue in your consciousness and may just make you want to pick up the phone to see if we can negotiate some rebates on your behalf!

*Water Loss from an open tap
2 drops per second:
1 minute loss = 18ml
= £16

5mm stream of water
1 minute loss =
1 litre= £900

*Each Full time member of staff uses c. 6 cubic metres/year

*Each urinal (without flush controls) uses 1 cubic metre/day

*A cubic metre is about 220 gallons in “Old Money”

*Pipe Leakage accounts for a significant % of total UK “usage” – you could have a faulty meter or you could have a leak (the former can result in hefty rebate going back as far as we can prove, unlike energy where there is now a 3 year threshold, the latter is fixable but you have literally been pouring money down the drain!)

*What you “use” costs you double because generally you are assumed to have stuck the same amount back down the sewer – we can calculate your return to sewer actuals, your surface water drainange and whether we can use trade effluent charging to your advantage. We can also check to see if you have the right size of meter (they charge for that too!)