How much water do you use?

The less water we use the better for the environment.

In Cambridge our water supply comes from underground, under the Gog Magog hills. The same aquifer feeds streams that feed into the River Cam. When the level of water in the aquifer is low, the streams are reduced to a trickle and in summer 2019 some of them dried up completely; this was catastrophic for the animals and fish in the water, plants on the banks, and for birds, insects and other life that feeds on them. Also, low flow in the rivers and streams increases the effect of pollution. To find out more, read the Transition Cambridge pages on water.

The less water we use the better for the environment. How much do you use? Use this tool to estimate your use and see how how you compare with other households in Cambridge. Then see how much you could save, for example by taking shorter showers or installing a dual flush toilet.

Household size
There are people in our home.

Personal hygiene
We have a shower and each person uses it times per week for minutes.
We each have a bath times per week
We have basin taps and we each use them for minutes per day for washing our hands and brushing our teeth.

Toilet
We have a toilet and we each use it times per day

Leaking taps
of our taps is leaky. It drips times per minute

Washing clothes and dishes
We have kitchen taps.
We run the washing machine times per week.
We have a dishwasher and we use it times per week. We wash stuff up by hand times per day.

Outdoors
We wash the car times per month using a
In the garden, during the summer we water plants using water from the mains (not from a water butt). We use a hose for minutes , a sprinkler for hours and watering cans full per week.

Your total: XX litres/person/day* Assumptions behind these calculations

How do I compare with other households?

Measuring in litres/person/day:
140 - National average (see Discover Water for more information)
110 - New developments in Cambridge, as estimated by the water calculator, part G of building regulations. (Due to water shortages in the region, Cambridge City Council has included these water efficiency requirements for new developments in the Local Plan (adopted in 2018.)
80 - Code for Sustainable Homes level 5 or better - Eddington was built to this standard. It uses rainwater harvesting to achieve this. Rainwater can supply toilets and washing machines but should not be used for drinking or personal hygene.

*Please note this is only an estimate. If you have a water meter you can check how much you use on your bill. These are usually twice a year and report in cubic metres. Your use is XX cubic metres in six months.

Total XX litres/person/day

Enable sound effects

Thanks to SoundBible for the sound effects: Woop Woop and 1 Person Cheering.