Projects
Introduction
Essex & Suffolk Water has been running water efficiency projects since 1997 and has since contacted over 149,000 households. Undertaking the projects emphasises our commitment to promoting the wise use of water and have also resulted in significant long term water savings thanks to the contribution of so many customers.
Research projects
Essex & Suffolk Water (ESW) recognises the need to remain at the forefront of research and development. Research projects are carried out on a continual basis with the aim of gaining a better understanding of water use within the supply area and to aid the demand forecasting. It is essential that ESW understand fully the way in which its consumers, both commercial and domestic, use their water.
Increasing population and modern lifestyles are creating challenges that Essex & Suffolk Water face now and in the future. Researching aspects such as the use of particular water using appliances, customers perceptions and behavioural patterns of water use and quantifying different types of water use all provide information that is crucial to Essex & Suffolk Water’s demand forecasting.
Home surveys
Following the launch of the first pilot home surveys in Chelmsford and Hartismere, a further project was undertaken between January and March 2000 in the Silver End and Rivenhall area in partnership with Braintree District Council. The home survey included a comprehensive survey of water using appliances in the home and garden, and the provision and fitting of water savings devices such as cistern displacement devices, tap re-washering, and water efficient shower heads. A similar home survey scheme was carried out in Burnham on Crouch between June and September 2000.
The home survey project was developed further and undertaken on a larger scale in the Southend and Hartismere areas during 2001. It was based on the successful projects at Silver End and Burnham on Crouch, and on models used in America. The customers were provided with a pack containing a guide to the survey process, a dripping tap flow gauge, a shower flow bag, a shower timer, a save-a-flush, a tap washer pack and a trigger hose gun along with the questionnaire. The aim was to promote water efficiency to customers and encourage them to undertake the survey themselves and in their own time, though assistance was available.
Similar projects on a larger scale were undertaken in the Southend area in 2002, in the Brentwood and Romford area in 2003/4 and in the Thurrock area in 2005. The projects were developed slightly each year in terms of the method of contacting customers and pack delivery.
Recent projects
Following the completion of the home survey project in Thurrock in 2005, we developed our approach and implemented the Water Saving Toolkit project. Rather than giving participants a standard pack of water saving products, we wanted to allow the customer choice in what they received. Participants were given a limit of 30 credits in which to ‘spend’ from a list of products allowing them to create their personal pack to suit their needs.
As always, we are continually looking to improve the projects and find new and innovative ways to deliver the water efficiency message to our customers, and our current home survey project named H2eco reflects this. This project, which has just entered its second phase, is based on the concept of participants working through the self audit process by completing a workbook. The workbook helps the participant to make informed decisions on which water
efficiency products will suit them and their home.
Use the links below for more details about the projects and for the final reports.
| Water efficiency home surveys | Fact sheet | Full report |
|---|---|---|
| Southend (1) | .gif) |
|
| Southend (2) | |
|
| Brentwood and Romford 2003/04 | |
|
| Thurrock 2005 | |
(3.35MB) |
| Sustainable water audits 2005 | |
|
| Water saving toolkit | |
* |
| H2eco Phase 1 | (4.72MB) |
|
| H2eco Phase 2 | (5.35MB) |
|
| H2eco Phase 3 - with Water Savers Report | (3.98MB) |
* If you would like to view the appendices, please contact demand.planning@eswater.co.uk
Identiflow monitoring of new properties
In February 2006, Essex & Suffolk Water identified the need to carry out microcomponent monitoring of a sample of new properties to gain a better understanding of water use in new properties during non-peak demand periods. Twenty new properties were monitored using Identiflow ®. Identiflow ®, developed by WRc, is a unique system capable of quantifying the consumption of individual water-using appliances within a property.
A flow meter and logger system is installed in an external meter boundary box, and is capable of recording 1/100th of a litre consumption flows at 1 second intervals. The information collected through the research will be applied to Essex & Suffolk Waters’ demand planning and will also be used to forecast the increased consumption resulting from the proposed Thames Gateway developments. The per household consumption (phc) for the sample of new properties was 264 l/prop/day.
Visit the WRc website at: www.wrcplc.co.uk
Essex Fire and Rescue water utilisation
To maintain an effective and efficient service of water delivery and support activity, water companies are continually challenged to understand how much of the water managed by each company is utilised by different consumer groups. This information is not only of potentially great commercial value to the water companies but also forms part of the reporting requirements applied to the water companies through the appointed regulator Ofwat.
Shower types, use and research
In February 2006, Essex & Suffolk Water (ESW) invited Per Capita Solutions (PCS) to undertake a research study into the shower use patterns, the factors influencing shower use and choice, and their interrelationships.
Survey questionnaires were completed across a wide cross-section of the ESW customer base in Essex, taking account of social demographics, property types and property age bands. The research was completed on both measured and unmeasured properties where a shower was installed. Surveys were carried out face-to-face with the customers using visual prompts.
ESW provided 10,929 addresses for the purpose of this study. PCS made survey appointments where possible a few days in advance. Cold calls were also carried out on customers’ doorsteps. 1140 calls were attempted in total and 425 contacts were made. Of these, 238 declined to take part in the survey and 79 had no showers. 108 appointments were made of which 9 were either cancelled or missed. PCS undertook cold-calls where there were gaps in the appointment programme to maximize cost benefits. A total of 229 surveys were completed in this manner, bringing the total number of completed surveys to 328.
| Document | |
|---|---|
| Shower types, use and research report |  |
RHS Hyde Hall
The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Dry Garden at Hyde Hall, situated near Rettendon and supported by Essex & Suffolk Water, has been designed and planted to demonstrate how a garden can be created without the need for artificial irrigation. The garden, being located in one of the driest areas of the British Isles, demonstrates sustainable horticultural techniques that are appropriate for the region and low rainfall areas in general. Water-wise gardening techniques are employed throughout the garden at Hyde Hall. Through the Dry Garden we aim to demonstrate how plants of great diversity and interest can be used without the need for irrigation, thus preserving a
precious resource - water.
Visit the RHS website for more information at: www.rhs.org.uk/whatson/gardens/hydehall/index.asp
Or contact Hyde Hall by telephoning 01245 400 256.
Up to 70% of our domestic water supply is poured and spinkled onto our gardens during hot summer weather. The garden factsheet below, aims to give you information about how to make your garden water efficient.
| Document | |
|---|---|
| The garden factsheet | |
Retrofitting of variable flush devices to existing toilets
In 2004, Essex & Suffolk Water carried out a successful project, along with nine other water companies and the Environment Agency, aimed at quantifying water savings at the household level resulting from the retrofitting of variable flush devices on existing toilets. 30 domestic metered properties in Laindon, Essex were monitored for six weeks before retrofitting and six weeks after the devices were installed. The data collected by each company was collaborated and in the weeks after the devices were installed water demand fell by an average of 8.5% per property.
Essex & Suffolk Water recognised the importance of assessing the effectiveness of the devices in the long-term. With this in mind, we have continued to monitor the properties during the same six-week period each year up to and including 2008. Follow-up research questionnaires have been sent to the participants annually, to discover whether the devices remained in place and how effectively they were working in the years following installation.
To assess the water savings, it was also important that any occupancy changes were known. The questionnaires also provided an opportunity to find this out. By April 2008, 11 properties had removed their WC retrofit devices for varying reasons. The majority had been removed through bathroom replacement or refurbishment. Several devices were also removed due to device failure in the subsequent years.
Analysis of the 2008 consumption data revealed that each property with the variable flush retrofit devices still installed continued to save on average 8.5 litres per day. This is an important finding and proves that retrofitting WCs provides sustained savings. The remaining properties, although reducing in sample size, will be monitored in 2009.
Water efficiency awareness amongst teenagers
Essex & Suffolk Water worked in partnership with Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) in 2006, with the aim of building an educational programme aimed at delivering water efficiency messages to 12-14 year olds. ARU’s schools liaison unit approached Great Baddow High School who agreed to allow the research to be carried out as part of the Year 8 science project.
The study found that 12-14 year olds did not use water particularly wisely although they were generally aware of the need to conserve water. Their parents did not influence them about how they should use water, which could be due to the parent’s lack of knowledge. The students were interested in the idea of having small reminders in the bathroom to remind them to use water wisely, but a very mixed response was received when it came to being willing to learn about water efficiency. Students were found to be money orientated by the objects that they wanted in reward for being more water efficient.
Visit Anglia Ruskin University’s website at: www.anglia.ac.uk/ruskin/en/home.html
Visit Baddow High School’s website at: www.greatbaddow.com
Essex Police
Essex & Suffolk Water have formed a long-term partnership with Essex Police, with the aim of implementing water saving initiatives throughout the Police Force and their buildings.
The partnership will see the development and implementation of a variety of initiatives including:
• the installation of cost-effective water saving devices such as Save-a-flush’s, tap inserts and aerated showerheads.
• the installation of toilet retrofit devices.
• working with staff to raise the awareness of using water wisely.
3 Police stations (Corringham, South Benfleet and South Ockendon) were identified as trial stations early in 2007. Flow data loggers were installed on the external meters of the stations in July 2007. The data collected from these will be used to provide us with control data against which the effects of the initiatives can be measured.
Audits were carried out at each station in October to establish which water saving devices could be installed within the Police stations. The products were then fitted on 28th November 2007. The following products were fitted:
| Corringham | South Benfleet | South Ockendon | |
|---|---|---|---|
| WC | 5 save-a-flush | 5 ecoBETA WC retrofit devices | 6 ecoBETA WC retrofit devices |
| Wash basin taps | 6 tap aerators | 3 tap aerators | |
| Kitchen taps | 1 kitchen tap adaptor | 1 kitchen tap adaptor | |
| Showers | 1 aerated showerhead |
The aim was to fit products wherever possible to effectively ‘complete’ whole stations (i.e. do all that we can within each station). WC devices were fitted in all toilets. Fitting tap aerators and the kitchen tap adaptor caused several problems due to the current taps not being suitable (i.e. oval taps or split kitchen mixer taps for cold and hot water). The majority of showers within the stations were electric showers with flow rates ranging between 5-8 litres per minute. One shower, with a flow rate of 15 litres per minute had an aerated showerhead installed. Tap and shower flow rates were measured before and after fitting new water efficient products.
Logger and meter data, which will be analysed in January 2008, will provide an insight into how the initiatives can be developed and taken forward. Essex Police have 120 operational buildings, so scope for future work is considerable.
Analysis of water savings
Essex & Suffolk Water has initiated and implemented a wide variety of water efficiency schemes over the past decade. Projects undertaken in recent years have demonstrated the need for good quality data to allow robust and accurate analysis of the water savings achieved with each project.
In 2002, Essex & Suffolk Water provided Tynemarch Engineering Systems Ltd with the data for the home survey projects that had been carried out prior to 2002. Tynemarch were commissioned to
• Identify water savings achieved
• Determine whether the savings achieved have been sustained
• Develop a methodology for analysing savings, and to,
• Provide recommendations for future measurements.
For further information, please view the PDF reports below, associated with the work carried out by Tynemarch.
| Report | |
|---|---|
| Assessment methods | |
| Water efficiency models to estimate annual savings | |
Water efficient new homes
In 1997, Essex & Suffolk Water started a project with the Building Research Establishment (BRE) involving a small development of new Housing Association Homes in Heybridge, Essex. 12 homes were fitted with water efficient appliances and point of use metering was installed in these and in 12 control homes to allow potential water savings to be measured. Three further homes were fitted with individual greywater recycling units. The water efficient appliances comprised of 6 litre WCs, low volume baths, low flow showers, spray mixer taps and reduced flow basin taps. The properties were monitored for 14 months and two customer surveys were undertaken at the beginning and end of the project to obtain user satisfaction information.
One of the outcomes from the project was a specification for water efficient new homes, which cost only £48 per property to fit. The lifespan of these appliances is about 10 years and they will pay for themselves in the first year through savings on metered charges.
The average volume of water used per person per day was 97 litres in the water efficient houses compared to 102 litres in the control houses, a difference of 5 litres per person. If only the consumption from the water efficient appliances and their equivalent in the control houses is compared, the water efficient houses used 13% less water per person than the control houses.
In January 2006, Essex & Suffolk Water began the next phase of the project. In addressing water efficiency in the home, there are two important elements: fittings and appliances that effectively and reliably fulfil their intended role; the behaviour of the occupants. Phase two of the project aims to identify how users behaviour interacts with new water-using technologies.
The objectives of phase two are to:
• Compare water use in the 'Heybridge water efficient homes' with other similar new homes (see PDF leaflet below).
• Understand perception and behavioural patterns of water use and determine how these impact on the potential for future water savings.
More information can be found on the ‘Water Efficient New Homes’ factsheet below.
| Document | |
|---|---|
| Heybridge water efficient homes | |
| Sustainable new homes factsheet | |
| Water efficiency factsheet | |
Shower challenge
There are many great ways to save water – a slightly shorter shower is one of them. Essex & Suffolk Water have introduced the Shower challenge to encourage a reduction in household water consumption.
Did you know that the average person spends about 6 minutes in the shower? In this time you could use up to 100 litres of water! Why not accept our challenge and try to reduce your shower by 1 minute.
We have 2,000 shower timers to give away to help you meet our challenge! You can request your free shower timer by completing our online form, or by telephoning 01245 212 360. This is your chance to be water-wise and help conserve water for the future.
Well done!
Well done to all of you that have taken part in the shower challenge so far – each property using the shower timer is saving on average 9.8 litres per day. Every property that has taken part in the challenge to date was sent a follow-up questionnaire to be completed and sent back. 54% of you have returned your questionnaire to date. The answers provided are very useful as they help us understand how taking part in the challenge has changed the amount of time spend showering, and ultimately, how much water is saved.
At the end of March 2008, over 3,100 of you had requested a 5-minute shower timer. The results from the follow-up questionnaire show that for those of you using the timer, the average time spent in the shower is now 2 minutes and 48 seconds less than before taking part in the challenge. This is saving 9.8 litres per property per day. Overall, the campaign has resulted in saving enough water to flush a standard toilet over 1,650 times every day! Thank you for your enthusiasm and commitment to saving water.