Households
How much water do you use?
Household water use varies enormously depending on the number of people in a house and their personal needs. On average;
- A person uses 142 litres per day.
- Metered customers uses 126 litres per person, per day.
- Unmetered customers uses 166 litres per person, per day.
- 112 litres per property are lost through leakage every day.
Shower
- Power shower: 13 litres is used per minute.
- Mixer shower: 8 litres is used per minute.
- Electric shower: 5 litres is used per minute.
Bath
- A full bath uses 80 litres.
Toilet
- 5 litres per flush using a modern cistern.
- 9 litres per flush for older toilets.
Washing Machine
- 50 litres per cycle.
Dishwasher
- 14 litres per cycle for a modern dishwasher.
- 10 litres per cycle on eco-setting.
Washing your hands
- 6 litres per minute is used with a running tap.
- 8 litres per bowl wash.
Car wash
- 250 litres per hose pipe use.
- 30 litres per bucket wash.
The above information is taken from our latest resilience report (pdf) and Discover Water.
Should you be metered?
If you don’t have a water meter, our water meter calculator will help you work out if you’d be better off with one.