Water calculator workings

There are many variables involved in calculating water usage and no two houses will be exactly alike. Below are the figures we have used in our water calculator and the sources for them.

You can also use these figures to manually work out your water consumption if you do not have the Macromedia Flash plug-in and cannot access the full version of the water calculator.

WATER CALCULATOR
Appliance	Consumption	Source
BATHROOM
Shower	7 litres/min	Waterwise
Power shower	12 litres/min	Waterwise
Bath	80 litres	Waterwise
Toilet	6 litres/flush since 2001 4.5 litres/flush (average) dual flush models 7.5-9 litres/flush models before 2001 11-13 litres/flush very old models "Hippo" or other displacement device saves 1 litre/flush	British Bathroom Manufacturers Association
Running tap	6 litres/min	Thames Water
KITCHEN
Washing up	10 litres (2x5 litre bowl)	Various
Dripping tap	300 ml/hour at rate of 1 drip/second	Observation
Dishwasher	15 litres/cycle if under 10 years old 25 litres/cycle if more than 10 years old	Waterwise
Washing machine	50 litres/cycle if under 10 years old 100 litres/cycle if more than 10 years old Half load uses 55% of water of full load	Environment Agency
GARAGE & GARDEN
Hosepipe	500 litres/hour	Waterwise
Watering can	4 litres	Various
Bucket	5 litres	Various
Pressure washer	450 litres/hour	Various