What Are You Paying For Water in Illawarra?

We all know that water is an essential part of our lives. With over 200,000 people living in Illawarra, the price of water often fluctuates based on the season. The rising cost might not come as a surprise to any inhabitants here, but there are easy ways you can do to help reduce your monthly water bills.

Major Components You Pay For, On Your Monthly Water Bill

Whether it’s drought or non-drought season, the bulk of your monthly bills hinge on how much water you use in your household. By identifying your fixed charges, you can adjust your water use and save money from the water you don’t use.

There are three major components for fixed water charges for Illawarra residents:

Water consumption charge (based on per 1000 litres): $2.35 per kilolitre ($3.18 per kilolitre if water dam level goes below 60%).
Water service fixed availability charge: $40.24/year.
Wastewater service fixed availability charge (sewer service): $549/year.

Illawarra Average Water Cost

Typically, your billing covers three months (quarter) worth of metre readings. Pensioners will usually get lower costs because of pensioner rebates. Owners with vacant lots won’t have to pay for water usage.

The baseline for water costs for Sydney and Illawarra households is 200 kilolitres. With all fixed costs considered, a typical home in this area would pay $300 per quarter or $1200 annually.

Practical Ways to Minimise Water Use and Monthly Expenses

There are three primary areas in your home where you use water the most: bathroom, kitchen, and laundry. Here’s a breakdown of how much water you use and ways to reduce water wastage from activities around these areas.

Bathroom

A typical showerhead uses 10 litres of water per minute, whereas a water-efficient showerhead (3 or 4-star WELS) will only yield 6 to 7 litres of water per minute. Switching to low-flow variations will help reduce water wasted during bathing.
Standard single-flush toilets use 12 litres of flushed water. Replacing this with a 4-star water-efficient toilet can cut about $148 from your water bill.
If your toilet comes with a dual-flushing system, opt for the half-flush feature to cut costs on water use. Add bricks and pebbles to reduce flushed water if your bathroom still operates on a traditional flushing system.

Kitchen

Opt to use a full-load dishwasher than hand washing dishes. Clear out food leftovers to avoid re-washing with water afterwards.
Instead of running water while brushing teeth, opt to use a glass to scoop water.
Are you thawing food from the freezer? Use the fridge instead of running water to defrost.

Laundry

Save as much as 45 litres of water using a front loader instead of a top loader washing machine.
A 1.5mm leak in your pipe would cost you 99 litres of wasted water a day. Have a professional plumber check for damages and leaks or request maintenance.

Conclusion

We all rely on a community with conscious management practices, but what if you could make your water more sustainable? Identifying factors that cause wasteful uses and finding ways to eliminate these parts can help keep the quality constant while still benefiting everyone.