As the saying goes – one swallow does not make a summer, neither does one big rain alleviate a drought!
Despite recent rains, our dams are still low, and water restrictions are still in place. Every resident in Grahamstown needs to incorporate diverse and innovative efforts to conserve water – a precious commodity essential to life! With the hot summer weather approaching, we will have to make sure that we use every drop of water wisely. So much “grey” water – in other words, water that we’ve already used once, but is still good for other uses, just washes down the drains. If we can capture and conserve this water, using it for other purposes that don’t need clean water, we will save many mega-litres!
The Rotary Club of Grahamstown Sunset invites you to join us at the Pepper Grove Mall on Friday 1 December 2017 between 3.30pm and 5.30pm for a water ‘save-rave’ – to share ideas on how to save many litres of water during a daily routine undertaken by every household. In addition, we will be handing out an essential “tool” for you to take home to implement and achieve this. In applying this simple water-saving technique, your household can conserve between 15 and 20 litres each day – along with many other litres if you use other measures as well.
Saving water does not mean compromising your daily hygiene habits! In addition to the water saving device that we will be promoting, there is a wonderful shower idea that saves water developed by local resident, Richard Grant. This entails using a 5-litre plastic water bottle, 8mm diameter plastic tubing, wire and a clothes peg – all inexpensive and readily available! Holes are drilled into the lid of the water bottle. In addition to small holes, a 7mm hole must be made. Push the wire into the soft plastic tube and push the plastic tube through the 7mm hole in the lid so the tube goes to the other end of the bottle when the lid is on. The purpose of the wire is to hold the plastic tube straight inside the bottle. The plastic tube should be a snug fit in the hole. Bend the wire where the tube comes out of the lid, so the other end of the plastic tube sticks out to one side.
Fold the free end of the plastic tube over and clamp it with the clothes peg. Fill the bottle with warm water, screw the lid on and hang the bottle upside down just above head height.
When you are ready, start the shower by removing the clothes peg. If the water doesn’t flow straight away it is because the plastic tube in the bottle has water in it. Blow gently into the open end of the tube and the shower will start. Enjoy a guilt-free 90 second shower! You can even solar-heat the water in the bottle for a hot shower with no electricity costs. For these and more ideas, come along to our water ‘save-rave’.
Members of the Rotary Club of Grahamstown Sunset look forward to seeing you at our water ‘save-rave’ at the Peppergrove Mall on Friday 1 December. Be a ‘water supporter’. Bring along your water-saving ideas and we’ll compile them all to share with our community. We may be conserving water now because of our drought conditions, but in truth, we should use water wisely ALL the time. It is our most precious resource – and we must stop taking it for granted.
Be water-wise: use our precious water sparingly!
