Hosepipe Ban - Tips on how to wash your car....

[Howard]

Im confused now, but can somebody explain what happens to water that goes down the drains? If i was washing my car the water would run down the drains and then it vanishes? Or does it get pumped out to sea? If it rains how does thames water collect the rain water ? from the drains? cant do!

Rain water runs down the drains and into the river , it is not treated as it is not 'soil' water ...

Once it gets into the river, it is pumped out and goes to a treatment works where it is filtered and put back into the system ....

 

[Satch]

Hosepipe ban is first stage but if those companies who have sought "Drought Orders" from the Government are granted them then washing any vehicle even with a bucket becomes illegal.

However, it is allowed to clean windows on grounds of safety. And who knows just how dirty those windows were.......

 

[andy_k]

the content of this thread is quite depressing.

there's a definite water shortage in certain areas of the country, simply due to the lack of rainfall yet some people in the affected areas are still looking for ways/loopholes etc to keep their cars clean and blaming everyone else.

Is it that important to have a clean and shiny car and when did we all get so bloody selfish???

We NEED water for many things that we just can't survive without. Washing your car is NOT one of those things

Andy

 

[imadoofus]

Hear hear!

That was the point I was trying to make, but I was pulling my punches a little.....

PJ

 

[dagd]

the content of this thread is quite depressing.

there's a definite water shortage in certain areas of the country, simply due to the lack of rainfall yet some people in the affected areas are still looking for ways/loopholes etc to keep their cars clean and blaming everyone else.

Is it that important to have a clean and shiny car and when did we all get so bloody selfish???

We NEED water for many things that we just can't survive without. Washing your car is NOT one of those things

Andy

Andy,

I think you'll find that most of the comments are tongue in cheek and a wind up (including mine). I've never used a hose for cleaning my car. I've just purchased a second 'space saver' water butt to cach the run off from my garage. However, I do find it ironic that because the water pressure has been reduced, I can no longer use my efficient power shower, which heats the water immediately. Instead, I have to use shower downstairs which is gravity fed from the tank. Why is it irononc? Because I have to run the shower for about three minutes to get any hot water through, that's about the same amount of water that I'd use in the power shower (wasted ).

 

[BTB 500]

We NEED water for many things that we just can't survive without. Washing your car is NOT one of those things

I agree, but nobody NEEDS a swimming pool in their garden either ... so why are they exempted?

 

[Howard]

Power showers are not efficient , if it is a true power shower, then it will use nearly as much water as an average bath each time .....

 

[Wezzel]

the content of this thread is quite depressing.

there's a definite water shortage in certain areas of the country, simply due to the lack of rainfall yet some people in the affected areas are still looking for ways/loopholes etc to keep their cars clean and blaming everyone else.

Is it that important to have a clean and shiny car and when did we all get so bloody selfish???

We NEED water for many things that we just can't survive without. Washing your car is NOT one of those things

Andy

A hosepipe ban does not stop people who are inherently wasteful (for example putting the washing machine on every day for just a few items or running the dishwasher every day with half a dozen dirty plates inside).

The ban is ludicrously unfair and unbalanced. I can legally pour tens of thousands of litres into a swimming pool but I can't use 30 (or so) to wash my car. I can wash my entire house, paths and patio with a jet washer but if I turn round and aim a cupful on my roses I can be fined.

The really big users such as golf courses, garden centres and racecourses will no doubt have the sprinklers going as usual.

Is it any wonder that people have the "sod it, if they can waste that amount, I'm gonna wash the car" attitude. It's human nature.

Add to this the fact that some people have spent tens of thousands of pounds on their cars and need to preserve their investment. I work on construction sites and my car gets plastered with not only mud but abrasive dust and grit. Surely leaving this on the car for months on end will not do the paintwork any favours. I would happily cut down my (already low) water usage in other areas in order to give my car a quick wash on a Sunday afternoon.

If we are to save water consumption we need to do it by education and not by way of biased laws such as this.

Right, got that off my chest - Think I'll go and get a nice (small) glass of water.

 

[Howard]

The really big users such as golf courses, garden centres and racecourses will no doubt have the sprinklers going as usual.

They usually have their own boreholes and are licensed to abstact what they need ...

If a non-essential use ban comes in, then that will stop also .....

A swimming pool will collapse if there is no water in it , a car will not fold in on itself if it gets dirty......

 

[BTB 500]

A swimming pool will collapse if there is no water in it

Then surely the rule should be "don't empty it", rather than allowing people to drain and re-fill at will when there's a water shortage?!

 

[dagd]

Power showers are not efficient , if it is a true power shower, then it will use nearly as much water as an average bath each time .....

Howard,

I'm talking about one of those cheapish electric showers that you can purchase from DIY stores that run of the mains and heats the water instantly, maybe its' not called a power shower? but I do know that it uses very little water compaired to my gravity hot water tank shower.

regards

David

 

[Howard]

Fair enough ...

A true 'power shower' though will surprise you at its water use .. it is as i said before nearly a bathful on average ....

 

[Wezzel]

They usually have their own boreholes and are licensed to abstact what they need ...

If a non-essential use ban comes in, then that will stop also .....

A swimming pool will collapse if there is no water in it , a car will not fold in on itself if it gets dirty......

My neighbours pool is not even erected. It is free standing and at present is still in his garden shed.

He WILL put it out this year though, and fill it to the brim. It is 4m diameter and 1m deep. According to my calculations that will be a little over 12,000 litres.

 

[BTB 500]

PS I have a power shower, and although it's probably true that they use more water than people think ... mine definitely uses less water than the bath (because filling the bath to a comfortable depth requires all the hot water in the cylinder plus some cold, and I've never run out of hot water while having a shower).

 

[C43AMG]

So if it is legal to use a jet washer on your patio etc, why can't you use it on your car, or can you?

 

[robert.saunders]

PS I have a power shower, and although it's probably true that they use more water than people think ... mine definitely uses less water than the bath (because filling the bath to a comfortable depth requires all the hot water in the cylinder plus some cold, and I've never run out of hot water while having a shower).

Those that have a shower over the bath - leave the plug in! You'll know exactly how much water you use on a shower then!

Rob

 

[jeremytaylor]

A swimming pool will collapse if there is no water in it

Well I wish mine did when I filled it in a few years back, it would have made the job a heck of a lot easier. The walls were like granite, I think I'm still shaking from the kango 5 years later ...

 

[jeremytaylor]

So if it is legal to use a jet washer on your patio etc, why can't you use it on your car, or can you?

When you wash your patio, just make sure your car is parked on it first !

 

[C43AMG]

When you wash your patio, just make sure your car is parked on it first !

Do you mean that big driveway i have. Which i have just renamed the PATIO?

 

[Howard]

My neighbours pool is not even erected. It is free standing and at present is still in his garden shed.

He WILL put it out this year though, and fill it to the brim. It is 4m diameter and 1m deep. According to my calculations that will be a little over 12,000 litres.

Ok, we are splitting hairs a little here, which is typical of this argument (everyone has a smart answer as to why they can wash their car or whatever)

A swimming pool a far as i know when it is drained needs bracing to support it and prevent cracking (just like our locks, the water supports the side, when they are drained for maintenance, we but big bracing beams in ) if you were filling one in , you wouldn't bother as you were going to destroy it anyway .....

1600 people so far have been shopped by their neighbours , lets hope your neighbour with the pool is one of them as he has absolutely no need to fill it ... other than to be bloody minded and a smart **** at the pub 'Yeah i filled my pool, nothing they can do about it , mines another Stella '

Actually West Molesey isn't that far from me and i work for the Environment Agency ! A quick call to London Water Control in Hampton should do the trick .... can't be too difficult for the authorities to spot a free standing pool from a chopper , which is what trhey will be doing if it gets that bad .....

Really beginning to annoy me now this thread ,

Cheers