{"id":880518,"date":"2026-09-05T04:48:15","date_gmt":"2026-09-05T04:48:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/880518\/"},"modified":"2026-09-05T04:48:15","modified_gmt":"2026-09-05T04:48:15","slug":"dont-drain-the-budget-how-to-save-on-water-heating-costs-water-bills","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/880518\/","title":{"rendered":"Don\u2019t drain the budget: how to save on water heating costs | Water bills"},"content":{"rendered":"

Australians love getting into hot water. About 15% have four or more showers a day, while nearly a third say they shower at least twice daily, a national survey<\/a> by the Water Conservancy finds.<\/p>\n

Most people\u2019s showers last five minutes or more, and one in five will spend between 10 and 15 minutes under the mist, sending up to 135 litres of water down the drain in the process.<\/p>\n

Water heating is the largest source<\/a> of greenhouse gas emissions in an average Australian home, and the second largest user of energy. Most hot water use happens in the shower, followed by the bath, laundry and kitchen.<\/p>\n

Water costs depend on a home\u2019s location, use and appliances, but in some cases they can exceed $1,000 per year, particularly for households still reliant on gas hot water systems, say researchers<\/a> at the University of Technology Sydney. Efficient and electric technologies can reduce those costs by 72%, or sometimes more when paired with rooftop solar.<\/p>\n

\u201cHot water is one of the biggest opportunities to reduce household energy costs,\u201d says Lloyd Heathfield, the solar and electrification programs lead at Yarra Energy<\/a> Foundation, noting that the shower is usually the best place to start.<\/p>\n

Simple ways to save<\/p>\n

Switching to an efficient shower head is a quick way to save on water and energy, says Tim Forcey, an independent energy consultant and the author of My Efficient Electric Home Handbook.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been in homes where there might be a shower head using 25 litres a minute, and I\u2019ve even measured as much as 50 \u2013 it\u2019s like standing under some sort of fire hydrant,\u201d Forcey says. \u201cThese days you can have a nice shower with a shower head that\u2019s using eight litres a minute,\u201d he says, or maybe even four or less.<\/p>\n

Forcey often recommends Methven\u2019s Kiri Satinjet as a highly efficient, pleasant-feeling shower. But there are cheaper options available, including free or subsidised showerheads under government programs, and flow restriction devices, which can be bought for a few dollars.<\/p>\n

For those willing to make behavioural changes, cutting your shower time \u2013 from 10 to four minutes \u2013 can reduce indoor water use by 25% and energy consumption by up to 15%. Modern shower timers, with traffic light alerts, can help nudge people towards shorter showers, especially for families with children, according to research by the University of Queensland<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Modern dishwashers can be more efficient than hand washing \u2013 but be sure the machine is fully stacked before running it. Photograph: Aire Images\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Rachael Wilkinson, a senior adviser at the Energy Efficiency Council, says other simple changes make a real difference too. \u201cUsing cold water for washing clothes, washing your hands with cold water where practical, and keeping showers a little shorter can all help reduce hot water consumption.\u201d<\/p>\n

Beyond the shower, modern dishwashers can be more efficient on water and energy than hand washing in the sink, says Helen Oakey, the chief executive of Renew<\/a>, a not-for-profit that advocates for people to live sustainably \u2013 but you should make sure it\u2019s stacked full before running it.<\/p>\n

Heat pumps and solar panels<\/p>\n

When it comes to hot water systems, most energy experts recommend heat pumps as an efficient, electric alternative to gas or conventional electric water heating.<\/p>\n

\u201cHot water heat pumps are also such an easy swap to make, there\u2019s no behaviour change needed \u2013 you turn on the tap or shower and hot water comes out \u2013 it\u2019s just costing you much less!\u201d Heathfield says. \u201cA heat pump hot water system works much like a reverse-cycle air conditioner. Instead of creating heat directly, it collects heat from the surrounding air and transfers it into a tank of water.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Forcey says heat pumps do require some electricity to run the fan and compressor. \u201cBut you can heat with a hot water heat pump for a third of the cost of using gas, and even a quarter or a fifth of the cost of using electric resistive hot water systems.\u201d<\/p>\n

The running costs get even lower when the system is powered by rooftop solar, he says, or is scheduled to switch on during a free power period on your electricity plan.<\/p>\n

For households with solar, it\u2019s a good way to \u201cself-consume\u201d what you generate each day, he says. \u201cYou don\u2019t get paid much for putting your solar electricity out on to the grid. So you might as well use it.\u201d<\/p>\n

It does pay to plan ahead, Oakey says. People can panic when their hot water system breaks down, and end up replacing like-with-like in a rush, potentially missing out on available rebates too, she says.<\/p>\n

Homes that are only connected to gas for hot water are also paying a daily connection fee to remain on the network, and should seriously consider going electric when their unit breaks down.<\/p>\n

\u201cGet that choice ready before it happens, because when it happens you\u2019re probably going to be quite keen to get hot water back on in the home.\u201d<\/p>\n

Generous federal and state rebates are available to assist with the upfront price of the product. Tools like Rewiring Australia\u2019s Electric Saul<\/a> and the Victoria government\u2019s Easy Electric SEC <\/a>can help with estimating savings and finding rebates for switching from gas to electric.<\/p>\n

A new hot water system may be a long-term investment, but Forcey agrees it\u2019s better to weigh your options before your current unit breaks. \u201cChances are it\u2019s going to fail on Christmas Eve, or it\u2019s going to fail when you\u2019re standing in the shower,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s difficult to make a sensible decision when you are cold, wet and naked.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Australians love getting into hot water. About 15% have four or more showers a day, while nearly a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":880519,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[64,63,99],"class_list":["post-880518","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-business","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-business"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/880518","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=880518"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/880518\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/880519"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=880518"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=880518"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=880518"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}