HOUSEHOLD WATER BUDGET SKTB 1023-01 LECTURER

HOUSEHOLD WATER BUDGET
SKTB 1023-01
LECTURER :
DR. MARIANI
REPORT BY :
CHAN HUI MIN
(A17KT0042)
CHAN YEN HENG
(A17KT0043)
FAKHRUL HAKIM ZAINI
(A17KT0059)
MUHAMAD SHAHRUL IZZUDIN BIN ASBULLAH
(A17KT0141)
CONTENT
NO CONTENT PAGES
1 INTRODUCTION 3
2 OBJECTIVE 4-5
3 SUMMARY OF WATER USAGE 6-7
4 PARTICIPANTS’ LIFESTYLE
-CALCULATION AND ESTIMATION OF WATER BIL 8-10
5 WAYS TO REDUCE WATER USAGE 11-13
6 PROJECT TIMELINE
-GANTT CHART
-MILESTONE 14-15
14
15
7 CONCLUSION 16
8 REFERENCES 17-18
INTRODUCTION
Water is a precious commodity. Approximately 70% of Earth’s surface is covered with water, but only 3% is freshwater. The remaining 97% of saltwater is unsuitable to be used for drinking, crop irrigation or most industrial uses. Of the 3% freshwater, only about 1% is readily available for human consumption.

Malaysia is blessed with an abundance of freshwater resources such as rivers, underground water and rainfall. Yet, there still is water shortages and crises in many parts of the country. The average daily water consumption by a Malaysian is 300 litres, which is almost double the benchmark (165 litres per day) recommended by the United Nations. Obviously, this problem is not caused by having too little water to satisfy our needs. Rather it is caused by unsustainable management of water resources that causes many people and the environment to suffer.

We Will Write a Custom Essay Specifically
For You For Only $13.90/page!


order now

Domestic water usage is the amount of water used for indoor and outdoor household purposes. This includes everything done at home like drinking, cooking, bathing, cleaning the house, watering the plants, etc. To reduce domestic water usage, a household water budget can be made. The budget can be used to track the usage of water and identify the water wasting activities in the household. After that, suitable action can be taken to cut down water usage.

This report will determine the amount of water used in a Malaysian household in a week, discuss the water using activities in a domestic setting based on the participants’ lifestyle and suggest actions that could be taken to reduce water usage in said household.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
Aims:
This project mainly focused on understanding current household water use behaviour and water use pattern so that, the efficiency of water usages can be improve and also reduce the water wastage.
Objectives:
Summarize the household water usage by listing all the water-using activities and their habits when using the water.

To quantify how much water used on a daily basis based on the calculation and the estimation from the original water bill.

To investigate and analyse the problems that lead to water wastage.

Determine the most effective ways to improve water usage efficiency and reduce water wastage.

Summarizing household water usage
– Observe the water-using behaviour.

– Explore personal water usage habits which also include the water appliance use frequency and the duration of each uses.Examples, shower frequency and duration of each shower.

Quantifying water bill
– Explore the characteristics of each water appliances. Example, determine the brand and the flow rate of each appliances.

Identifying the problems of water wastage
– Observe and explore every possible problem s that lead to water wastage. Example, analyse the household lifestyle and also the weakness of the water appliances.

Ways to improve water usage efficiency
– Discuss the most suitable ways can be applied by participants to save water. Example, find the information on rain harvesting system in details.

SUMMARY OF WATER USAGE
Water use in the broad sense deals with man’s interaction with and influence on the hydrology cycle. In a technical sense, water use refers to water that is actually used for a specific purpose, such as domestic use, commercial needs, or industrial processing. To study the daily household water usage, the household that have been chosen by our group is Shahrul’s house which located in Kampung Melayu Pandan, Johor Bahru. There are total of four family members live in his house. Each family members have different water consumption habits. From the water bill provide by Shahrul, we discover that the water used by his family is 2179.42 gallon per week. This means that the household use nearly 8250 litre of water per week. The appliances used in the household are shower head, faucet, toilet, water pipe, washing machine and water basin. The time of toilet usage for the 4 people are in the range of 10 to 15 minutes respectively. 5 gallons of water is used per flush. This means that 4 people spent 280 gallons or 1060 litre of toilet water usage in a week. Next, the water usage for faucet in the toilet in the purpose of brushing teeth or washing hand is 2.2 gallons per minute. The time taken for each family members to brushing their teeth is in the range of 1 to 1.5 minutes twice per day. So, total of 138.6 gallons or 524.65 litre of water is used by 4 people in a week for toilet faucet appliance. Next, the water usage for faucet in the kitchen in the purpose for cooking or washing plates is 2.5 gallon per minute. The total of 420 gallons or 1589.87 litre of water is used per week by Shahrul’s family. During shower, the time taken for each person is in the range of 15 to 25 minutes per day. The water usage for shower is 2.1 gallons per minute for shower. So, total of 1102.5 gallons or 4173.41 litre of water is used per week for showering. For the part for laundry, Khind brand of top load washing machine is used by Shahrul’s family. According to the washing machine manufacture’s supplied information, 30 gallons of water is used for washing machine per day. The total of 210 gallons or 795 litre of water is used per week for washing clothes. Furthermore, they consume 0.5 gallons per person per day for drinking water. So, their total consuming for drinking water is 14 gallons or 53 litre per week. Since the calculation for the water usage is an estimation, therefore it is not completely accurate. So miscellaneous part is required to include the unknown water usage. For the miscellaneous part, 14.32 gallons or 54.2 litre of water is used per week. In conclusion, the highest water usage for Shahrul’s family is shower which used up 1102.5 gallon or 4173.41 litre per week while the lowest water usage is water drinking which used up 14 gallons or 53 litre per week.

Appliances/ Usage Flow rates Water used per week (gallons) Percentage
Toilet 5 gallons per flush 280 12.7
Faucet (toilet) 2.2 gallons per minute 138.6 6.3
Faucet (kitchen) 2.5 gallons per minute 420 19.3
Shower 2.1 gallons per minute 1102.5 50.9
Laundry -washing machine 30 gallons per load 210 9.6
Drinking 0.5 gallons per person per day 14 0.6
Miscellaneous 14.32 0.7
Total 2179.42 100
PARTICIPANTS’ LIFESTYLE
Table 1 Domestic water usage in investigated household
Table 1 shows the calculation of domestic water usage per week based on original water bill.

Figure 1 The volume of water use per week
Figure 1 illustrates the pie chart that shows the volume of water used on daily basis of household consist four members.

The usage of water in a household depends largely on the inhabitants’ lifestyle. Therefore, identifying a participant’s lifestyle is a crucial step to determine the water wasting activities in a household. There are 4 inhabitants in the Shahrul’s household. In Shahrul’s household, water using activities include food preparation and clean up, drinking, tooth brushing, bathing, toilet flushing and laundry.
The household activity that consumes the most water at 50.9% is showering. The participants’ bath time ranges from 15-25 minutes. The 4 participants each took 1 shower per day. The water usage is high because the shower was not turned off when the participants were applying soap. The shower head used is an old model which uses about 2.1 gallons per minute. The average shower time of the participants is 18.75 minutes per shower.
The usage of water from the kitchen faucet makes up the second largest portion of usage at 19.3%. Water from the kitchen faucet was used for food preparation and clean up. The participants cook at home once a day and clean their dishes for about 30 minutes per day. The kitchen faucet uses 2.5 gallons of water per minute.
The toilet water usage makes up 12.7% of the total water usage. The flush volume of the toilet is quite high because the toilet is an old model. The participants were out working or at school for most of the day so the frequency of use of toilet is not very high (twice per person each day).
The household uses 9.6% of their water on laundry. They washed their clothes with a top load washing machine once per day even if the washing machine was not full.
6.3% of their total water usage is on the toilet faucet. The average time the participants use on teeth brushing is 1.125minutes. The participants brush their teeth twice per day. The participants let the water run when they were brushing their teeth.

0.6% of water usage is on drinking. The participants drank 0.5 gallons of water each per day.
In total, this household used a total of 2179.42 gallons of water in a week.

SAVING THE WATER
Water is really important for developing nations such as Malaysia. Water is the basic resources to maintain daily life and support the economic growth since many industries used water as the raw material of their products. People use lots of water for drinking,cooking and washing but even more for showering and do the laundry. Water footprint is an indicator that shows the direct or indirect water use by the consumers and also the producers. Water footprint also can be defines as the total volumes of freshwater that is used to produce the goods and services consumed by the individual or community or produced by the business. This part of the research will examine and discuss seven ways to save water which include rain water harvesting system, modification on water appliances ( efficient water tap model, shower head, toilet, washing machines), improvement of the household lifestyle and lastly the uses of grey water.

Water wastage can be greatly reduce through the rainwater harvesting system. It involves the collection, storage and distribution of rainwater from the roof,for use inside and outside the home. For example, installing artificial rain barrel (simplest rainwater harvesting system) can captured and stored the rainwater for domestic uses. Therefore, the installation of rain harvesting system can reduce the water usage from the supplied and save the bill.

Water usage efficiency can also be improved by some modification on water appliances. The water tap can be modified by installing the water tap aerators or any others efficient fixture. Water tap aerators also known as flow regulator is a small attachment that either fits onto the end of the tap or can be inserted inside the tap. It is a water saving devices that are able to control the amounts of water that flows through the tap without affecting water pressure as the water is mixed with the air. Example of efficient fixture is the altered nozzle which is widely used in west countries. Both aerators and altered nozzle can save up to 80% of water and increase the water efficiency significantly.

Next, it is suggests to replace old shower head with a water efficient model as old shower head consumes about 15 to 20 L/min while the new model consumes only 8L/min. The advantages of installing a low flow shower head are able to decrease water consumption more than 40% and providing significant end-of-year savings due to monthly water bill being cut down.

In addition, water can be saved by modifying the toilet. The modifications include the installation of both dual-flush toilet technology and the toilet-tank displacement device. Dual-flush toilet offers a choice of two flush volumes either large (6L) or small (3L) which saving water compared to previous toilet. On the other hand, the toilet-tank displacement device can save water because it has the same flush effect or pressure but with a lower volume of water. It use the height of the water in the toilet-tank to produce the same pressure.

Besides that, using a front load washing machine can save water compared to top load washing machine since it uses lower volume of water for the same capacity of laundry. It is also advised that to to wash the clothes when the load is full because it can save for about 10 L of water for each wash.

Other suitable method to save water is to improve the users bahaviour. In general, users should realize that it is important to save the water. For example, the users are reccomended to take a shorter shower (8 minutes) instead of bath. They need to practice good habits such as turn off the water tap while brushing their teeth and also when soaping and scrubbing the dishes. They also should regularly check for any leaking in the toilet and faucets.

Grey water is gently used water from bathroom sinks, bath tubs and also washing machines. Grey water is also used water without toxic chemicals that can be used for any others suitable purposes. For example, the water after rinsing the fruits can be used for flush and also watering the plant.

In conclusion, these seven ways to reduce water usage is very effective since it can be easily applied in daily life and the most suitable method for Malaysian citizen. There are many other alternatives that can greatly reduce water usage and cuts the water bill. So, it is important for each of us to realized the importance of saving water which can majorly affect our life. Therefore, in order to sustain our daily basis reducing water usage to save water is vital.

PROJECT TIMELINE
Gantt chart :
Task No. Task Start End Duration (days)
Task 1 List out water-using activities 11/22/2017 11/23/2017 1
Task 2 Determine unit usage with water bill 11/23/2017 11/25/2017 2
Task 3 Determine amount used 11/25/2017 11/27/2017 2
Task 4 Track water usage for 1 week 12/1/2017 12/9/2017 8
Task 5 Compile report 12/9/2017 12/12/2017 3

Milestone for Water Usage Project :
MILESTONE DUE DATE PERSON IN CHARGE Completed ( O )
Choose a house area Johor Bahru (Shahrul’s house) 14/11/2017 Fakhrul O
List activity using water 23/11/2017 Fakhrul O
Describe participant lifestyle 25/11/2017 Yen Heng O
Summary of daily used 25/11/2017 Hui Ming O
Acquiring original water bill 25/11/2017 Shahrul O
Collecting information from manufacture’s supplied
25/11/2017 Yen Heng and Hui Ming O
Monitoring water usage for a week 1/12/2017 Shahrul O
Write the paper work for this project and compilation 9/12/2017 All O
Mock presentation 11/12/2017 All O
Presentation day 12/12/2017 All O
CONCLUSION
Water is important in our life. Our body weight is build up approximately 60 percent of water. Our body uses water in all its cells, organs, and tissues to help regulate its temperature and maintain other bodily functions due to the loses of water through breathing, sweating, and  HYPERLINK ;https://www.everydayhealth.com/hs/healthy-eating/tips-for-better-digestive-health/; digestion. Thus, it’s important to rehydrate by drinking fluids and eating foods that contain  HYPERLINK "https://www.everydayhealth.com/water-health/drinking-water-taste.aspx" water. Apart from drinking it to survive, people have many other uses for water such as cooking, showering, washing clothes, keeping houses and communities clean.
The water usage for Shahrul’s family is 2179.42 gallons per week. This means that the household use nearly 8250 litre of water per week. The highest water usage for Shahrul’s family is shower which used up 1102.5 gallon or 4173.41 litre per week while the lowest water usage is water drinking which used up 14 gallons or 53 litre per week. Since the calculation for the water usage is an estimation, therefore it is not completely accurate. So miscellaneous part is required to include the unknown water usage.

With water being such a necessary resource for life on Earth, reducing your water footprint is a great way to take action. Rain water harvesting, appliances modifications and uses of grey water are effective methods to reduce the wasting of water usage. In the nut shell, we have the responsible to save our water to prevent the waste of water to ensure that our next generation still have clean and enough water in their life.

REFERENCES
HYPERLINK "https://www.savewatersavemoney.co.uk/water-efficiency-tips-advice/view/120/tap-aerators—how-do-they-work.html" https://www.savewatersavemoney.co.uk/water-efficiency-tips-advice/view/120/tap-aerators—how-do-they-work.html
HYPERLINK "https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/621008351/altered-nozzle-same-tap-98-less-water" https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/621008351/altered-nozzle-same-tap-98-less-water
HYPERLINK "https://www.sswm.info/category/implementation-tools/water-use/hardware/optimisation-water-use-home/reduce-water-consumptio" https://www.sswm.info/category/implementation-tools/water-use/hardware/optimisation-water-use-home/reduce-water-consumptio
HYPERLINK "http://watermanagement.ucdavis.edu/files/2113/8255/4515/01_Group_Borg_Edwards_Kimpel.pdf" http://watermanagement.ucdavis.edu/files/2113/8255/4515/01_Group_Borg_Edwards_Kimpel.pdf
HYPERLINK "http://www.switchurbanwater.eu/outputs/pdfs/W3-1_GEN_PHD_Research_of_domestic_water_consumption_-_a_field_study_in_Harbin_China.pdf" http://www.switchurbanwater.eu/outputs/pdfs/W3-1_GEN_PHD_Research_of_domestic_water_consumption_-_a_field_study_in_Harbin_China.pdf
HYPERLINK "https://www.treehugger.com/bathroom-design/atomizing-showerhead-claims-70-water-savings-and-significantly-superior-shower.html" https://www.treehugger.com/bathroom-design/atomizing-showerhead-claims-70-water-savings-and-significantly-superior-shower.html
HYPERLINK "http://www.indiacelebrating.com/essay/rain-water-harvesting-essay/" http://www.indiacelebrating.com/essay/rain-water-harvesting-essay/
HYPERLINK "https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=3&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwjlvd2mv_XXAhUMMo8KHW9GA8kQFggvMAI&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.home-water-works.org%2Findoor-use%2Fclothes-washer&usg=AOvVaw2s9hVV2snJ1ujlZaFUiZ9_" https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=3&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwjlvd2mv_XXAhUMMo8KHW9GA8kQFggvMAI&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.home-water-works.org%2Findoor-use%2Fclothes-washer&usg=AOvVaw2s9hVV2snJ1ujlZaFUiZ9_
HYPERLINK "https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=3&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwiorrK_vvXXAhWEto8KHZxvAqsQFggvMAI&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.home-water-works.org%2Findoor-use%2Fshowers&usg=AOvVaw3_si6EOI0O5aWepHLPgHt6" https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=3&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwiorrK_vvXXAhWEto8KHZxvAqsQFggvMAI&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.home-water-works.org%2Findoor-use%2Fshowers&usg=AOvVaw3_si6EOI0O5aWepHLPgHt6
HYPERLINK "https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwiN5ZSUvvXXAhUKLY8KHQxUAKoQFggpMAE&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.conserveh2o.org%2Ffaucet-water-use&usg=AOvVaw0PrnSuw0FVn_me7QbWQHXD" https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwiN5ZSUvvXXAhUKLY8KHQxUAKoQFggpMAE&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.conserveh2o.org%2Ffaucet-water-use&usg=AOvVaw0PrnSuw0FVn_me7QbWQHXD
HYPERLINK "https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=3&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwi6oo7SvfXXAhXBvo8KHROdB6QQFggvMAI&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.conserveh2o.org%2Ftoilet-water-use&usg=AOvVaw3t7kJZ6d-6s3gh6Fk5rNTD" https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=3&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwi6oo7SvfXXAhXBvo8KHROdB6QQFggvMAI&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.conserveh2o.org%2Ftoilet-water-use&usg=AOvVaw3t7kJZ6d-6s3gh6Fk5rNTD
HYPERLINK "https://www.google.com/search?q=litres+to+gallons&rlz=1C1CHBF_enMY759MY759&oq=litres+to+g&aqs=chrome.0.0j69i57j0l4.5099j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8" https://www.google.com/search?q=litres+to+gallons&rlz=1C1CHBF_enMY759MY759&oq=litres+to+g&aqs=chrome.0.0j69i57j0l4.5099j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8
HYPERLINK "https://www.investopedia.com/articles/06/water.asp" l "ixzz50UTBH9OU" https://www.investopedia.com/articles/06/water.asp#ixzz50UTBH9OU
HYPERLINK "https://www.malaysiakini.com/letters/323856" https://www.malaysiakini.com/letters/323856
HYPERLINK "https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2016/01/31/water-wastage-high-in-msia/" l "BFmbUj9Fh7rpSGlF.99" https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2016/01/31/water-wastage-high-in-msia/#BFmbUj9Fh7rpSGlF.99
HYPERLINK "https://www.sustainable.com.au/greywater-treatment.html" https://www.sustainable.com.au/greywater-treatment.html
HYPERLINK "http://www.wec.ufl.edu/extension/gc/madera/water/devices.htm" http://www.wec.ufl.edu/extension/gc/madera/water/devices.htm

x

Hi!
I'm Sarah!

Would you like to get a custom essay? How about receiving a customized one?

Check it out