Water All you need to know

wessexwater.co.uk 1 Contents Here to help you] We’re one of the leading drinking water We aim to do this by: Here to help you 1 and sewerage companies in England • encouraging and enabling our Water sources 2 and Wales and water is a precious customers to use water wisely resource for us. Water environment 2 • controlling leakage So we’re committed to providing you • protecting our water sources from Water treatment 3 with the best quality drinking water pollution, especially nitrates. Our water network 4 and giving you the highest levels of customer service and environmental Although water is one of the world’s Pipework responsibility 5 performance that we can. natural resources and falls quite literally out of the sky, the job of collecting it Water supply interruptions 6 And we’re determined to meet future and making it clean and safe to drink demands for water without restrictions, Water pressure 7 isn’t a simple matter. without harming the environment and Water quality 8 whatever extreme weather we face in So we’ve put together this booklet to the future. give you some idea of what goes into Water leakage 9 getting drinking water from its source Water resources for the future 10 to the taps in your home. What you can do 11 Cold weather advice 12 Important information 12 Stroud Cotswold How we can help 13 South Contact us Back cover Water Chippenham North Somerset Bath BANES Devizes Weston-super-Mare Trowbridge Sedgemoor Mendip West Bridgwater Somerset

Salisbury Taunton Taunton Yeovil South Somerset North East New Forest West Dorset Dorset Dorchester Key Christchurch Purbeck supply and sewerage services area Sewerage services only Weymouth Weymouth and Portland Water supply services only

1 Water sources Water treatment Borehole Reservoir

Depending on where you Water We simply inject it with a Borehole 1 Filtration live, your water supply discharge solution of chlorine gas may come from deep to kill off any bacteria The most common ways to treat water are coagulation, followed by dissolved air flotation, underground in Wiltshire and in some cases aerate 1 and Dorset – around 80% it to replace carbon and/or sand filtration. of our water comes from dioxide with oxygen. With both methods the water arriving at a there. If your water doesn’t treatment works flows through fine filters to 2 This underground water, come from these remove algae, insects and any other objects. in natural reservoirs called groundwater sources, Water table 2 Coagulation aquifers, originally fell as it will come from our A small amount of chemical coagulant is put into rain, snow or hail before surface water reservoirs 3 the water to help bind any impurities so that seeping through rocks such fed by streams and they stick together and can be trapped on the as chalk, limestone and rivers. These are mostly filters, which are cleaned regularly. sandstone. located in hilly areas in

Pump Water 3 We mostly pump this bearing Somerset. Dissolved air flotation water to the surface using rock Reservoir water needs a After coagulation water is fed into a chamber (aquifer) 4 boreholes which are sunk higher level of treatment and air is forced through it, pushing the up to 120 metres into the than groundwater and particles to the surface where they are rocks but some will rise we use a number of removed. naturally in springs. We then treat it and different treatment processes to purify 4 Sand filtration supply it your home. it to the high quality required by law. We 5 take you through these processes on Water flows on to fine sand filter beds trapping Water from aquifers usually has fewer any leftover particles. At some treatment works impurities so needs less treatment. the page opposite. other filters, for instance carbon 5 , are used for further cleaning, and if necessary alkali such 6 as lime is added to stabilise the water.

6 Disinfection Water environment Finally, we treat the filtered water with Abstraction licences granted by the Doing this reduces the effect of our ultraviolet and/or chlorine to kill any germs. make sure that public water supply abstractions on our water supply operations don’t harm local watercourses. Chlorine the environment. There are a further 20 sources where Our licences state the maximum we reduce our abstraction rate for We are legally required to disinfect water so we add a dose of chlorine during amount of water we can take from the public supply when the river flow falls the treatment process to make sure it’s safe to drink. environment each day and each year, below a certain level, helping to reduce Most people don’t notice a taste or smell of chlorine in water but if you are and in some cases link abstraction rates our impact on the environment. particularly sensitive you might notice it. to water levels in local watercourses. We continue to work with the You can remove the taste safely by using a water filter – just make sure you We operate 19 stream supports Environment Agency and Natural follow the manufacturer’s instructions on cleaning and maintenance. where we pump water from an England to review where more could be Or you can chill tap water in the fridge to reduce the chlorine taste or smell. If underground aquifer and discharge it done to protect the environment. you do this, or filter water, keep it covered in the fridge and remember to drink into a watercourse to keep flows in the it soon as it won’t stay fresh for long. streams at set levels through the year.

2 3 Our water network Pipework responsibility The water that comes out of your taps It leaves service reservoirs through Our pipework you do not own the land the pipe runs has travelled through our extensive trunk mains – large diameter pipes that We’re generally responsible for water through. network of water mains which covers carry substantial amounts of water mains and the pipes supplying your The pipework and plumbing inside much of the south west. around the area quickly. water between the main and the your home (marked ‘Your pipework We move this water around to make Most of our mains are between 300mm boundary of the street and your and fittings’ on the diagram), including sure you always have a supply and that and 500mm in diameter, although some property. We continuously look for appliances, are also your responsibility. leaks,but if you spot one please let us we can meet demand across our region. may be as big as 800mm. We’ll help you look after your private know. The treated water is held in storage From the trunk mains water flows supply pipe up to the outside wall of tanks called service reservoirs which into smaller pipes, called distribution Your pipework your house but you’ll have to contact a are usually hidden underground – or mains, which become steadily The pipework between our service pipe plumber, or your landlord, if you think occasionally in water towers. smaller. Attached to these are service and your house (coloured yellow on the you have a leak inside your house Water is usually pumped up to the connections – these are the narrow diagram below) is your private supply on your plumbing or appliances – reservoirs and then flows from service pipes that carry water into individual pipe. This is your responsibility even if unfortunately we can’t do this for you. reservoirs to customers’ homes by homes. gravity, although sometimes it has to be Our pipework pumped to make sure it reaches every property. We maintain it and x leaks as quickly as we can. our pipework Your responsibility, but we’ll help you look Service after it. reservoir our pipework and fittings High lift Your responsibility, and pump you’ll need to contact a plumber if you have any problems with them.

Fact file • We treat and supply 330 million litres of water a day. That’s enough water to fill924 Olympic swimming pools every week! Internal Service pipe stop tap External • We supply 1.3 million customers across the south west of stop tap England including Dorset, Somerset, and most of Wiltshire. Street boundary Water main

4 5 Shared pipework information see the Water leakage Sometimes two or more properties section on page 9. Water pressure share a service pipe, in which case they If you don’t know where your share joint ownership of the pipe. responsibility begins and ends then visit Water pressure is the force that We measure wessexwater.co.uk/pipework or call pushes water through pipes and water pressure If you share pipework, the responsibility determines the flow of water from 0345 600 4 600 (Monday to Friday, 8am in ‘bars’ – one for maintenance and leak repairs lies your tap. with all the pipe owners. We can usually to 6pm) and we’ll be able to help you. bar is the force The amount of pressure at your repair leaks free of charge and this needed to raise applies to shared supplies. For further property can depend on: water through • the height above your home of the service reservoir or water pipes to a height tower providing your supply. (or ‘head’) of Need a plumber? Properties at the top of a hill may 10 metres. receive lower pressure than those To find your nearest plumber visit the WaterSafe at the bottom of the hill website at www.watersafe.org.uk or call This should be powerful enough to 0333 207 9030 (Monday to Thursday, • how much water other customers fill a one-gallon (4.5 litre) container 8.30am to 5pm; Friday, 8.30am to 4.30pm). are using • how close you live to one of our within 30 seconds. pumps. If you experience low pressure for Pressure can also vary at different more than an hour on two occasions times of the day – it’s affected by within a 28-day period, and it’s our Water supply interruptions the number of customers using the fault, you will automatically receive water supply at the same time. compensation. We are legally bound to provide We’ll compensate you if your water There is usually more demand on enough water supply for supply is interrupted because we have the water supply in the mornings customers’ domestic needs. to put a drought order in place or if we and early evenings and this can fail to keep our promise about other But if for any reason we find the water result in low pressure. Find out is unfit to drink, we will send out advice supply interruptions. The water pressure inside your immediately. For instance, we will tell For more information visit property can also be affected by you not to use it or to boil the water wessexwater.co.uk/promises or call more plumbing work, such as: before using it for drinking and cooking. 0345 600 4 600 (Monday to Friday, • changing the width or texture of If you are inconvenienced And we will get this advice to you by 8am to 6pm). a pipe by abnormally high or low putting a notice through your letterbox, via local media, a personal visit or by • using a different pump/regulator, pressure we may be able phone. or pump/regulator setting to help. • increasing or decreasing the level For more information visit of water in an attic water tank. wessexwater.co.uk/ We are legally bound to provide all promises customers with a minimum pressure Extra help of 10 metres head, and a flow rate of or call 0345 600 4 600 at least nine litres per minute at the (Monday to Friday, 8am to If you need additional support from us please let boundary of your property, which 6pm). us know – we can help through Priority Services – should be ideal for day-to-day use. see page 13

6 7 Water softeners chemically remove If you need to know how hard your Water quality] the hardness from water and prevent water is in order to set the softening scale forming in the domestic hot water control on your dishwasher, find out We have a duty to ensure that our contact us via our online forms system. If you have a water softener, by visiting,wessexwater.co.uk/ drinking water is wholesome, safe and wessexwater.co.uk/contactus or make sure you follow the manufacturer’s waterquality or call 0345 600 4 600 compliant with the standards set down call us on 0345 600 4 600 and we will instructions and keep an unsoftened (Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm). by law, mainly the Water Supply (water arrange to take a sample of the water cold-water supply for drinking and quality) Regulations. from your kitchen tap and test it for you cooking for health reasons. So we monitor water quality for free. continuously at our treatment works Find out more about checking for lead If you have any questions about your water quality visit, wessexwater. to make sure customers receive a and what we are doing about it on our co.uk/promises or call 0345 600 4 600 (Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm). wholesome supply. In the unlikely event website wessexwater.co.uk or call There’s more information about the range of trace substances naturally of a problem at a site it is shut down 0345 600 4 600 for a copy of our Water found in drinking water in our Water quality – taste and odour the facts automatically. quality – lead in the water, the facts leaflet. For a free copy call 0345 600 4 600 (Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm). And each year we analyse around leaflet. 50,000 samples of water from If you replace your private supply treatment works, reservoirs and pipe we’ll replace the communal customers’ taps and carry out more pipe at the same time in full. Water leakage than a million laboratory tests. A lot of our water distribution system • damp patches on the ground We are constantly investing in Rusted pipes was built long ago – in the 19th and • an unexplained increase in your bill. improvement work at service reservoirs Iron pipes can rust, resulting in early years of the 20th century – and We can normally fix a leak on your and treatment works to maintain water discoloured water or restricted flow. many of our water mains are more than private supply pipe free of charge and quality and protect supplies. If this happens and it’s because of 50 years old. And this means they are will usually do this within 10 working Lead pipes our pipework, we will renew our part more likely to suffer from leaks. of the pipe and we recommend you days or sooner. There are no lead water mains in use We invest millions of pounds each year replace the section for which you’re But sometimes we have to balance this within our region. When drinking water to tackle leakage and have halved it responsible. kind of work with fixing larger leaks on leaves our treatment works it is free since the mid-1990s. mains in the road or helping customers from lead. Water hardness We’re committed to reducing leakage with an emergency, such as having no However, there may be lead pipework Around 80% of the water in our across our region and want to help you water at all. from the water main into and within region comes from deep underground look after your water pipes and make it If we can’t book an appointment with your home, particularly if it was built boreholes, and springs. This water is as easy as possible for you to find and you for a while or have to wait for before 1970. Other pipes such as generally hard because it has filtered fix leaks. agreement from the landowner or for galvanised iron can also release lead slowly through layers of soil and rock, You may have a leak if you notice: approval to use traffic lights, it could into the water. dissolving calcium and magnesium salts on the way. • areas of lush vegetation take longer than 10 days. Therefore, on the journey to your tap, • a big drop in water pressure Please bear with us – we will get it drinking water may pick up lead as the The rest of our water supply comes done! water comes into contact with these from surface water – mainly from • a ‘hissing’ noise near your internal sources. reservoirs which store water that stop tap has run off the surrounding land. The If you discover lead pipes in your home, hardness of this water depends on the we suggest you have them removed type of soil and rock from which it’s For more information visit wessexwater.co.uk/leaks or call 0345 600 4 600 and replaced because they could have collected. (Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm, emergencies only at other times). child health implications. Hard water can cause scale in kettles or If you spot a leak, report it online, wessexwater.co.uk/leaks or call our free If you have concerns that your water hot water systems but it is harmless. Leak stoppers line on 0800 692 0 692 (24 hours). may contain elevated levels of lead,

8 9 Water resources for the future What you can do It’s our aim to provide our customers Our updated plan forecasts that, given Saving water with high quality, reliable and the investments we have already made, Making small changes to how you use water in your home can help reduce your sustainable water services that give we have access to enough water to water use, save you money and help your local environment. customers a good experience and value meet the needs of our customers for as well as protecting and improving the at least the next 25 years without the Try using these three easy tips to help you save water where you use it most – the environment. need to develop new sources of water. bathroom. Every five years we prepare a water Nonetheless, we don’t intend to stand resources management plan in still, and are taking forward ambitious consultation with our regulators and proposals to: Brushing teeth stakeholders. • reduce leakage by 15% by 2025 Do you leave the tap running when brushing your teeth, washing This plan sets out how, over the • work with our customers to or shaving? Turning it off could save you up to 18 litres a day. next 25 years, we will balance water support reductions in their use of supplies with water demands to water though metering and water ensure adequate water supply for our efficiency programmes customers, while also protecting the • work with other water companies environment. and the Environment Agency in the showering We’ve reviewed our assessments of West Country region to ensure the How long do you spend in the shower? Try taking the four- future water demand to take account best use of water resources. minute shower challenge. Every minute less you spend in the of population growth, housing By working together we will take shower could save you 10 litres. developments, changing patterns of less from the environment, improve household water use and business the resilience of our services, and customers’ changing requirements. potentially support areas of the country And we’ve also reviewed possible where water stress is a growing changes to supply from our water problem. using the toilet sources, such as the potential effects of extreme weather. Could you flush the toilet once a day less than you currently do? Each flush uses an average of seven litres of water.

Factors a ecting Mitigating actions Factors a ecting water sources to be taken demand Following these simple tips could save you up to 13,000 litres of water a year. You could make even further savings by fixing Reducing leakage Population growth leaking taps, showers and toilets, which can waste more than Extreme 200 litres of water a day! weather Encouraging Housing water saving developments Licence by customers limits Changing Ensuring best use requirements For more advice and to order FREE water of water sources of household and saving devices for your home, visit our business customers website wessexwater.co.uk/savingwater

10 11 Cold weather advice i Prepare your pipes for winter i How we can help It’s important to protect your home from cold weather to beat the freeze. i Extra support Before winter starts to bite, you should: • find your internal stop tap and check it’s working i when you need it • protect pipes in cold areas by covering them with lagging We want to give all our customers the • cover your outside tap to protect it from the cold best service at all times. We know that everyone’s • get your boiler serviced needs are different and we can help through Priority Services. • keep your heating on low if you go away. When you sign up for Priority Services you can: • ensure you always have easy access to water Don’t forget to have the number of a qualified • choose how you receive your bill and information plumber handy in case of an emergency – For further information visit WaterSafe is an online directory of approved wessexwater.co.uk/winter • ask for help with reading your meter plumbers. See www.watersafe.org.uk • set up a password for when we visit. Priority Services is a free service and anyone living in the Important information region can sign up for it. Electrical earthing Preventing contamination and Spread the word – tell your family and friends about our For homes built before 1966, it powers of entry service if you think it will help them. used to be common practice for Water companies are responsible for the incoming customer supply pipe enforcing regulations that protect the Apply online today to be used for electrical earthing. quality of the water supply. Visit wessexwater.co.uk/priorityservices or The new water pipes we install These regulations prevent contamination, are plastic and don’t provide an Call 0345 600 3 600 (Monday to Friday, 8am to 8pm; waste and misuse of water and we have electrical earth. Saturday, 8am to 2pm). statutory rights to enter premises or land If you suspect your property may be to investigate compliance with the Water Energy providers offer a similar service – don’t forget to earthed using a metal water supply Supply (Water Fittings) Regulations 1999. register with them too. pipe, it’s important you contact a We also have powers of entry for qualified electrician for advice. monitoring wholesomeness of water supply Records and this may involve taking water samples We’ve had reports that customers have been phoned Water companies in England and or carrying out surveys. by people claiming to be from a debt agency and Wales hold maps that show the We’ll always call at a reasonable time and asking for an outstanding bill to be settled by credit approximate position of water give you prior notice, except when we are card, even though the customer concerned has mains. dealing with emergency incidents. If we fail already paid their bill. You have the right to see these to provide the appropriate notice you have records and can arrange to see them the right to refuse entry. If you receive a call like this, call us on 0345 600 3 600 (Monday by calling 01225 528262 (Monday To request a free leaflet about the to Friday, 8am to 8pm; Saturday, 8am to 2pm) to check whether to Thursday, 8.30am to 4.30pm, regulations call 0345 600 4 600 (Monday to the call was genuine. Friday, 8.30am to 4pm). Friday, 8am to 6pm). 12 13 7755

Contact us Designed by Wessex Water design services March 2020 Printed on recycled paper Questions about your water supply or sewerage • Loss of supply • Leak • Water quality problem • Sewage flooding • Blocked sewer 0345 600 4 600 (Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm, emergencies only at other times) Submit an online enquiry via our website: wessexwater.co.uk/contactus Bournemouth Water customers with enquiries about their water supply, billing or metering should call 01202 590 059.

Automated billing telephone services 0345 600 6 600 when connected PRESS: 1 Meter option leaflet

2 Surface water drainage leaflet

3 Charges explained leaflet

4 Submit meter reading after an estimated bill

5 Information on rateable value charging

6 Pension Credit discount leaflet

Questions about your bill • Payment arrangements • Metering • Moving house • Problems paying • High water use • Priority Services 0345 600 3 600 (Monday to Friday, 8am to 8pm; Saturday, 8am to 2pm) Submit an online enquiry via our website: wessexwater.co.uk/contactus Write to: Wessex Water, 1 Clevedon Walk, , Bristol BS48 1WA wessexwater.co.uk

This leaflet forms part of our core customer information, covering key aspects of our work including leakage, enquiries and complaints. All these leaflets can be found at wessexwater.co.uk/policy We welcome calls via the Next Generation Text service. Calls to 0345 numbers from UK landlines cost no more than calls to standard UK landline numbers. If you’re calling from a mobile please check with your service provider as sometimes calls can cost more. We may record telephone calls into our contact centres for quality, security and training purposes.

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