As Darryl proudly demonstrates, he can have fun in the bathroom with all three taps running at once, unrestricted.
Tamariki at Ranui kindergarten love water play! So much so that they needed to be redirected from the water play opportunities that the three unregulated taps and trough provided. Sometimes, because of this set-up our hot water cylinder could be drain. Another issue was that the bathroom floor got flooded. Not sensible use of water at all!
Our initiative to install water-saving taps in the children’s bathroom arose from an Enviroschools Water of Life enquiry, in particular learning about wise use of water.
Some research revealed that a push-button operated tap was available, but this replacement system was expensive. The Earthwise Action Fund allowed us to purchase the taps and get them installed. Now the bathroom floor is dry and both the hot and cold water conserved. This should also save us money in the long term.
Water play is still encouraged – in the appropriate way with a lot of discussion about precious water.
Banner image: The girls cope easily with pushing the button to activate the water flow. Note how much less water is flowing in comparison to the photo with the original system. Flow is regulated to about 3 litres per minute and flows for only 7 seconds.
Bevan Simpson (Kaiako)