Private homes and businesses throughout Scotland may be wondering what the impact of this hot weather may be on their private water supply, and what measures they can take to ensure their supply is not affected.

Scotland’s climate is usually relatively mild, with high temperatures averaging the late teens and early twenties. However, this year Scotland has seen temperatures of over thirty degrees which has left a huge impact on water supplies, with rivers and reservoirs drying up all over the country.

SEPA (Scottish Environment Protection Agency) recently reported that climate change is likely to bring more uncertainty and may exert pressure in areas that have not yet experienced water scarcity.

If dry conditions continue to persist as has been shown throughout this year’s summer, there becomes an urgency to act to protect water resources used in homes and businesses throughout Scotland, and for those with their own private supply, to plan alternative measures should the worst occur.

Managing your water use

Those with a private water supply need to know how to manage their own personal water use to ensure they are not affected by water scarcity. Measures that can be taken include:

• Checking for leaks in any pipes or fittings included in your private supply that could cause excess loss of water
• Ensure you are turning off your taps when you are brushing your teeth
• Consider shorter showers and water efficient shower-heads
• Wash your car with a bucket and not a hose
• Re-use your bath water

Check out our blog 33 Saving Tips for more ideas!

Monitor your supply

It is important to regularly monitor the water levels in your well or borehole or check spring flows to be kept routinely up to date with how your supply is being affected by the hot weather.

Ensure your pump is positioned below the water level. Your pump can be damaged if it is trying to pump in a dry well or borehole and this can be costly to repair. If it is possible in your supply, consider lowering your pump to minimise this risk.

You may also want to consider deepening your well or borehole to reduce the changes of it drying up.

Check historical records of droughts to see if your supply is at risk from drying up. 1976, 1990-92, 1995-6 and 2005-6 in particular had bad drought periods and these may be able to predict if you are at risk this year.

Be aware that if water levels are lower, your well or borehole may be bringing in water from greater distances and therefore the drinking quality and content of the water my differ from what you usually receive. Get in touch with a member of our team to book an appointment for water sampling and testing.

Switching from a surface water supply to borehole supplies

Borehole supplies can be expensive to install but are far more reliable in this unusually hot weather as they are mostly unaffected by the change in climate.

Boreholes source their water from deep underground and need additional treatment before consumption to remove additional minerals that cannot be ingested.

After installing your borehole, the water is yours to use free of charge excluding a licensing fee if you use over 200 cubic meters per day – and you would only ever use this much if you had more than 10 boreholes installed!

One borehole can provide you with up to 20,000 litres of water per day, making them the optimum choice for your private water supply.

 The importance of being prepared

The best measures that can be taken when your supply may be affected by the changing weather is to continuously monitor your water levels, have your water content routinely sampled and ensure you have enough water in your storage tanks should the supply be at risk.

PHX Water are here to help with any questions concerning your private water supply. Please get in touch with us on +44 (0) 1738 231670 or info@phxwater.co.uk for more information on monitoring your supply and how we can help.