Water device saves school small fortune

SAVINGS of R28 400 per month on its water bill is what the Hector Petersen Secondary School in Wallacedene, Kraaifontein, has experienced since the installation of a water-saving device on its premises in August.

That’s what principal Mike Mavovana said in discussing the project with the Cape Times yesterday.

Highlighting those savings, Mavovana said: “Regarding the total cost of our municipality bill at school, we could see almost a saving of R28 400 per month based on what we were paying, and what we are paying now, since August, when we compared our bills.”

He said the gadget called a “dropulla” had been connected to his school’s water meter system.

“It is meant to calculate the flow of water every minute, and to report if the flow is excessive, helping us to identify if there are any leakages in the toilets or in any other (piping) parts, so that we can respond as early as possible and save as much water as possible.

“Installation of the device was done in early August, with Stellenbosch University and Shoprite paying for it, because the school could not afford the installation,” added Mavovana.

He said the school had benefited in many ways – in terms of water savings and financial savings, as well as in changing the behaviour of the pupils.

“We are hoping that kind of behaviour will spill over into the community, because what we teach them at school we want them to practise in their communities.

“We have discovered that much of the water that we lost in the past was because of leakages in the piping,” he said.

He added that they had picked up the difference in savings when they compared the school’s water bill from August to September and from September to October.

“Before the installation we were not even aware of the leakages.”