The water rating labels you may have seen on whitegoods and plumbing products are part of a scheme to help reduce domestic water consumption. It requires most household water-using products to carry a label like the one below:
Labelled products include:
- washing machines
- dishwashers
- showers
- toilets
- taps for sinks and basins
These labels let you easily compare the water efficiency of these products and offer consumers helpful information to guide them on product choices that will save water, energy and greenhouse gases – and money.
The star rating at the top of the label indicates a product’s water efficiency with more stars meaning greater efficiency.
Labels for washing machines, dishwashers and toilets display the water consumption in litres per use. Toilets display their full, half and average flush consumption.
Tap and shower labels show water use as the flow rate in litres per minute. A higher figure means more water is used over a given time.
Be careful to ensure products are registered and properly labelled at the time of purchase, particularly if you intend to claim a rebate offered for higher efficiency products. Unregistered products will not be eligible for a rebate and may not be legally installed.
Unlabelled or incorrectly labelled products may be in breach of the law and should not be offered for sale.
To check a product’s registration status and water efficiency claims go to www.waterrating.gov.au
At this site you’ll also be able to compare the water rating of all the products that must be labelled. If you need help finding your product on the site you can phone 1800 218 478.
