How to prepare when works impact my water supply

We know that water outages can be disruptive and inconvenient. To minimise the impact, we aim to work as quickly as possible and provide you with advance notice where we can.

We have prepared practical tips to make life a little easier when essential maintenance and upgrades work results in an outage or water disruptions.

Tips for households

Have enough drinking water on hand

Avoid a trip to the shops for bottled water. Fill up your water bottles and jugs before the water outage begins to ensure you have enough drinking water. We recommend at least 2 litres of drinking water per person per day. If you have pets, make sure to fill up their water bowls too, so they don’t go thirsty!

Don’t forget to take the weather into account

If it’s a warm day, more water may be necessary. In very hot temperatures, one person’s water needs can double.

And if you have an evaporative air conditioner, please be aware you won’t be able to run your air conditioner if your water is impacted, so you’ll need to consider other ways to cool down, like a fan on standby. Fill up your ice cube trays and pop them into your drinks to help you stay cool.

Washing your hands

We recommend you keep a hand sanitiser handy if you need to keep your hands clean when the work is taking place. One of the biggest benefits of using a hand sanitiser is that you don’t need to be near a sink with running water.

Cooking and preparing meals

The key here is to plan ahead. Whether you’re preparing the family meal or getting ready to entertain a hungry crowd, fill pots, containers and your sink with enough water to use for cooking. Better still, consider preparing meals that don’t require you to use water, like stir fry.

Cut back on your washing by using environmentally friendly disposable plates, bowls, cups and cutlery for your meals.

Fill up your kettle and coffee machine with water, so you don’t miss out on any coffee breaks.

Getting ready for work or school

Don’t get caught out with shampoo in your hair and no water to rinse! Check your notification to see what time the work is scheduled and give yourself enough time to jump in the shower beforehand.

If you’re going to be home during the day, use face wipes if you need to freshen up and keep a bottle of hand sanitiser handy. By using hand sanitiser instead of soap and water, you can still keep your hands clean and stretch your water supply a little further.

What about household chores?

Keep some wipes and hand wipes to use for general cleaning instead of soap and water.

Do your laundry in advance. Get your family’s clothes, at least, on a schedule where they’re washed every few days. Not having clean underwear or socks can make an inconvenient outage feel like a true emergency.

Can I still use my toilet?

Just like an appliance that requires water to run, so too does your toilet. When your water is off, you can get 1 full or 2 half flushes if you need to use the toilet.

If you have a big household or if you need to make frequent toilet trips, keep a bucket of water by the toilet for flushing.

Tip: If you have a pool, you can use your pool water to flush the toilet. Just have a bucket handy to transport the water to where you need to.

Water using appliances

Please make sure any water using appliances, including your hot water system, are switched off before the planned work.

Other appliances include your dishwasher, sprinklers and washing machine.

Advice for businesses

Trading hours

If water is critical to running your business, consider aligning your trading hours with the planned outage or performing maintenance work.

Consider your customers

If you have customers booked in during the upcoming outage, we recommend you let them know in advance or reschedule bookings for when your water is back and running.

Turning off water using appliances or machinery

Consider turning off any water using appliances such as washing machine, electric hot water system, dishwashers, coffee machines etc.

If your business runs machinery that relies on water, we recommend you find out if these are still safe to operate during the outage or if you can use your back up water tank if you have one.

Working from home arrangements

Where possible, consider work-from-home arrangements for staff. This may be easier than trying to store enough water. If working from home isn’t an option to limit the amount of water you need to use, make sure you have sufficient hand sanitiser for everyone to clean their hands.

Plan for future outages

Here are ways you can prepare your business for future planned and unexpected interruptions to your water supply.

• Sign up for water supply alerts - enter the business address to receive notifications for upcoming planned works in the area
• Complete a Continuity of Supply & Recovery Plan - use this editable template to create a plan tailored for your business (download our guide to help you complete your plan)

If you have a Water Corporation relationship manager, please contact them about any concerns or questions.

If you require further help planning, please call us on 13 13 75.

Customers with special needs

Medical Assist customers

We understand you depend on running water for your in-home treatment.

As a Medical Assist Customer, we will endeavour to:

• send you SMS notifications in advance where there may be planned or unplanned service interruptions impacting your water supply
• contact you before turning off the water supply, either in person or via notification card
• send you an SMS/email notice when the service resumes.

For emergencies, please call us on 13 13 75 (available 24/7).

For updates and information about planned and unplanned service interruptions, visit Outages & works.

Back up water

If you require additional water for your in-home medical treatment during supply interruptions, please make sure you have enough backup supply or make alternate arrangements. If you have any concerns or require assistance, please call us on 13 13 85.

Consider getting some help

You may also require a carer to help you around your home when water is not easily available. We encourage you plan ahead and contact a family member or carer to assist you with your special needs.

Stay informed with our outages and works map

Our outages and works map will show you the areas impacted by a water outage, the approximate start times and estimated restoration times.  

These times are updated as they become available, so make sure to bookmark this page as a quick reference. 

We will also notify you about any changes to schedules and send you updates as they become available.