Water in your home
There are three water sources in your home
Every Aquarevo home is fitted with state-of-the-art technology used to harness three types of water sources: drinking, recycled and rainwater.
By using rainwater for showers and bathing and recycled water for the toilet, garden and laundry, you’ll only use precious drinking water where it’s really needed. For example, toilets are plumbed with recycled water – why flush drinking water down the toilet?
Where is my water coming from?
Drinking water will be supplied to hot and cold taps in the kitchen and bathroom sinks, the cold taps in your shower, bath, laundry trough and washing machine, fridge/ice-making device, and dishwasher. (If you choose, it can also supply cold water to a backyard tap.) It will be the same drinking water as that delivered across metropolitan Melbourne.
Your builder has specially designed your roof so that at least 100 square metres of catchment area will capture rainwater and direct it into the rainwater tank on the side of your house.
The rain-to-hot water system attached to your home will screen, filter and treat your water. When you turn on the hot tap in your bath, shower or washing machine, an energy efficient heat pump will provide you with hot water for non-drinking purposes.
Rainwater is supplied to hot taps in your shower, bath and laundry via the rain-to-hot water system. If you accidentally swallow some water in the shower or bath there’s nothing to worry about. Your smart rain-to-hot system has treated the water to a very high standard and won’t cause you any harm.
Recycled water is supplied to your toilet, front and back yard taps, as well as the option to connect your washing machine to recycled water. All recycled water pipes and taps are coloured purple, as is standard across Australia. You can use recycled water for flushing toilets, watering the garden, running your washing machine, washing cars on the lawn, cleaning outside areas and outdoor furniture, washing pets and fighting fires.
Currently recycled water for Aquarevo homes comes from Melbourne Water’s Eastern Treatment Plant.
All wastewater from the Aquarevo community will eventually be recycled through an on-site water recycling plant. It will treat wastewater from all houses in the development and return it as Class A recycled wastewater for use. Learn more about the Aquarevo Water Recycling Plant project here.
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Maximise your recycled water use
There are a number of things you can do to maximise your recycled water use. You can use recycled water to:
- wash your clothes (see the video below)
- wash your car
- water the garden
- fill your pets water bowls (safe for animals except pigs)
- clean outside areas including furniture.
Benefits of alternative water
There are many benefits to using alternative water sources, such as recycled water and rainwater.
- recycled water is cheaper than drinking water and rainwater is free - saving you money on your water bill
- saves drinking water. By using rainwater for showers and bathing and recycled water for the toilet, garden and laundry, you’ll only use precious drinking water where it’s really needed
- recycled water is safe, high quality and always in supply
- alternative water sources are exempt from Permanent Water Use Rules and restrictions that may be applied, so you can have a healthy, green garden all year round
- Helps keep our open spaces and sporting fields green, without relying on drinking water.
Learn more about recycled water here.
Learn how to connect your washing machine to recycled water
Frequently asked questions
Instead of letting wastewater go to waste, we treat it so it's suitable for reuse for all sorts of things from irrigation, to flushing toilets, doing a load of washing, and more.
Water from your kitchen, laundry, shower and toilet leaves your house through wastewater pipes. We then treat it to the highest Class A standard at our water recycling plants to make sure it meets the Australian Recycled Water Guidelines. Returning it to homes by purple pipes to use in places like the garden, toilet and washing machine.
Recycled water is perfectly safe to use around your home. Although we don’t recommend drinking it, don’t worry if you accidentally drink it. More information is available here.
The recycled water pipes and taps in and around your Aquarevo home are distinguishable by being coloured purple, as is standard across Australia.
Inside your Aquarevo home, Class A recycled water is supplied to your toilet for flushing, and can be connected to the cold water tap on your washing machine (if you choose).
Outside your Aquarevo home, Class A recycled water is supplied for use in your garden (front and back taps – coloured purple).
Connecting your washing machine to recycled water and using it in your garden is great for saving drinking water for where it’s really needed. Plus, it saves money on your water bill.
You can use Class A recycled water to:
- Flush toilets
- Water plants and vegetables in the garden
- Water lawns
- Run your washing machine (if you choose)
- Wash cars (on the lawn only)
- Clean outside areas, including furniture
- Fight fires
- Wash pets
You should not use Class A recycled water for:
- Drinking
- Cooking or use in the kitchen
- Showering or bathing
- Filling a swimming pool, spa or bath
- Connecting handheld sprays to your toilet
- Operating evaporative cooling systems
- Filling children’s toys
To learn more about recycled water visit http://southeastwater.com.au/recycledwater
No. Whilst Class A recycled water is the highest quality recycled water available, we don’t recommend drinking it. Don’t worry if you accidentally drink it. We treat it to a very high standard and it’s unlikely to make you sick. If you feel well after drinking it, do seek medical advice.
To learn more about recycled water visit http://southeastwater.com.au/recycledwater
Once a year, we’ll send you a reminder with your bill about the need to check your recycled water connection, to make sure there’s no cross connection with your drinking water supply. This is especially important if you’ve had plumbing, landscaping or renovation work done on your home or property.
Learn how to check your recycled water connection at Recycled water | South East Water
If you believe your recycled water isn’t connected properly, contact our Faults and Emergencies team as soon as possible on 13 28 12 (available 24/7).
Yes. Connecting your washing machine to recycled water is safe and great for saving drinking water for where it’s really needed. Plus, it saves money on your water bill.
You can watch the step-by-step video here to learn how to connect your washing machine to recycled water. We also have a fact sheet with step by step instructions.
If you don’t feel confident doing this process yourself, we recommend contacting a licensed plumber to have it connected.
Yes. Recycled water costs less than drinking water.
We read your drinking water and recycled water meters to measure how much of each type of water you’ve used. We use this to calculate your bill.
You can view your drinking and recycled water usage from the previous 24 hours via mySouthEastWater, and your bill will reflect both drinking and recycled water usage.
You can also refer to our prices and charges here.
Drinking water will be supplied to hot and cold taps in your kitchen and bathroom sinks, the cold taps in your shower, bath, laundry trough and washing machine, fridge/ice-making device, and dishwasher.
Aquarevo homes will have two water meters: one for drinking water and one for Class A recycled water. We read your drinking water and recycled water meters to measure how much of each type of water you’ve used. We use this to calculate your bill.
You can view your water usage from the previous 24 hours via mySouthEastWater, and your bill will reflect both drinking and recycled water usage.
Your builder has specially designed your roof so that at least 100 square metres of catchment area will capture rainwater and direct it into the rainwater tank on the side of your house.
Your builder has specially designed your roof so that at least 100 square metres of catchment area will capture rainwater and direct it into the rainwater tank on the side of your house. The rain-to-hot water system attached to your home will screen, filter and treat this rainwater. When you turn on the hot tap in your bath, shower or laundry sink, an energy efficient heat pump will provide you with hot water for non-drinking purposes.
Parts that make up this system:
- roof gutters and Gutter Guard to prevent debris entering the rainwater tank
- rain head and downpipe to feed the rainwater from the roof to the rainwater tank
- stormwater outlet drain to release rainwater from the tank before predicted rain and prevent overflow
- 2,400 litre rainwater tank to hold the captured rainwater
- heat pump to provide you with hot rainwater
- UV filtration and control box to filter and treat the rainwater
- submersible pump, to draw out the rainwater from the tank to the heat pump
- check meter to measure your rainwater use
- sample points; this is where we’ll take water samples throughout the year.
Roof-collected rainwater can be used for many purposes. Rainwater at Aquarevo is collected from your roof and used to feed your rain-to-hot water system for bathing, showers and the laundry sink.
Yes. The rain-to-hot water system attached to your home will screen, filter and treat the rainwater and will provide you with hot water for non-drinking purposes.
If you accidentally swallow some water in the shower or bath, there’s nothing to worry about. Your smart rain-to- hot system has treated the water to a very high standard and won’t cause you any harm.
The rain-to-hot water system will provide approximately 45 minutes of continuous hot water to a single tap, before needing to reheat.
A separate hot water unit will supply drinking water for hot water use in the kitchen sinks and bathroom basins throughout the home. You’re responsible for maintaining and replacing this unit.
No, rainwater usage is not billed. Near your rain-to-hot water system, two check meters monitor rainwater usage – strictly for system operations.
If your rainwater tank is empty, you don’t need to do anything. Your rain-to-hot water system is fitted with a special valve that switches over to drinking water if there’s not enough rainwater in the tank.
South East Water is responsible for maintaining the rain-to-hot system. If you have any questions or concerns, contact the Aquarevo team on 1800 337 775, or email us at aquarevo@sew.com.au. For urgent issues outside of business hours, call our Faults and Emergencies team on 13 28 12.
Your rain-to-hot water tank is really smart. It features TankTalk® wireless technology which receives weather forecast information to find out when it’s going to rain. When the forecast says there’s an 80 per cent chance of 10 millilitres or more of rain, your tank will empty itself to a level equal to one day’s average household usage.
This creates room in your tank to capture new rainwater while minimising overflows onto properties or into streets and reduces the risk of flooding to local waterways by 25 per cent.
If you have any questions, contact the Aquarevo team on 1800 337 775, or email us at aquarevo@sew.com.au.
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