Auckland’s dams were sitting at 94% in mid August, roughly ten points above the seasonal average, and Watercare has said restrictions are unlikely this summer. Good news if your house is on town supply.
If you are on tank water, that headline has nothing to do with you.
El Niño was declared in July and has been strengthening since. The outlook for Auckland, Rodney and Franklin through spring leans dry, with below normal rainfall the most likely result. Your tank does not fill from the Hunua Ranges. It fills from whatever lands on your roof, and in a dry spring it will be doing that far less often.
Coming out of winter, your tank is about as full as it gets all year. Everything below is about protecting that head start.
Work Out How Long Your Water Will Last
The New Zealand average sits at around 180 litres per person per day, and a typical four person household will work through a 10,000 litre delivery in two to three weeks once summer arrives. Visiting family, a paddling pool and a few extra loads of washing pull that down faster than people might expect.
Start checking your level weekly instead of monthly. Our rule of thumb is to order once the tank drops to about a third. That leaves enough in reserve for us to schedule you on a sensible date rather than squeezing you in as an urgent job.
If you have never confirmed your tank capacity, look for the size stamped near the base or on the manhole lid. It changes how often you will need a top up, so it is worth knowing before December.
Why We Ask People To Book Early
Through summer we cannot give you a delivery time. We confirm the date, and the truck arrives when it arrives, because the run shifts all day as jobs are added and access problems come up. Booking in September or October means picking from an open calendar instead of taking whatever is left.
Days that are already full drop off our online booking form. If a date will not select, that is why.
Public holidays also carry a surcharge, since our drivers are on double time, so the week between Christmas and New Year is the worst possible time to find out your tank is low. Plenty of our lifestyle block and rural customers now schedule a tank water refill before Labour Weekend and stop thinking about it. If you are running a site, an event or anything at volume, our bulk water delivery covers the same regions with the same trucks.
Clean The Tank Before You Fill It, Not After
This one catches people out. Filling a tank stirs up whatever has settled on the floor and pushes it through the rest of your supply. If yours is due for attention, the sensible order is to clean it while the level is low, then bring it back up, which makes spring the natural window.
A typical residential job takes two to three hours, and we can handle the clean and the refill in one visit rather than sending two trucks on two different days. Our water tank cleaning in Auckland covers concrete, plastic and metal tanks from Rodney through to Franklin.
If you are unsure whether yours is overdue, we have written a full guide to how often a water tank needs cleaning in NZ, including the official guidance, warning signs and current costs.
The Five Minute Walk Around Your Property
Before the dry sets in, do a quick lap:
- Clear the gutters and leaf screens. Winter storms fill them, and a blocked screen means the next decent rain runs straight past your tank.
- Check the first flush diverter is draining properly.
- Look at your driveway. We need about 2.3 metres of width, clear of overhanging branches and parked cars, on ground firm enough to carry a loaded truck. What was fine in autumn can be soft after a wet winter.
- Find a flat spot near the tank for a ladder, and have a plan for the dogs on the day.
Most failed deliveries we deal with come down to access, and nearly all could have been sorted with ten minutes of notice.
If You Do Run Low
Ring us on 0800 50 44 50 and we will escalate it. Most of our tankers carry 10,000 litres and we can deliver other volumes, though smaller orders are still charged as a full load, because the cost sits in the truck and the driver’s time rather than the water.
We are a WINZ approved water carrier, so if you need a quote for Work and Income, choose that option at checkout and we will hold your booking until payment comes through. For a straightforward one off top up, our residential water delivery runs seven days a week.
Get Ahead Of A Dry Summer
A dry spring does not have to turn into a stressful January. Check your level this week, book while the calendar is open, and get the tank cleaned if it is overdue.
Enquire now or Book a Delivery and we will get you sorted before the rest of Auckland starts calling.