As part of their Every Drop Counts campaign, Northumbrian Water is teaming up with Crowder Consulting to roll out a small-scale trial of CombiSmart, a water-saving valve which attaches to combination boilers in Berwick-upon-Tweed, Northumberland.

Combination boilers can often waste water and energy while waiting for water from the hot water tap to warm up.

Once installed, CombiSmart ensures water is not wasted when the hot water tap is first turned on, by restricting the water flow until it reaches the desired temperature - and also reducing the amount of energy used in the initial heating process.

Northumbrian Water want to trial the device to assess how much water, energy and money it will save customers.

The water company is launching the new project as Big Energy Saving Week (26 October 2015 – 1 November) gets underway - a national campaign to help people cut their fuel bills, and is looking for volunteers to take part.

Clair Cooper, Demand Planning Project Manager at Northumbrian Water, said:

“Cutting down on hot water use can mean big savings for customers - studies show that 16% of an average household energy bill is spent heating water.

“Using less hot water, particularly while waiting for it to get to the right temperature, will not just help to save water, but also save money on gas bills – Big Energy Saving Week offers the perfect opportunity to educate our customers about this.”

“In today’s economic climate we know that our customers are always looking for new ways to save money and through this device we’re committed to helping them make every drop, and every penny, count”

The Every Drop Counts campaign was launched in Berwick this summer and has already helped residents save an average of £40 off the cost of their annual metered water bill.

Berwick Community Trust and Crowder Consulting helped Northumbrian Water to assess the water usage of homes and businesses in the town, and then installed a range of water saving devices worth over £100.

Clair Cooper added that water audits typically helped to save customers around 45 litres per day and £40 off their water and wastewater bill and that including the CombiSmart in the audit could increase additional savings by using less hot water and energy.