KNYSNA NEWS - Along with the Kreepy Krauly, the heart transplant and dolosse (those odd geometrical concrete constructions breaking waves along the coastline), there is a new uniquely South African invention that could help Knysnarians save water and more easily adhere to current water restrictions in town.
According to one of the intrepid plumber-come-inventors who created the device, Charles Watt, the need to evolve as human beings and realise that water is not an infinite resource is just one of the many reasons the Wattapac was conceived. With level 3 water restrictions gripping Knysna and surrounds at the moment, said Watt, there are already plumbers in Knysna that have started using the device.
"South Africans have monitored rainfall and dam levels closely in the wake of the water crisis in the Western Cape, and when the City of Cape Town imposed level 6 restrictions in January this year, the message was clear: every drop really does count," Watt said.
Instead of dumping hundreds of litres of water when your plumber comes around to fix or replace your geyser, the contraption allows you to save the water held in the geyser, and thus money as well.
Watt said the device, a water bladder capable of holding anything from 150 litres to 300 litres of water depending on the geyser capacity, was locally designed, patented and manufactured in Cape Town. "The device nullifies water wastage during geyser replacements and geyser maintenance," he said
A plumber drains a geyser by using the Wattapac. Photo: Supplied
Watt's device has already made national news after having been featured in the Argus newspaper, Independent Online, and KFM and Cape Talk radio stations among other platforms.
The invention has also spread to plumbers and consumers in Australia, New Zealand, and closer to home in Namibia, and according to Watt has garnered a lot of attention from some European investors.
Watt adds that larger bladders, capable of holding up to 10 000 litres for draining of industrial boilers and swimming pools, are also available.
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