Those of us who live in the Golden Triangle -for the first time ever I must add – have also been affected by the current drought. I can now relate to people hurrying home before lock-off time to ensure they get a nice shower.

With my new (though limited) experience with water woes I can only emphasise:

o Conserve, conserve, conserve, and that goes for everyone in the family. Let everyone in the household know how important it is at this time to conserve water. Don’t leave the pipe running when bathing, brushing teeth, washing up the dishes, etc. Keep a large bottle of water and a cup by the bathroom sink for use when brushing teeth. This is a great way to minimise waste.

o Catch it when you can: Once you have water, fill up all the containers you can with water. Use pots and pans to catch water for use in the kitchen. Use large garbage bins and utility buckets for catching water to flush toilets. And use washtubs and pails for catching water for baths.

o And if you already have a water tank, or like many of us are now scurrying about to get one, there’s no need for it to be an eyesore in your yard. My solution for aesthetically concealing these unsightly “monsters” is to build an enclosure for them. Now there’s no need for sand, stone and cement to do this; an even better alternative is to build a stylish wooden fence enclosure to house your tanks. This is also a great alternative for concealing your gas cylinders, lawn mowers and yard equipment

1. three ready-made screen doors could be joined and hinged in a U-Shape to fit up against a wall (Pictured)

2. Ready-made fencing or gates could also be joined, hinged and used as enclosures for your water tank (pictured)

3. Wooden logs or bamboo could be joined and attached to a wooden frame to create a very stylish enclosure for your water tanks (pictured)

4. And, of course, you can build-it-yourself using 4 X 4 posts and 1 X 4 lengths of wood. The steps for this is a bit long for one article but a pretty good guide can be found at www.doityourself.com/stry/h2woodfence These steps can be altered according to the size of your enclosure, and most hardware stores are pretty helpful in guiding you with projects such as these. Staff there can also cut all your wood for you as long as you have accurate measurements.

Who says practical can’t be pretty as well, no need to sacrifice style in this miserable time of drought.