No running water for a week: how to drink, wash, cook and use the toilet

Print this checklist Prints the checklist without the menus.

Checked against official guidance (NHS, St John Ambulance, the Drinking Water Inspectorate and the UK Chief Medical Officers) on 2 November 2026. Not a substitute for a first-aid course.

Do this now

1. Check your water company's website for updates and bottled water stations (Be Ready). Our no water in my area page links to each company.
2. Keep stored water for three jobs only: drinking, washing hands and preparing food. No showers, no baths (Chief Medical Officers).
3. Set up one handwashing bowl with soap or household disinfectant for the whole household (Chief Medical Officers).
4. Find out if the sewers work. If you're told they don't, stop flushing and use a bag in the bowl.
5. If anyone at home is on the Priority Services Register, expect water to be brought; if it isn't, ring the company (Be Ready).
6. Check on neighbours who may need help, and offer to collect water for them (Be Ready).

Your water budget for a week

Three official figures help you plan:

• Drink: at least 2 litres of fluid a day each, about 8 cups (UK Chief Medical Officers). Other safe drinks count.
• Store: 3 litres per person per day (Be Ready). That's for drinking, with extra for babies, pets and medical devices.
• Everything: 10 to 15 litres per person per day for drinking, cooking and hygiene together (Czech 72-hour campaign). Sweden's Krisinformation says expect at least 3 to 5 litres per person per day for drinking water.

Our week table uses those figures (our maths):

Few homes can store the right-hand column. That's why the routine below keeps stored water for drinking and food, and uses non-drinking water (water butts, rainwater) for flushing where the sewers work. Be Ready says rainwater from a water butt is not for drinking, but it is fine for flushing.

If the outage runs on, you'll need more water from your water company's stations or from sources you make safe yourself: see making water safe to drink.

A daily routine

Morning

• Drink through the day, so everyone reaches at least 2 litres by bedtime. Older people, young children, and anyone pregnant or breastfeeding are at higher risk, the CMOs say, so make sure they get their share.
• Wash hands in the shared bowl after the toilet. The CMOs say the bowl doesn't need changing for the whole outage, even if it looks dirty. Soap and water works better than hand sanitiser; use sanitiser only if it's all you have.
• Brush teeth with a cup of drinking water. Don't use water you've only filtered.
• Wash your body with a cloth and no-rinse wash, or wet wipes. Not a shower.

Meals

• Pick food that needs no water: tins, bread, crackers, peanut butter, fruit. See our 7-day no-cook food box.
• Wash hands before you prepare or eat food (CMOs).
• Cut the washing-up: eat from the tin or a plate lined with foil or a bag, and one cup each, labelled. This is our suggestion, not official advice.
• If you boil water, do it on the hob if you still have power or gas. Camping stoves and barbecues go outdoors only: indoors they risk carbon monoxide poisoning.
• Don't drink milk or fresh fruit juice that smells off (CMOs). Soft and fizzy drinks and juice from tinned fruit are safe.

Toilet

• Sewers working (a burst main or planned work): flush by pouring a bucket of water-butt or other non-drinking water into the bowl. Don't flush wipes.
• Sewers not working (a long power cut, flooding, or when you're told): don't flush. The CMOs say collect poo in plastic bags, seal them, and put them in household waste, ideally an outside bin. Wash hands afterwards. The Czech 72-hour campaign describes lining the bowl with a bag and adding paper, newspaper or cat litter, then tying it and double-bagging. Full method: emergency toilets when the water stops.

Evening

• Count what's left. Write the litres on the containers each night so you know how many days you have.
• Collect more from the bottled water station before you run low. Keep a container you can carry: Krisinformation advises keeping one at home to fetch water.
• Refill the handwashing bowl only when it runs low.
• Charge phones if you have power, and check your water company's updates.

Babies, illness and medical devices

• Babies: keep 3 days of the formula your baby already uses (see the NHS guide to types of formula) and ask your health visitor if you're unsure. The NHS says make up powdered formula with freshly boiled water left to cool for no more than 30 minutes. It doesn't usually recommend bottled water for formula, but says it can be used if drinking water isn't available: follow the NHS step-by-step guide. Breastfed babies: keep feeding on demand (CMOs). Children under 2 who aren't breastfed need at least 1 litre of fluid a day, and formula counts (CMOs).
• Diarrhoea: keep the person drinking; use rehydration sachets, or the CMOs' home recipe (6 level teaspoons of sugar, 1 level teaspoon of salt, 1 heaped teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda in a litre of safe fluid). Give them their own handwashing bowl. Ring NHS 111 if you're worried.
• Medical devices that need water: Be Ready says talk to your care team about a plan before an outage, and register with your water company's Priority Services Register.

When the water comes back

• Discoloured water is common. Be Ready says run the cold tap nearest your stopcock (usually under the kitchen sink) for a while, and contact your water company if it doesn't clear.
• A boil water notice may follow. The DWI says boil water before drinking, brushing teeth, making ice, preparing food or giving it to pets, and keep boiled water in the fridge for no more than 24 hours. You can still shower (keep it out of your mouth), wash clothes and flush. See boil water notices.

Compensation

In England and Wales, water companies make set payments under the Guaranteed Standards Scheme (GSS). GOV.UK's announcement of 2 July 2025 says that, from that date, if your supply isn't restored on time a household gets £50, then £50 for each further 12 hours. Payments are credited automatically. The announcement doesn't give the time limit before the first payment, so check your water company's own page.

Printable: one week without tap water

Day 1

• Checked water company website and bottled water stations
• Counted stored water (litres): ______
• Set up the shared handwashing bowl
• Asked: do the sewers work? Flush with bucket / bag method
• Checked on neighbours and anyone on the Priority Services Register

Every day

• Everyone drank at least 2 litres (CMOs)
• Stored water used only for drinking, handwashing, food
• Hands washed after the toilet and before food
• Toilet bags sealed and in the outside bin
• Litres left written on the containers
• Collected more water before running low

Supplies to have ready

• Bottled water: 3 L per person per day (Be Ready)
• A carryable container for water stations
• Soap or household disinfectant and a large bowl
• No-rinse wash or wet wipes
• Strong bin bags, cat litter or newspaper
• Food that needs no water
• Rehydration sachets

What we couldn't check

• No UK body gives a total daily water figure for drinking plus cooking plus washing. We use the Czech government's 10 to 15 litres and say so.
• The UK Chief Medical Officers' scripts were written for a national power outage, when sewers may stop. In a local water outage the sewers usually still work; your water company will say.
• Ofwat's page on the Guaranteed Standards Scheme (GSS) blocked our reader on 2 November 2026, so the compensation figures come from the GOV.UK announcement. Scotland and Northern Ireland have different schemes.

Related guides

• No water supply: what to do, and what you're entitled to
• Emergency water at home: how much to store and how
• Boil water notice: what it means and what to do
• Frozen and burst pipes: what to do, and how to prevent them
• Priority Services Register: a plain guide

Free tools

• No water in my area: your water company's live page
• Emergency supplies calculator (how much water to keep)
• Priority Services Register checker

We're an independent UK site, not the government. We check guides against official sources and link to them. In an emergency call 999.

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