No water - it's time CAAF fired someone!

[Archer]

We have been without a reliable water supply for over 2 weeks. The deposito is getting very little replenishment and the plants are suffering. Farmers cannot water their crops. Worst areas are around Tarajalejo, Cardon, Tesejerague and other rural communities. Why because, as usual at this time of year, and when it's hot, they divert all the water to the hotels and tourist areas.

Isn't it about time they got rid of the management of CAAF, and started again? Only 50% of water produced by the desaladoras actually gets metered and billed.

[Spitfire58]

Hi Archer, very poor !! Where does the other 50% go then ?? . . Cheers . . Ron

[Archer]

Spitfire. Who knows? Stolen or leaks, I guess.

But something needs to change, and the new administration needs to act fast. You cannot live without water!

[TamaraEnLaPlaya]

Mainly leaks in my experience! I report at least 2 or 3, often 5 or 6 leaks a week to CAAF that I spot whilst out with my dog just in the Tindaya area. Some are smallish, others torrents. Occasionally they get attended to the same day but quite often I report the same one every day for a week or more before it gets repaired. The leaks in our area are so bad that most of the mains pipes are now above ground so CAAF can get at them more easily. Problem is that every time they repair one leak it puts the pressure back up for a short time which causes the next weak spot to blow.

Archer - one of our neighbours had the same problem with their reserve tank taking forever to refill even on the days that we seemed to be ok. They got our local builder in to have a look (the original builders had buried the tank underground and capped it with concrete! so it wasn't easily accessible/viewable). He checked the ballcock which was on it's way out so he replaced that but still no better. He then stuck a hook on a thin wire up the pipe towards the meter (after turning off at the meter ) and gently pulled it back. It brought with it a great mass of fine, hairlike roots. He said it is a local plant and the seeds get in when there is a leak (ie when the water goes brown sometimes after they have been mending yet another burst). He didn't seem at all surprised so he must have come across it before. My friends water pressure is now as good as ours (which is not brilliant a lot of the time) but at least their tank fills up reasonably quickly once we are back on mains.

[Archer]

Thanks Tamara. Worth a check. My pipe from meter to tank is over 100m ! Already has a sleeve inside part of it after a leak. Always is low flow rate now...but not normally a prob as it tops up a very big deposit over time.

Prob now is nothing has been coming out the pipe for days on end and when it comes back on just dribbles out. Everyone in the neighbourhood has had enough of CAAF - they are incompetence personified!!

I'll take the ballvalve off and try your suggestion when I have a chance. Funny you say that weed discolours the water, as my neighbour says his comes out brown, whilst ours is clear. Maybe the reason.

[TamaraEnLaPlaya]

Sorry Archer, I wasn't very clear about the reason for the colour!

The water is brown after a leak has been mended because the mains pipe is open to the elements and often in a pit of muddy water while it is leaking/mended.

[Captain Sensible]

There was a meeting between the Ayuntamiento de Pajara and the Cabildo this morning about the water shortages in Pajara - https://www.diariodefuerteventura.com/no...Z8PuidKW5M

[Archer]

Yes thanks, I saw that Captain, and the other reports last week...and the week before. Problem is that they don't resolve the real  issues. They are just robbing Peter to pay Paul.  

I bet they don't ration the water to PR, Caleta or the hotels in Pajara. Only rural communities.

[windermeregolfer]

It could be a question of Money for capital infrastructure investment.

United Utilities that covers the North West of England including the Lake District, where they have 3 reservoirs and can draw off the other lakes if levels of the reservoirs are low, also have major leakage issues, 450,000 cu mt a day if I have read their website data correctly.  I have read that if each household in the region paid an extra £5 per year they could cut the leak by half.

So when you take into account that water for Fuerteventura is mainly desalinated, a costly process, at £2.28 per cu mt (1.09€ ex rate) from Anjoca Water compared to United Utilities £4.40 per cu mt you could say you get what you pay for.

Re water supply in the Caleta area Anjoca have there own water supply & treatment arm that supplies the Fuerteventura Golf & Atlantico developments, not sure who the supplier is for the Las Salinas Golf development.

[Captain Sensible]

Aguas de Antigua cover most of the Antigua Municipality (except the golf course) and they have always been good at dealing with leaks.

I've phoned them 3 times to report leaks that I've seen when out and about and they've been out within 30 minutes each time.

It's many years since our water supply has been cut.