How Much Electricity and Water Does a Wall Waterfall Use? The Real Running Cost

The short answer

A typical indoor wall waterfall (1.2 × 2.4 m) uses under EGP 60 a month in electricity running 8 hours a day, and needs one or two litres of water a day to replace evaporation. That's a fraction of a small air conditioner. Here's the maths.

Pump consumption

The submersible pump is the main consumer. Its power depends on how wide the water sheet is and how high it has to lift the water:

• Small freestanding panel (0.8 m): 1,500 L/h pump, about 20 W.
• Medium wall (1.2 m): 2,000 to 3,500 L/h pump, about 40 to 60 W.
• Wide wall (2 m) or pool waterfall: 4,000 to 6,000 L/h, about 80 to 120 W.

For a 40 W pump running 8 hours a day: 40 × 8 × 30 = 9.6 kWh a month. At the mid-tier tariff (about EGP 1.7 per kWh) that's roughly EGP 16 a month.

Lighting consumption

24 V LED strips draw about 14 W per metre. Two metres of strip = 28 W × 6 evening hours × 30 days = 5 kWh, or under EGP 10 a month.

Water consumption

A waterfall is a closed loop: the same water circulates from the basin to the spillway and back. The only loss is evaporation, about 1 to 2 litres a day indoors and up to 5 litres in summer sun outdoors. That's a glass or two of top-up a day, or an automatic float valve.

Does it make the apartment humid?

One litre evaporating a day in a 40 m² living room makes no noticeable difference to humidity, especially with air conditioning. The waterfalls that cause humidity are large open ones in small closed rooms, which is not what we sell for apartments.

Is it noisy?

Modern submersible pumps are almost silent (under 35 dB under water). The only sound is the water itself, and you set it with the valve: a soft sheet on polished marble is barely audible, while a strong sheet on split-face stone sounds like light rain. See stone vs marble.

Tips to cut consumption

• Use a simple timer so the waterfall runs only when you're in the room.
• Ask for a pump with a speed controller; 20% less flow saves more than 20% power.
• Cover the basin with pebbles on a stainless grille; it halves evaporation.
• Clean the pump filter monthly; a clogged filter makes it work harder. See our maintenance schedule.

Bottom line

Electricity + water = under EGP 60 a month for a medium waterfall. The real cost is buying and installing it, which you'll find in our price guide.