Muggy nights in store for Tauranga

Muggy nights are expected for Tauranga residents in the coming days. Photo / George Novak

Muggy nights are expected for Tauranga residents in the coming days, with moist air and above-average autumn temperatures sweeping the region.

According to MetService meteorologist Andy Best, the moist air creating the muggy conditions is being brought down the North Island from the Pacific.

Although current temperatures were normal for this time of year, night temperatures were sitting about 3C higher than usual, he said.

Combined, the two can make for restless, hot nights, with Best saying "people will probably need to get their fans out again".

Sleep expert Dr Alex Bartle from the Tauranga Sleep Well Clinic said the reason people struggled to sleep in warm temperatures was because in order to sleep a human's core temperature must drop about 1C.

A hot bedroom environment prevented a person's ability to do this, he said.

The normal temperature the human body should be is between 35 and 37C.

A person would sweat in order to get back to down to this temperature internally, he said.

Bartle advises people sleep in cotton sheets that will absorb sweat and to keep a cool bedroom by closing curtains in the afternoon, positioning a fan to blow hot air out of the window or get a glass of water with ice and blow the fan over it.

The moist air and warm temperatures are expected to stick around for the rest of the week.

Although clouds were holding in a lot of the moist air, significant rainfall was not on the horizon, Best said.

He added there may be the odd shower around the North Island throughout the week and Tauranga may get some on Friday, but it was "nothing to break the dry conditions".

According to MetService's rural outlook, Tauranga's rainfall for March is below normal - with above average temperatures.

Water restrictions in Tauranga have been in place since January 30.

Tauranga City Council city waters manager Steve Burton said the sprinkler ban would remain in place until the council was confident water demand was back to normal levels.

This was due to the absence of normal rain patterns for this time of year, he said.

Water use had been up and down since the start of autumn, he said.

Tauranga dropped from 53 million litres of water used per day during the peak period at the end of January to 43 million litres now, he said.

"Water demand is close to where we are able to lift restrictions, however the soils are still very dry and we note the demands are trending up again."

This is the second time a water restriction has been imposed since water metering began and it was expected to remain until further notice. Last year's water restriction lasted 60 days.

"Water is not an endless resource, although it might seem so in a place like Tauranga where we are surrounded by it. Regardless of water restrictions, it is always important to conserve water."

To report a breach to water restrictions, please phone 07 577 7000.

The week ahead:

Today: 23C high, 16 overnight.

Tomorrow: 24C high, 16C overnight.

Thursday: 25C high, 16C overnight.

Friday: 23C high, 16C overnight.