Green Becomes a 'Go' for Plumbing Engineers

By Kris Alderson, Bradley Corporation

Contrary to the view of a popular children's character, it can actually be easy to be green - particularly for plumbing engineers. Today's green revolution goes beyond the save-the-endangered-species movement. Increasingly, it's a key factor in building efficiency. Green buildings use a minimum of nonrenewable energy, produce a minimum of pollution - and ultimately provide an impressive return on investment.

According to the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), the green building industry is growing by 30 percent a year, and it is projected to increase sevenfold over the next five years. If you have been taking a wait-and-see approach to green, now is the time to stop waiting and start learning about its benefits.

Many parts of the United States are affected by the global shortage of water. Adding to the problem is the fact that the United States and other advanced nations use 10 times more water than poor nations. According to GreenBiz.com, a leading nonprofit information resource for business, commercial buildings use about 9.5 billion gallons a day. That volume of water drives up maintenance and operating costs - and strains municipal water storage and treatment providers.

How green is green?
The USGC is advancing environmental responsibility through its Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program, a voluntary rating system for satisfying green building criteria. To be LEED-certified, a facility must meet a minimum of 26 out of a possible 69 points across six areas of building design: sustainable sites, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, material and resources, indoor environmental quality and innovation and design process. Additional points earn a higher level of certification.

Specifying more efficient plumbing fixtures is an easy way to achieve LEED water-use credits. Five water points can be earned toward a reduction in water use and in innovative water technologies. Although other areas of the building may earn more points, water-saving strategies are often easy to incorporate. Of the five possible water points, each item represents one point:

• Water efficient landscaping (50 percent reduction)
• Water efficient landscaping (no potable use or no irrigation)
• Innovative wastewater technologies
• Water use reduction (20 percent reduction)
• Water use reduction (30 percent reduction)

Start with restrooms, locker rooms
Since restrooms and locker rooms consume a significant amount of water, they should be a primary focus for facilities looking to obtain LEED credits or simply improve water efficiency. Based on the guidelines, a building must exceed minimum federal requirements to meet LEED certification for water conservation.

Since restrooms and locker rooms consume a significant amount of water, they should be a primary focus for facilities looking to obtain LEED credits.

Installing high-efficiency fixtures and occupancy sensors, and reusing storm or gray water for toilet flushing are some ways buildings can maximize restroom water efficiency. Although no products are LEED-approved - as the USGBC doesn't certify or approve products - product manufacturers are developing innovative technologies for toilets, faucets and other fixtures to help facilities earn LEED credits for water efficiency.

In addition to LEED, life cycle assessment (LCA) is another hot topic in product selection. LCA measures the environmental impact of a product throughout its life span. Green building products can help lower the LCA and provide greater value for customers.

Use less water
Toilets for commercial buildings can be a huge drain on water use. As a result, they are required to use no more than 1.6 gallons per flush (gpf), a 1992 standard created as part of the Energy Policy Act. Prior to that, toilets used 5.0 or 7.0 gpf. Today's ultra-low flow toilets and waterless urinals further reduce water use. Some sensor-activated flush meters can also increase savings by controlling the amount of water used during peak times.

Water use requirements for lavatories vary from 2.5 gallons per minute (gpm) to 2.2 gpm depending on the plumbing or building code, but generally lavatories in public restrooms should use just 0.5 gpm. Be sure to check your local codes and water use requirements.

Several manufacturers offer both low-flow lavatory faucets and low-flow showers. Another popular water-saving option is to specify infrared sensors on faucets to ensure that water is running only while someone is washing their hands. The flow rate limit for metered faucets is 0.25 gallons per cycle (gpc), which is the amount of water used during the time the faucet is activated.

Using a 1.0 gpf flushing system for toilets and specifying waterless urinals can make an enormous difference in water consumption for a building. Manufacturers have been working aggressively to refine and push the performance levels of tank-type toilets through the use of pressure-assist technology.

Incorporating these types of high-efficiency fixtures may help organizations earn Green Guide and LEED points by reducing water usage between 20 and 30 percent below the baseline calculated for the building.

Another newer option is the tankless water heater. These on-demand devices are concealed within the

Light-powered lavatory systems use photovoltaic cells integrated into the top of the fixture to capture and convert restroom lighting into energy.

pedestal of the lavatory system. Group hand-washing fixtures with tankless water heaters are connected only to cold water and do not need hot water piping. While they do require electricity, a tankless heater allows just the water needed at the faucet to be heated, rather than the entire contents of a distant water tank.

Green makes financial sense
Whether retrofitting existing plumbing fixtures or helping select products for a new facility, it's critical to understand the facts about facilities' water challenges and be ready to provide green counsel. Upgrades need not be extensive or costly. In fact, retrofitting existing fixtures in older buildings with newer, more efficient fixtures can be extremely cost-effective.

As building owners explore all these options, one major question they're likely to face is the cost of going green. Although incorporating environmentally sound design may cost more initially, most building owners have found that the slightly more expensive initial investment provides a good return over the life of the building. In fact, "The Costs and Financial Benefits of Green Buildings," a report issued in October 2003 by California's Sustainable Building Task Force, found that a 2 percent increase in upfront costs for green design resulted in life cycle savings of 20 percent of the total construction cost - or more than 10 times the initial investment.

For example, using light-powered hand-washing fixtures in public restrooms eliminates the cost of diagnosing and replacing dead batteries that can typically cost $400 per fixture annually (some even go up to $1,600) for some systems.

Other new green technologies
Manufacturers are continually developing new technologies to provide architects and designers with innovative solutions to common performance challenges. These are often easy to implement, even on a smaller-scale project that is not up for LEED certification.

A number of new environmentally friendly technologies are available for public washrooms. Light-powered lavatory systems, for example, use photovoltaic cells integrated into the top of the fixture to capture and convert restroom lighting into energy. Using light-activated fixtures instead of typical battery power helps reduce the 2.5 billion pounds of batteries sent to landfills each year.

Facilities are also choosing environmentally friendly auto flush valves, low-flow aeration faucets and touch-free faucets with infrared sensors to ensure that the water is not left running after users have washed their hands.

Turning off the flow
The importance of water conservation and incorporating green building strategies in the restroom cannot be overstated. Conserving water to prevent critical water shortages will become the norm across the nation and around the globe. The USGBC's LEED-certification program offers a guideline for facilities to reduce water costs and create sustainable, efficient buildings. Understanding LEED and the restroom product technologies available positions you as a valuable partner and an important part of the product selection process

Plumbing engineers have a major opportunity to make an impact on green building. By establishing yourself as a leader in green building design and techniques, you can solidify your role in new construction and major renovation projects. If you are responsible for installation and not the plumbing design, you can verify that the job was installed as designed. Learn more about LEED, and become informed about green building initiatives in your area - and watch the green grow in your business.

 

Kris Alderson is the Brand Marketing and LEED manager for Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin-based Bradley Corporation, a USGBC member and manufacturer of locker room products, plumbing fixtures, washroom accessories, partitions and emergency fixtures.