First, the old high flow 4 gallons per min. shower heads are not all that good, but new high performance shower heads actually have really strong spray.
The poor-flushing water-hog toilets and the newer poor flushing “water saver toilets” (1.6 gpf) are not as good at flushing the bowl clean as the new 3” flush valves that use only 1.6 gallons per flush. One toilet better than Toto (the brand I recommend most) is the “I can’t find it in San Diego” “Caroma” from Australia. This toilet has a 4" trapway through it! That’s TWICE the size of others! It comes in a dual flush that removes 700 grams (1.5 lbs) of solid waste using only .8 gallons per flush! Most toilets can’t remove 700 grams solid waste using 3.5 to 5 gallons per flush. It’s expensive and hard to find, but a great toilet.
New laundry machines wash better, dry better, are easier to use, and cost less to operate. Consumer Reports has the scoop on the models that the best (not the most popular, but the best functionality/durability, and max performance).
Quality isn’t always found at a big box store, nor is quality often cheaper than the rest. Kind of like music, the best music isn’t on the radio, just the fastest selling commercial stuff that stars get rich on. The difference in music and plumbing is quantifiable in a test of maximum performance, not popular hit. People still try to make plumbing names popular with the name game; I use the max performance test method myself. (I touch on this subject in the answers to several other questions.)
Good design, not brand name, is the answer to proper water use. Proper application of fixtures and following the manufacturer’s recommendations are essential in proper installations. Unfortunately, I don’t see the majority of buildings having this; as a result, repair and replacement are common and repeated. When I say this I mean water heaters fail sooner than necessary, and re-piping a building should not be necessary if it was installed right in the first place.
Pressure in water systems is more variable than most people realize; a good pressure regulator is a must. Water at the meter is usually high pressure, the house often gets the regulator, and the yard gets high pressure (no regulator). This high pressure to the irrigation system causes a mist in the sprinklers allowing 20% to 30% to blow away before it hits the ground. That’s a lot of unnecessary waste, and doesn’t even count run off and evaporation. The national average is 50% of the water through a single family residence’s water meter goes to the YARD! And 30% of that is poof - gone! (That’s 15% of your water bill – for nothing!). Outdoor water waste is costing more money than people realize. While you struggle to make minor improvements to water efficiency on the inside of the house, significant improvements can usually be made in efficiency on the outside of the house without a great deal of effort. A good lawn isn’t one that uses as much water as it takes to be green. A good lawn is one with UNIFORM DISTRUBITION, then enough to keep it green.
Water Auditing is a relatively new process to assess water use. It addresses these issues and is something you’re going to be hearing more about as our water use becomes more expensive and conservation becomes more critical. Water auditing uses catchment cups on a grid pattern over whole lawn area. Analysis of the collected data allows correcting sprinkler head coverage to even out precipitation. Matched Precipitation Rate nozzles are required to achieve this.
For the lawn, maximum depletion of water from the soil BEFORE wilting is needed to save water. Turning on water to satisfy a dry spot is over-watering the rest! Uniform distribution is when an entire area wilts at same time, and then you water for no more than root depth! How deep are YOUR roots? If you don’t know, you’re wasting water! Do you know if your lawn sprinklers have water flowing faster than 10 feet per second? Too high a flow rate can damage valves and blow off heads (wasting water and costing money for repairs due to damage that should not have happened in the first place). Pressure at the base of the sprinkler heads needs to be less than 40 psi. What’s yours? An even lower pressure - 20 to 25 psi is water saving (no mist is produced).
I am trained, qualified, and experienced to help you address these issues, and even perform a water audit, to help you fine tune your system to greatly reduce waste, as well as lower your water bill. I’d also be glad to give you recommendations on the best design features, fixtures, and appliances to fit for your situation. Give me a ring, the phone call is free.
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