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Restrooms & Plumbing Restrooms & Plumbing Every building with a water supply uses plumbing to convey and control the water. Plumbing fixtures are a ubiquitous part of our daily lives. Almost all build- Plumbing ings used by people have at least one restroom. Examples are schools, hospitals, fixtures are hotels, service stations, stores, government buildings, places of worship, office a ubiquitous buildings, convenience stores, and entertainment sites. part of our Because of the large numbers of plumbing fixtures and the enormous amounts daily lives. of water they collectively use, federal and California statues set water-use stan- Restrooms dards for some fixtures and appliances. Manufacturers and water interests have and plumb- continued to examine opportunities for water efficiency and associated energy ing fixtures efficiency. In addition, performance testing for some plumbing fixtures resulted in are prime new specifications, such as the EPA WaterSense specification for high-efficiency toilets (HETs). New specifications for faucets and shower heads are being devel- targets for oped, resulting in a series of improved products. Restroom and plumbing fixtures new design are prime targets for new design or retrofit with high-efficiency technologies. or retrofit with high- Water-using technologies that have specific potential for water conservation are efficiency discussed in this section. For each technology, alternative water-efficiency meth- ods are scored “High” (better than 50 percent savings), “Medium” (10-50 percent technolo- savings), or “Low” (less than 10 percent savings) compared with standard tech- gies. nologies. These include: Restroom and Bathroom Fixtures • Toilets • Urinals • Showers and baths • Floor-drain trap primers Faucets • Hand-washing lavatories • Kitchen and food-service sinks • Pre-rinse spray valves (see “Food Service – Scullery”) • Janitorial (mop) sinks • Outdoor faucets (hose-bibs) Valves and Other Devices • Emergency shut-off valve access and isolation valves • Water-heater temperature pressure-relief (TPRVs) and relief valves • Pumps • Backflow preventers • Fire-protection systems • Surge tanks and other forms of potable water storage The following checklist may be used for approving selection of equipment for restrooms and bathrooms, as well as plumbing fixtures. REST1 Checklist of Water-Efficiency Measures for Restrooms and Plumbing Fixtures End Water Use Proven Practices Additional Practices Restroom and Bathroom Fixtures Toilets ❒ Not more than 1.3 gallons per flush ❒ Non-potable water for flushing (gps) where codes and health depart- ments permit Urinals ❒ 0.5 gallon or less per flush ❒ .25 gallons or 1 liter per flush or ❒ Prohibit continuous water-flushing less systems ❒ Non-potable water for flushing, ❒ Prohibit automatic water-flushing where codes and health depart- systems ments permit Showers and baths ❒ Prohibit shower heads that have a ❒ Specify use of timers on recircu- flow rate greater than 2.0 gallons per lating hot-water systems for large minute (gpm) buildings ❒ One shower head per personal show- ❒ Select point-of-use hot-water heat- er stall (ensure that a properly se- ers for small applications lected mixing valve is used to reduce ❒ Substitute showers for bathtubs scalding hazards) whenever possible ❒ For group showers, such as in school ❒ If bathtubs are necessary, use low- gyms and prisons, require individual volume tubs valves for each shower head Floor-drain trap ❒ Meet plumbing codes ❒ Avoid continuous-flow trap primers primers ❒ Install pressure-activated or elec- tronic trap primers, each serving several drains Faucets Hand-washing ❒ Prohibit emitting more than 1.5 gpm ❒ Commercial lavatory faucets lavatories at 60 pounds per square inch (psi) or should use no more than 1.0 gpm meet the USEPA WaterSense stan- ❒ Low-flow-rate faucets with un- dard, whichever is less, for residential removable aerators are also faucets available ❒ Use laminar-flow faucets that use no more than 1.5 gpm, where required in medical facilities ❒ Use self-closing faucets with flows of 0.5 gpm or less in public restrooms Kitchen and food- ❒ Flow should not exceed 2.2 gpm ❒ Install variable-flow aerators on service sinks faucets Pre-rinse spray ❒ Use pre-rinse spray valves for dish valves (see “Food rinsing Service – Scullery”) ❒ Prohibit valves that emit more than the current flow standard (1.5 gpm in 2007) Janitorial (mop) ❒ Faucet flow not to exceed 2.2 gpm sinks REST2 End Water Use Proven Practices Additional Practices Outdoor faucets ❒ Faucet flow should not exceed 5.0 ❒ Install outdoor pipes and fixtures (hose bibs) gpm so they can be drained before freezing weather ❒ For hose bibs attached to walls of heated buildings, use freeze-proof bibs ❒ Install self-closing nozzles and valves on equipment connected to hose bibs Valves and Other Devices Emergency shut-off ❒ Meet plumbing codes ❒ Add isolation valves to all pieces valve access and of water-using equipment, if not isolation valves provided by the manufacturer ❒ Place additional emergency shut- off valves near critical water-use areas ❒ Plainly mark the location of emer- gency shut-off valves ❒ Attach information on the valve, stating which portions of the facility are supplied by the valve Water-heater ❒ Meet plumbing codes ❒ Make the outlets to valve-dis- temperature pres- charge pipes easy to inspect for sure-relief valves flow (TPRVs) and relief ❒ Insert visible indicators that will valves show if the valve has activated Pumps ❒ Meet plumbing codes ❒ Choose pumps with mechanical seals rather than packing ❒ Carefully test pumps upon installa- tion and initial operation Backflow ❒ Install backflow preventers and vacu- ❒ Locate devices in easy-to-observe preventers um breakers as required by code and locations, and provide easy access utilities for inspection and testing Fire-protection ❒ No connections to fire-protection sys- ❒ Conspicuously mark fire-protec- systems tem except for fire protection tion-system plumbing ❒ Install flow-detection meters on fire services Surge tanks and ❒ Provide visible and audible signals other forms of po- when tanks overflow table-water storage ❒ Provide monitoring wells to capture and make visible any leakage REST3 Restrooms & Bathroom Fixtures Water-use standards for plumbing fixtures used in restrooms were set by both federal and California statute and are now included in the Uniform Building Codes. The current code sets the following maxi- mum-flow requirements: Type of Fixture California Maximum Rate of EPA WaterSense or High- Water Use Efficiency (HE) Specification Toilets (tank-type) 1.6 gpf 1.28 gpf (USEPA WaterSense 2007 standard) Toilets (flush-valve) 1.6 gpf 1.3 gpf (HE) Urinals 1.0 gpf 0.5 gpf (HE) Shower heads (except for 2.2 gpm at 60 psi 2.0 gpm (HE) safety uses) Lavatory faucets 2.2 gpm at 60 psi 1.5 gpf at 60 psi for lavatory faucets (draft WaterSense) Self-closing faucets Public restrooms use self-closing fau- cets with flows of 0.5 gpm or less Metering faucets 0.25 gallons per cycle Since these standards were set a decade ago, advances to improve water efficiency in plumbing fixtures have continued. New models have come to the market that improve water efficiency and, sometimes, energy efficiency by as much as 20 percent. The initial cost of the new higher efficiency models is in the same range as the better quality older models. Choice of plumbing fixtures for new structures should be driven not by the minimum standards, but rather by the life-cycle cost for the building operator. In addition to fixtures that are more water-efficient, non-potable water supplies are being used to flush toilets. These water supplies include treated municipal wastewater and lavatory wash water. To date the acceptance is limited, but the potential for water savings is large. Toilets A few models of the early 1990’s gave water-efficient toilets a bad name by failing to remove the waste with a single flush. Since then manufacturers have redesigned the shape of the bowl, the diameter and glazing of the trapway, and the water volume used to achieve effective performance. Continued im- provements are subjected to improved testing standards for endorsement by water utilities and govern- ment agencies. Now, the highest efficiency models have been well documented to perform better than older high-flush-volume toilets (Veritec and Koeller, 2006). A toilet flush can be actuated by manual mechanical levers, push buttons, or electronic sensors. The hands-free sensors eliminate the need for human contact with the valve, but sometimes flush needlessly while the toilet is still in use. Some studies have shown that these hands-free sensors actually use more water than manually activated models. Although the primary purpose of toilets is to remove human waste and initiate transportation to a waste- water treatment facility, toilets in public places are often used to dispose of other materials. Toilets for public locations should have a glazed trap of at least two inches diameter — the bigger the diameter the better to prevent clogging. REST4 Major requirements for minimizing water use in toilet operations include: (1) flush the toilet bowl clear, (2) transport waste through pipelines to the sanitary sewer, (3) operate reliably, and (4) have a leak-proof discharge valve. Description of End Use Toilets come with a variety of features: • Floor-mounted or wall-mounted • Methods of actuating flush: » Traditional lever » Push-buttons » Electronic sensors • Flush mechanism • Volume of water used per flush • Glazing and diameter of the trap • Models for prison use Water-Savings Potential Water consumption for any toilet installation varies with the number of employees, customers, or visitors and the type of activity at the site. An American Wa- ter Works Association (AWWA) Research Foundation study found that: Aquia Dual-flush Toilet • Office buildings are prime candidates for high- efficiency plumbing fixtures and appliances. • Restaurant toilet and urinal use is significant and would benefit from high-efficiency devices. • Supermarket bathrooms receive a surprising amount of use and would benefit from high-effi- ciency fixtures. • One-half to three-fourths of hotel indoor water use was for toilets, faucets, and showers.
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