Making the Drops-to-Watts Connection:
Saving Water to Save Energy
Many people over recent years have been adopting energy efficiency practices and technologies such as solar energy and LED lights. But do you know how closely related water and electricity are to each other? Even though water and energy are separate utilities, they are intricately connected. It takes energy to pump, heat, treat and deliver the water we use every day. Alternatively, water is used to create electricity, usually in hydro and steam turbine power plants but also in power plants for cooling the equipment. Because of what is called the Water-Energy Nexus, saving energy saves water and vice-versa. An additional nexus linkage has been made to food since agriculture and associated food production and supply industries use a great amount of water and energy. Because of this interdependency sustainability and the scarcity of food, water and energy are concerns worldwide. For more information on the water-energy-food nexus, visit the United Nations website and the U.S. Department of Energy webpage.
How Can We Save Both Water and Energy?
Appliances and products. One of the simplest ways to save both water and energy is to install water-efficient products. According to the EPA, it takes 3,000 to 6,000 gallons of water to power a 60-watt incandescent bulb for 12 hours per day over the course of a year!
- Select appliances and products that have earned the EPA's WaterSense® label and/or are ENERGY STAR® qualified. As an example, installing WaterSense labeled faucet aerators in bathrooms costs just a few dollars, but could save enough electricity to dry your hair every day for a year! To find out how much water and energy you could save with efficient appliances, and how many pounds of greenhouse gas emissions you may prevent, visit the EPA's WaterSense Calculator.
- Consider buying a high efficiency (HE) clothes washer – the costs have dropped dramatically over the last five or more years and many top-loading models are qualified as EnergyStar. The high spin rates of HE washers remove more water from clothes than traditional machines. With less moisture remaining in the clothes, drying time is reduced, saving electricity. Also, HE machines use less water and, consequently, less energy than traditional machines. Select a model that allows you to adjust the water temperature and levels for different loads.
- Insulate the hot water pipes as much as possible. When hot water sits in pipes or even travels to its point-of-use, heat is lost through the pipe walls. Also, energy and water are wasted as we keep the faucet open waiting for hot water.
- Install an insulating blanket on the water heater tank. This could reduce standby heat losses by 25% to 45%. A pre-cut jacket or blanket costs around $25 and should pay for itself in about a year. Select and install the blanket according to manufacturer's instructions, based on the energy source (gas, solar, electric, etc.). More detailed information can be found on this Department of Energy webpage.
-Seek and fix leaks. Visit the Water Conservation webpage to learn how.
Designing and renovating a home. Thoughtful planning and design could provide efficient plumbing systems without significantly increasing costs or installation time. The goal is to efficiently move water from the water heater to each fixture. Be sure to follow state and local plumbing codes when making these decisions.
- Locate the highest hot water demand areas (the kitchen, bathrooms, and laundry areas) as close as possible to the hot water heater. By designing homes with kitchens and baths concentrated in one area of the house, the length of the required piping is reduced.
- If centralizing demand areas is not practical, get hot water faster to these key areas by reducing the length and diameter of the plumbing pipe from the water heater to the kitchen and bathrooms (as code and manufacturer instructions permit). Not only is the hot water "wait time" reduced, but there will also be less heat loss in the shorter length of piping.
Original source of information in this article is from the EPA"s WaterSense and EnergyStar websites, and the Department of Energy's Energy Saver webpages.