Canadians use 223 litres of water per person per day, which is the equivalent of about two bathtubs full of water. Or put in visual terms, as a whole the country uses as much water as the average waterfall dumps in a day.
Given that significant amount of water usage, new sustainable plumbing solutions like smart water meters have been developed in recent years that offer an opportunity to conserve resources and save on utility bills—all while maintaining your current lifestyle—making it a win-win scenario for both you and the environment.
Sustainable Plumbing: An Overview
When thinking about sustainable plumbing solutions you can implement, there are three main factors to think about: water efficiency, energy efficiency and sustainable materials.
Water efficiency is simply about finding ways to use less water. Think low-flow taps, dual-flush toilets, efficient appliances and the like. Energy efficiency focuses on reducing the energy required to heat and pump your water. Then when it comes to the materials that make up your plumbing system, you have some choice in selecting materials that, for example, require less energy to manufacture or are made of sustainable materials. Now let’s have a look at each of these in more detail.
Water Efficiency
Switch to low-flow – There are many plumbing fixtures available today that help you maintain an environmentally-friendly home. Swapping conventional shower heads with low-flow shower fixtures can save you a significant amount of water and money as conventional shower heads use 10 litres (2.5 gallons) or more water every minute, while low-flow shower heads use less than 7.5 litres (2 gallons) per minute. Do the same with your sinks by installing low-flow faucet aerators.
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Dual flush toilets – If you have an old toilet, every single flush could be using 13 litres of water. Considering the average pee is only about half a litre, that’s an enormous waste of water to flush down such a small amount of liquid. Dual flush toilets can cut down your water usage to four litres for a light flush and six litres for a heavy flush. But know that not all dual flush toilets are created equal. Due to their design, a lot of dual-flush toilets are prone to leaking. Andrew Tucker of Waterwise suggests looking for toilets whose valves are made of sturdier silicone seal rather than rubber to avoid this problem.
Energy-efficient toilets and composting toilets – If you’re looking for an even greater water-saving alternative than dual flush toilets, you have a couple of good options. Energy-efficient toilets (aka water-efficient toilets, pressure-assisted toilets, or high-efficiency toilets) use water velocity instead of water volume to flush waste, reducing water usage by 20 to 60 percent from conventional toilets. They do have their downsides though as they cost more, are louder, and are more difficult to repair. If you want to take it a step further and not use any water you could go with a dry composting toilet. However, the price to pay for that eco-friendliness is the additional maintenance, extra cost, and potentially having to deal with odour if it’s not maintained well enough.
Rainwater harvesting – Every time it rains, rather than get upset at your plans being ruined, you can look at it as an opportunity to gain a free resource. By installing rain barrels or water storage tanks you can save all that valuable rain water that comes down and reuse it in the garden. That’s the simple way to reuse your water. Or you could take it a step further and filter the water for drinking. Check out this video for three ways to filter your rainwater.
Greywater system – If you feel like tinkering around with your plumbing, you can set up a system in your house that captures wastewater from your bathtubs, showers, sinks, and washing machine that you can then use to flush your toilets or water your garden.
Motion sensor faucets – This innovation on standard faucets can help you save water and money as faucets will only turn on if your hands come within a few inches near the faucet or the lip of the spout.
Smart devices – This new trend is constantly evolving with new options to save you water. There’s a whole section written up on it below.
Energy Efficient Plumbing Systems
Rather than keeping a giant tank full of water heated all the time, tankless water heaters save energy by heating only the necessary amount of water on-demand. Heat pumps are another, even more energy-efficient, alternative. They produce three times more energy than they use or even more, depending on the model. These same types of heaters can also be used for space heating as well, which is where even more savings can pile up for a homeowner.
Another way to save energy when doing your plumbing is through insulation. Well-insulated pipes reduce heat loss during hot-water transportation. Insulating your water storage tank keeps water hot for longer, further saving energy.
Finally, explore high-efficiency appliances like dishwashers and washing machines; they use less water and less energy. When shopping for appliances, look for the Energy Star label and select as high a rating as possible.
Sustainable Materials
Traditionally, pipes had always been made of metals like copper, brass, and iron. Though these metals are chosen due to their durability, resistance to corrosion, and recyclability, they are energy-intensive to produce and their mining is heavily impactful on the environment. They can also be quite costly.
So there’s been a move to incorporate more sustainable materials that also cost less. Sustainable here can mean a few things:
- Materials that have less impact on the environment.
- Products that require less actual material to make.
- Materials that are durable and therefore require replacement less often.
- Recycled content (and recyclability after they are disposed)
In many cases with plumbing, it’s just a matter of choosing materials that are less impactful on the environment than the conventional option.
While PVC pipes are not an eco-friendly material, they at least are durable, lasting up to 100 years and they are recyclable. So that cuts down on waste. They also use less energy to manufacture. Plastic pipes use on average 10,000 Megajoules versus 25,000 Megajoules for copper, according to Heating & Ventilating Review.
Two good alternatives for pipes are steel and PEX. Steel is one of the most highly recycled metals in the world and it has excellent durability. Because of its high strength, steel pipes can be thinner, requiring less material. Steel does, however, require 29,000 Megajoules of energy to produce.
PEX, on the other hand requires much less energy to manufacture. It’s considered a greener alternative to PVC as it offers the same benefits in terms of low cost, flexibility, and ease of installation. Since it’s flexible, PEX pipes can bend around corners, taking away the need to add connections, reducing the amount of pipe needed for a project.
Smart Technologies in Plumbing
With smart devices making headway into homes, it’s no surprise they’re also being integrated into plumbing systems.
Smart water meters are the next generation of water metering devices. They allow you to track water usage real-time, helping detect leaks and identify high consumption areas within your home. Leveraging this valuable data can prompt efficient use of water and ultimately bring down utility bills. Similarly, linking leak detectors with smartphone alerts ensures that no leakage goes unnoticed—avoiding both resource waste and structural damage to the property. The process can also be automated with smart water shut-off valves – once a leak is detected, the water is automatically shut off, potentially saving a significant amount of water.
Consider adding smart shower heads. Advanced shower heads like this can notify you when the water is at your preferred temperature so you don’t have to check the temperature of the water before hopping into the shower, which can add up to quite a lot of water savings over time. You can also track how much water you’ve used to get a better sense of your water usage, and some models feature an infrared sensor that can detect your proximity to the shower head. When you’re close it blasts full pressure for you to rinse. When you step away the water pressure drops.
For your irrigation needs, you can get a smart irrigation system. This technology is the next generation of water timers. They save a ton of water in your garden because they’re equipped with moisture sensors. When the soil is moist enough thanks to previous rainfall, they will skip a watering cycle until the soil is dry enough that it needs to be watered.
Sustainable Plumbing: The Future
As the Earth heats up and we experience more (and longer) periods of drought that restrict water availability, sustainable plumbing is not just a nice thing to do for the environment – it’s becoming essential.
New materials are being developed to enhance pipe longevity without compromising recyclability. More advanced greywater recycling systems are coming to the fore, helping homeowners save even more on their water consumption.
Smart devices will continue evolving, becoming smarter while ensuring easier integration and user-friendly interfaces. As the price of solar continues to plunge, investment in solar water heaters will surge, providing an environmentally friendly and economically viable alternative to traditional water heaters.
With all these initiatives on the horizon, it’s evident the future of plumbing means minimized water and energy demands, resulting in less impact on the Earth’s resources and lower costs for homeowners.
Are you planning a building or renovation project and want to learn how to save water on it? Check out our Green Building Guide to Water Efficiency.
