We all want to save money during these challenging economic times, and making green plumbing improvements is one of the best money-saving changes you can make. But in addition to saving you a lot of green in your wallet, green plumbing solutions around the home are some of the most effective and easy things you can do to reduce energy consumption, to improve your health and to help the environment.Green Plumbing and Energy Reduction
When it comes to your energy bills, most people focus on their furnaces or air conditioners. But your plumbing system also has a big impact on how much energy you consume.
- Unprotected pipes, especially ones in exterior walls, are responsible for a huge amount of heat loss as water flows from your hot water tank to a faucet. Insulating pipes keeps more of this heat in, significantly cutting into your energy usage and saving you money on your utility bill.
- If you are considering a plumbing remodel, upgrade or new home construction, keeping pipes out of exterior walls altogether will eliminate unnecessary heat loss. Instead, run pipes through insulated and interior spaces where temperature is more regulated.
- Invest in an on-demand hot water pump. These devices send hot water to fixtures in seconds, eliminating costs that arise when hot water is left to sit unused in your pipes and reducing water usage overall.
- Hot water heaters constitute up to 15 percent of your home’s total energy usage. A new, energy-efficient water heater can cut a big chunk out of high utility bills.
Green Plumbing and Your Health
It’s true-—improving the efficiency of your home’s plumbing can have a positive impact on the health of everyone in your household.
- Request a copy of your town’s most recent water report or hire an independent tester to analyze your water. Before you can do anything, you need to know what kinds of substances may be in your water.
- Install a chlorine filter on your showerheads. Eliminating chlorine from your water can ease symptoms of chlorine sensitivity, which include dry skin, itchiness, flaking, rashes and tightness.
- Look into a whole house filtration system that will get rid of chemicals, heavy metals and micro organisms that may be present in the water you use for cooking, bathing, cleaning and drinking. A comprehensive filtration system will also prevent staining and corrosion caused by hard water, and will extend the life of appliances that use water.
- If you live in an area with particularly poor water quality, install an activated charcoal filter or reverse osmosis system. These water purifiers filter out contaminants and make water safer to use.
Green Plumbing and the Environment
Many of us are looking for ways to reduce our impact on the environment. Green plumbing solutions help you do just that. Coincidentally, many of these initiatives can save you money, too.
- Install low-flow fixtures, which can reduce your water consumption by about 60 percent.
- Low-flush toilets are also a great way to restrict unnecessary water usage, saving about 28 gallons of water per person every day.
- Purchase a leak monitoring device that will notify you of leaky faucets, pipes and toilets so you can have the problem taken care of before too much water is wasted.
- Faucet flow reducers are easy to install and can cut water usage by more than 40 percent.
- Replace old appliances with energy efficient models. Dishwashers and washing machines with an Energy Star rating can reduce water use by more than 50 percent.
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