Fixtures, Appliances, and Equipment

Commercial dishwashers are considered to be one of the largest water and energy consumers in the commercial kitchen, often using more than two-thirds of the overall water use. The equipment can vary widely in size and shape.

Food steamers come in two varieties: boiler-based and boilerless (connectionless). A field study was conducted by the Food Service Technology Center to determine the water and energy use profiles of both boiler-based and boilerless (connectionless) food steamers.

In arid climates, some homes are cooled by evaporative coolers, sometimes called swamp coolers or desert coolers. The devices use the evaporation of water to cool the air sent into the home, and are most often connected to the home water supply to maintain water in the cooler’s reservoir. 

The purpose of humidifiers is to add moister to the air, adding comfort and energy efficiency during the winter heating season.  There are two basic types of humidifiers, from a water use perspective: self-contained room humidifiers; and central humidifiers, usually attached to central forced-air heating systems. Listed below is background information and water efficiency considerations for both types of humidifiers. 

Meter flow restrictors are small devices that, when properly installed on a water meter, severely limit the flow of water without stopping the flow completely.  Over the past few years, these devices have gained attention for their potential as alternatives to water shutoffs due to customer nonpayment.

Plumbing codes and standards are important driving forces in water efficiency. The nuances within both standards and codes can have major impacts on creating more water efficient products and infrastructure.  

With rare exception, re-circulating showers are not designed or operate in a water efficient manner. These systems are often called “vertical body spas” and they often use more water than a typical shower or bath. The re-circulation pumps require a reservoir of water in the shower basin to properly operate.

Water used to wash and rinse hair represents a major portion of water use in hair salons and the greatest portion of water used in pet grooming. Existing salon and pet sprayers can have maximum flow rates as high as 5.0 Gallons Per Minute (gpm) (19 Lpm), but often average approximately 4.0 gpm (15 Lpm) at the highest flow settings.  

Shower flow restrictors are simple orifices intended to lower the flow rate of the showerhead and thereby reduce total water consumption. Restrictors can either be an integral (but removable) part of a new showerhead or they can be “after-market” inserts that are installed at a point between the shower arm and the showerhead itself. 

Newer showerhead designs employ multiple sprays types to take advantage of the beneficial aspects of each type of head. These “hybrid” showerheads have resulted in greater consumer satisfaction and water savings. A utility planning to implement a showerhead replacement program should choose products very carefully.

Steam sterilizers, a subcategory of autoclaves, are utilized in three major applications: hospitals, pharmaceutical manufacturing, and research institutions. They are used to disinfect (1) surgical instruments in hospitals and (2) instruments and apparatus used in the research and manufacture of products where sterilization is essential.

Over the past 25 years, numerous retrofit devices for tank-type toilets have been developed, patented, and, in some cases, actively sold in the marketplace. These devices usually fall into one of three categories: water displacement products, early-closing toilet flappers, and dual-flush conversion devices.

Different types of flushing urinals have existed in North America for many years with little technological change.  In the early 1990s, however, the first non-water (waterless) urinal in North America was introduced. Since then, other urinal technologies have likewise surfaced that individually save almost as much water as the non-water design.