4 Eco-Friendly Plumbing Tips for Your Home
If you are planning to do any serious renovation or makeover to your home, then you may run into the need to perform some plumbing repairs, or at least make some plumbing upgrades. In addition, if you’re environment-conscious you’ll want to make sure that whatever you do promotes the well-being of the planet. The best case outcome would be a highly efficient, cost-saving, and eco-friendly plumbing system.
What can you do to make your plumbing more eco-friendly? Here are 4 tips that can help.
1. Install an Efficient Water Heater
It is common for older water heaters to gradually lose energy efficiency with the passing years. Leaks, wear and tear, and poor insulation can all contribute to efficiency losses.
Installing a new water heater is often one of the best ways to save energy, and reduce costs as well. For instance, tankless water heaters rapidly heat water as it passes through an exchanger. For many homeowners, this efficient process has helped cut down on electric bills, and conserve energy.
2. Go Low-Flow
Many traditional shower heads pump out almost 9.5 litres of water per minute. Of course, much of this water flows down the drain without even hitting your body. Clearly, this level of wastage leaves a lot of room for improvement.
One way to promote water conservation is to replace the more traditional shower heads with low-flow models. These shower heads can reduce water flow down to about 6.5 litres per minute (reducing water consumption by about 30%). The same principle can apply to kitchen and bathroom faucets.
Moreover, these fixtures are often inexpensive to purchase and install, and can end up reducing your monthly water and electric bill. Many homeowners have found that such eco-friendly low-flow products are a “win-win” solution.
3. Use Water Saving Toilets
Older toilet models use the same amount of water for every flush, no matter the actual amount that is necessary. However, some “green” toilets offer you the option to adjust the amount of water flow according to the need. Water saving toilets can reduce water usage by about 40% (some more, some less); and they can help you to save on your water bill in the process.
4. Make Sure Your Plumbing Pipes Save Energy
Check that your plumbing pipes are the right size and material for their purpose. Steel or PEX pipes are more energy efficient alternatives to plastic or copper pipes, so you may want to consider installing them in place of your current system. On the other hand, if you are on a budget or don’t want to make major changes to your piping system, inexpensive pipe insulators can dramatically reduce heat loss, thus conversing energy and promoting the well-being of the environment.
If you need any assistance in implementing these eco-friendly tips, or need the services of a professional plumber, reach out to us at New Canadian Drain & Plumbing today. We’d be happy to help with all of your plumbing needs!