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Nowadays, we understand the impact we, as a community, have on our shared environment. We enjoy some of the cleanest air and forests in all of Canada because we all take this truth to heart. Eco-consciousness can also impact our bottom line energy costs. Whether you want to save on your water or energy bill, or just want to conserve resources, we have a bunch of great tips that can make your bathroom more eco-friendly!
Water Usage
Even with the immense amount of water your dishwasher and laundry machine use, your bathroom is likely where you consume the most water. This also means it’s the ideal place to start conserving water!
We’ll start with some healthy habits that you can implement into your bathroom routine.
- Turn off Faucet While Shaving or Brushing Teeth
- Take Shorter Showers
- Fix Leaks Immediately
Good habits go a long way towards helping your water usage. Make sure you are only turning that faucet handle when you are actively using water!
Low-Flow Appliances
Continuing on the theme of water conservation, consider installing low-flow versions of your bathroom appliances. You may not realize this, but your current appliances could be using more water than is necessary. Older toilets often use fifteen to twenty-six litres per flush! Compared to the new high point of just six litres, that is a huge difference!
We find a similar story with faucets and showerheads. For faucets, installing an aerator, which mixes in air with the water as it comes out of your spout, will lower the amount of water you use without affecting your water pressure. Just as older toilets use an inordinate amount of water, showerheads that were installed prior to 1994 are most likely water-wasters as well. The leading, current water conscious showerhead brands can provide the same flow of water using only two litres a minute.
Natural and Eco-Friendly Lighting
Water isn’t the only resource you are using in your bathroom. You also have to consider your electricity use. Compared to a halogen bulb a new LED bulb is nearly 5 times more efficient, according to ENERGY STAR. Halogen light bulbs release 90% of their energy as heat. LED’s, instead, devote almost all their energy towards producing light.
Tankless Water Heater
Your third water-using resource in your bathroom—your water heater. Traditional water heaters use fuel oil or natural gas to heat your water, which is uniquely inefficient. While the concept of storing hot water makes sense intuitively, it can actually lead to a lot of energy loss from standby heat loss.
Tankless water heaters solve this problem. Instead of storing water, a tankless system heats your water supply as you need it. As the water flows in, a heating coil warms the water to the desired temperature set on your systems’ thermostat. For those who fear running out of hot water, this is an elegant solution. There is no set amount of hot water with a tankless system. You can use as much hot water as you need.
Additionally, you can pair the two systems together! Using a tankless system to supplement your traditional water heater can provide a seamless hot water supply to one fixture, to ensure you never run out of hot water through that appliance. A small point-of-use system can be used with a specific appliance, like your shower, so it does not use the hot water produced by your traditional system. This allows you to take advantage of the efficiency of a tankless system and lower the overall cost of your monthly utility costs.
Centennial Plumbing, Heating & Electrical would love to help ensure the long-term efficiency of your home plumbing and electrical systems. Feel free to give us a call at (306) 500-7392 or fill out an online contact form to set up an appointment.
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