Post on 27-Dec-2015
Plumbing
Green Professional Building Skills Training Program
COURSE OBJECTIVES:At the end of this course you will:
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1. Understand how and why sustainability is important to plumbers and their work.
2. Understand the water-saving and energy efficiency principles used in new green systems.
3. Understand how green and conventional technologies, products, and installation practices differ.
GPRO Certificate Holders
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Plumbing
A Green Building
A green building is designed, constructed and maintained to minimize adverse environmental impacts and reduce energy and water consumption, while contributing to the health and productivity of both workers during construction and occupants after construction.
A key component is consideration of the building's impacts and performance over its entire life.
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Why Green Plumbing Matters1
Sustainability
Sustainability: A way of living and working that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
Benefits of Green Plumbing
Conserving water means:
• Cost savings related to water and wastewater treatment
• Reduced energy consumption from pumping and heating less water
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Benefits of Green Plumbing
• Jobs • Economy• Health• Environment
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Natural Hydrologic Cycle
Water is cleaned and replaced by the natural hydrologic cycle
A New Way of Thinking About Water
Protect the Health of the Nation: •Clean water in, dirty water out•Preserve safety of water supply
Also:•Water conservation•New sources of water from rainwater harvesting, greywater
Threats To Our Water Supply
• Population increase• Pollution• Farming & Forestry• Paving• Water shortages
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TEST YOURSELF:1. What is the purpose of green building? How does
plumbing play a critical role?
2. How do the four primary benefits of green building relate to the plumbing industry?
3. Why are our current water use practices not sustainable?
4. How do humans fit into the hydrologic cycle?
5. Describe the new hydrological cycle.
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Sustainability inPlumbing Systems2
What Makes a Plumbing System Sustainable?
Multiple water savings and reuse elements are integrated to create a coordinated approach to water-use reduction.
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Where is Green Plumbing in a Building?
Whole-Building Integration
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• Reducing water consumption• Energy efficiency• Indoor air quality• Managing construction & demolition waste• Commissioning• LEED building certification• Retrofitting existing buildings• Maintenance
What are the Big Issues for Green Plumbers?
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• Goal: To protect our nation's water supply by promoting water efficiency and enhancing the market for water-efficient products, programs, and practices
• Developed by U.S. EPA in 2006• 20% more efficient than standard
fixtures and appliances• HET toilets must pass rigorous
waste removal performance test.WaterSense
How Do We Measure Sustainability in Plumbing - WaterSense
How Do We Measure Sustainability in Plumbing – ENERGY STAR
ENERGY STAR
• Goal: Protect the environment through energy-efficient products and practices
• U.S. EPA & U.S. DOE• Developed in 1992• Covers: water heaters,
dishwashers, washing machines, geothermal heat pumps, boilers
• ENERGY STAR products that use water use less water than standard products, sometimes much less. Page 17
How Do We Measure Sustainability in Plumbing - LEED
LEED
Primary LEED credit categories: • Water Efficiency (WE)• Sustainable Sites (SS) • Energy & Atmosphere (EA) • Green buildings can achieve up to
10 credits through significant reductions in their use of potable water, wastewater treatment, energy savings, and reducing on-site run-off pollution.
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Proximity Hotel, Greensboro, NC
LEED Platinum Luxury Hotel:
•39% less energy use•34% less water use•Low-flow toilets that use 1.2 gallons per flush, waterless urinals, and low-flow faucets all contribute to water savings. •Solar thermal panels on the roof provide 60 percent of the hotel’s water heating needs
CASE STUDY
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TEST YOURSELF:1. How does the whole-building approach apply to
sustainable plumbing systems?
2. What are the issues that a plumber might be involved with on a green job?
3. What are the issues that a plumber might encounter when retrofitting an existing building?
4. What plumbing products does ENERGY STAR certify?
5. What are the goals and strategies for the plumbing-related LEED new construction credits?
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Reducing End-Use Demand for Water and Energy
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High Efficiency Fixtures and Appliances …•Conserve water
•Reduce depletion of our valuable potable water resources helps maintain healthy aquatic environments.
•Save on water and sewer bills
•Save on energy bills
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High Efficiency Fixtures and Appliances
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Typical water use in United States:
How Much Water Do We Use?
Commercial buildingsHomes
How many gallons of potable water does the average 3-person household use per day?
POP QUIZ:
69.3 x 3 =
207.9 gallons
POP QUIZ:
Go to http://www.epa.gov/watersense/our_water/be_the_change.html
Baseline and Improved Water Usage for Common Fixtures
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Baseline vs. Improved Water Usage
Unnecessarily large flow rates waste water and energy!
Federal Guidelines:
Lavs, Kitchen Faucets & Aerators Max 2.2 gpm
Public Metering Faucets Max 0.25 gal/cycle (gpc)
Private Bathrooms (WaterSense Low-flow) 1.5 gpm
Public Bathrooms 0.5 gpm
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Faucets
Tempered faucets automatically mix hot and cold water.
Have circulating hot water as close to faucet as possible or install heat cable.
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Tempered Faucets and Circulating Pipes
Changing to a low-flowshowerhead has agreat payback!
Federal Guidelines:
Showerheads (80 psi): Max 2.5 gpm
Low Flow Showerheads (60 psi): Max 2.2 gpm
WaterSense Showerheads: Max 2.0 gpm
Ultra Low Flow Showerheads: 0.8 – 1.5 gpmPage 21
Showerheads
To unclog showerheads andImprove flow, immerse in vinegar to clean out scale and deposits.
No bleach or chemicals!
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Showerhead Maintenance
Toilet replacements can be a huge opportunity for water savings.
Federal Guidelines:
Residential toilets Max 1.6 gpf
Commercial toilets: Max 1.6 gpf
1.6 gpf toilets are called low-consumption (LC) toiletsPage 23
Toilets
Great strides have been made in performance ofLC and HET.
High Efficiency Toilet (HET) Max 1.28 gpf
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High Efficiency Toilets (HET)
Two different levels of flushing to clear the bowl.
Large Flush Max 1.6 gpf
Small Flush Max 1.1 gpf
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Dual Flush Toilets
Drain-line carry isthe distance that water can float or carry solids down a horizontal drain line
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Drain-Line Carry
High Efficiency Fixtures• Waterless and high-efficiency urinals (HEUs)• Lower-flow faucets
Greywater systems• Reduce waste water in building sanitary drainage systems
Current ASME Standards require a toilet to carry solids a distance of 40’ horizontally
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Reducing Water in Waste Systems
200 Market St., Portland OR
LEED-EB Platinum:
•Water use reduction – 32%•Low-flow and efficient water fixtures. •Installed two pressurized water storage tanks on the roof, allowing the pumps to be turned off nights and weekends instead of running city water pumps nonstop to maintain water pressure on higher floors.
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CASE STUDY
TEST YOURSELF:1. What is the relationship between high-efficiency fixtures
and appliances and protecting the environment?
2. What are the issues associated with tempered faucets? What are strategies that make tempered faucets more efficient?
3. What are the differences between low-consumption (LC) toilets, high-efficiency toilets (HETs), and dual flush toilets?
4. What is the concern with high efficiency fixtures and drain-line carry?
5. What new technology exists that contributes to landscape irrigation efficiency? Why is efficiency in landscape irrigation important?
Improving Water Distribution Systems
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Water is distributed in a network of pipes throughout the building.
The design and maintenance of this system of piping can have a dramatic impact on water and energy consumption.
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Water Distribution in Buildings
Insulate all accessible piping • Hot water: heat should not dissipate
• Cold water: prevent condensation in hidden cavities and cut off a thermal sink
Be aware of pipe insulation requirements!
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Pipe Insulation
Have to wait for the water to heat up while it’s running down the drain…..
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With trunk-and-branch installation method cold water brought to water-heating equipment before being distributed to fixtures and appliances
Waste of Potable Water with Hot Water Usage
How much water is wasted?
• Average American home = 2.6 residents• Annual water waste waiting for hot water = 10,000 gallons
• 50 million American households = 500 billion gallons of potable water waste annually
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Waste of Potable Water with Hot Water Usage
In a typical American home, more than 10,000 gallons of water per year may be wasted while residents wait for hot water to arrive at plumbing fixtures
What can we do?
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Waste of Potable Water with Hot Water Usage
• Use piping systems that re-circulate hot water back to water heating equipment
• Dedicated return line from the fixtures furthest from the water heating equipment
• Important when using low-flow fixtures – without recirculation, wait for hot water is increased.
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Hot Water Distribution Piping:Larger Buildings
Cool
Hot
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Hot Water Distribution Piping:Larger Buildings
•Without regulation, energy will be wasted by running when hot water is not necessary
Thermostatically control the pump using:• An aquastat• A timer set to run at specified intervals
What’s the best solution?• An aquastat might lead to poor mixing performance if a boiler provides heat and hot water in the winter months• Consult a mixing valve vendor
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Regulating Hot Water Distribution Piping
Install a small pump or thermostatic device on both the hot and cold fixture supply lines to improve hot water circulation in smaller buildings or private homes
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Hot Water Distribution Piping: Small Buildings
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Hot Water Distribution Piping: Small Buildings
• Effective way of reducing water consumption• Provide incentive to reduce usage• Identify leaks
Building managers:• Add meters to individual tenants• Divide the cost of supplying water among tenants • Discourage waste
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Water Metering
Sub-Metering within the Building• Place meters of major water-consuming equipment• Provide feedback to owners about potential excessive use• Less expensive than meters used for billing purposes Metering Water Supply• Meter water flow at the source• Supplier can track how water conservation efforts is affecting overall usage• Identifies leaks or breaks in a supply main
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Water Metering
Detecting leaks• Drip gauge• Dye tablets
Improvements in Technology• NYC: Implementing water meters that report consumption over a wireless network to a central office• Alert building managers of suspicious consumption to find leaks!
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Metering Technology
A condition where a sewer system cannot process all of the water collected and must let portions of it overflow into local rivers, lakes or the oceans
After rainfall: Excess amount of sewage overflows the treatment plant’s control device and is dumped into a nearby waterway
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Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO)
Problems caused by CSOs:• Drinking water contamination• Polluted fishing areas• Public beach closures Strategies to deal with CSOs:• Divert first flush of rainwater into holding tanks or underground tunnels• Install large holding tanks to get the first flush of a building’s storm drainage system•Required in new developments in large cities (NYC, Chicago, etc.)
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Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO)
TEST YOURSELF:1. Why is it important to insulate hot water piping and cold
water piping?
2. How does the trunk-and-branch method of piping contribute to the wasting of potable water?
3. How is hot water circulation piping designed in the construction of new and larger building versus smaller or existing buildings?
4. What are the benefits of water metering within buildings?
5. What strategies can be used to mitigate CSO events?