Ten Things to Consider Before Selecting Waterless Urinals

When evaluating and considering the installation of waterless urinals, most facility managers and building owners focus on just one thing: water savings. While this is a significant benefit, several key factors should be considered before selecting waterless urinals for your facility.

1. Do You Understand How the Technology Works?

 Waterless urinals operate on a simple principle-they don't use water to drain urine from the bowl. Instead, they rely on gravity to direct the urine into a cartridge filled with a liquid sealant. This cartridge not only guides the urine into the sewer line but also prevents odors from escaping into the restroom.

2. Is Your Facility a Good Fit?

 Waterless urinals, with their adaptability and efficiency, are most found in high-traffic public and commercial buildings, such as schools, stadiums, airports, and mid- to -large office complexes. They're typically best suited for facilities with a large number of building users.

3. Do You Have the Right Information?

 Before making a purchasing decision, it's essential to research how these urinals work, how they're installed, maintained, and whether they're compatible with your building's plumbing. Installing them in decades old, corroded plumbing, might be an issue.  In newer facilities, it is not an issue. Online resources can provide valuable insights.

4. Are You Aware of the Benefits?

 Beyond conserving water, waterless urinals can reduce utility bills, lower maintenance costs, reduce vandalism, and are quicker and easier to clean, reducing custodial expenses. They may also cost less to install than traditional urinals.

5. Do You Know About Concerns?

 Oder issues were once a concern usually due to improper cleaning and maintenance.

6. Do You Know How to Clean Them?

 Cleaning waterless urinals is simpler than cleaning conventional urinals, but it must be done correctly to ensure optimal performance. Some models should not be cleaned with any water whatsoever, as this can damage the cartridge. Instead, use a general-purpose cleaner or sanitizer, along with a cleaning cloth, to wipe down the urinal.

7. Are You Familiar with Product Options?

 While most waterless urinals function similarly, the lifespan of cartridges varies by brand. Some last for months, while others require frequent replacement, which can impact maintenance costs.

8. Is LEED Certification a Goal?

 LEED v5 awards points for installing water-saving fixtures such as waterless urinals, which can significantly contribute to certification.

9. Is your building or company sustainability-focused?

One reason LEED v5 provides credits toward certification for installing waterless urinals is that it believes water scarcity will become a more pressing reality in regions around the world, including the U.S. Installing waterless urinals aligns perfectly with sustainability-focused organizations.

10. Are you aware of the lifespan of a waterless urinal?

Waterless urinals last as long, if not longer, than conventional users because there are no flush handles. But one more thing: to ensure their longevity, select a waterless urinal with a traditional look. Unusual urinal designs are available, but typically, these go out of style in a very short time.  

Key Takeaway

Focusing on all these issues allows managers and building owners to determine if selecting waterless urinals are right for them. In a growing number of cases, the right choice is waterless.

Contact us for more information: www.waterless.com

Water Risk Assessments: Learn How to Protect Your Business from Water Scarcity

Water Risk Assessments play a crucial role in identifying and managing risks related to water scarcity, pollution, and flooding throughout business operations and supply chains. 

🚰Conducting a water risk assessment offers specific benefits: 

🚰Pinpoints areas where your business is vulnerable to water-related disruptions

🚰 Enhances business resilience and enables proactive strategies to mitigate risks  

🚰Provides insights into future water availability and quality, aiding in informed decisions about facility location

🚰 Reduces losses from disrupted production, higher operating costs, and damage to reputation  

🚰Demonstrates a commitment to sustainable water management, essential for investors and stakeholders.  

A water risk assessment is vital for businesses looking to secure their operations and uphold sustainable practices.

 Ask Waterless Co., Inc to help you conduct a water risk assessment.

Happy July 4th and Let's All Remember What this Country Stands For

Read All About It: Los Angeles Uses 43% Less Water Today than in 1990

Read All About It: Los Angeles Uses 43% Less WaterToday than in 1990

You’ve probably come across more stories about water woes in California than you can recall.

Over the last half century or so, millions more people have moved to greater Los Angeles, requiring more faucets, toilets and shower heads.

😲But Get This:  Angelenos are consuming 43% less water today than in 1990.

https://lnkd.in/gYgb5XKe

Recommended Outdoor Heat Safety Strategies

Heat waves are now more frequent and intense, lasting an average of 72 days—up from 22 in the 1960s. To protect employees, businesses should adopt a comprehensive safety plan that includes multiple strategies.

🥵Designate a responsible individual to continuously monitor temperature levels for outdoor staff

🥵Implement a gradual acclimatization process, allowing new workers to adapt to hot temperatures

🥵Recognize the signs of heat stress including muscle cramps, excessive sweating, dizziness, headaches, and confusion

🥵Shift outdoor work to cooler parts of the day, such as early mornings 

🥵Ensure availability of essential resources like shade, cold water and designated cooling stations

🥵Consider providing cooling vests in addition to standard PPE

🥵Be proactive, not reactive.

 Contact Waterless Co., Inc. for more suggestions on keeping your outdoor staff healthy. www.waterless.com

Make sure your building’s urinals are doing this:

☝️Reducing your facility’s water consumption

☝️Lessening your facility's energy consumption

☝️Cutting greenhouse gas emissions

☝️Making your restroom cleaner and more hygienic

☝️Decreasing the workload of cleaning workers

☝️Eliminating flush control repair bills

☝️Providing you with tax breaks and rebates

☝️Showing building users that you care about protecting natural resources

Let’s put your restroom fixtures to work for you. Contact www.waterless.com

The Role Facility Managers Play in Promoting Water Sustainability

As global awareness of water sustainability grows, it’s essential that facilities managers recognize their important role in this effort.

Water sustainability involves managing water resources efficiently and fairly to ensure long-term availability for current and future generations. It’s not just about conserving water—it’s about preserving the quality and supply of freshwater across all sectors, including commercial buildings.

This movement gained momentum in 2010 when the United Nations declared access to clean water a basic human right, underscoring its significance to health, dignity, and economic stability.

The resolution was driven by projections that population growth, urbanization, and economic expansion would sharply increase global water demand. According to UN studies, two-thirds of the world’s population could face water shortages—and North America is not immune.

Why Facilities Managers Must Act

Changes in our climate have intensified the urgency. Shifting weather patterns and rising temperatures are affecting global water supplies.

Some rainy regions are drying up, while typically arid areas are experiencing heavy rainfall. More frequent natural disasters like floods and droughts are damaging infrastructure and disrupting water distribution and treatment systems—further straining water availability.

Commercial buildings contribute significantly to this issue. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that nearly 10% of all water use in the country occurs in commercial facilities. Office buildings are a major part of that, with each tenant using about 20 gallons per day. The main uses? Restrooms, HVAC systems, and landscaping.

This gives facilities managers a unique opportunity—and responsibility—to lead water sustainability efforts.

Solutions for Water Sustainability

Here are some proven and emerging strategies that facilities managers can implement:

Desalination

Desalination turns seawater into drinkable water by removing salt and minerals. While traditionally expensive, recent advancements have reduced costs by 45%, making it a more viable option in many regions.

Rainwater Harvesting

This involves collecting and storing rainwater for later use. Once a basic survival method, it’s now supported by modern infrastructure and government programs. Harvested water can be used for irrigation, cooling, and flushing toilets.

Water-Efficient Fixtures

Installing low-flow toilets, faucets, waterless urinals, and smart irrigation systems can significantly reduce water use. These technologies also raise awareness—users often become more conscious of their consumption when such systems are in place.

Water Reuse

Advanced treatment facilities can now filter and purify wastewater for reuse. Many buildings also use onsite non-potable water reuse systems (ONWS), which recycle greywater for non-drinking purposes like flushing and landscaping.

Facilities Managers as Water Stewards

Facilities managers are on the front lines of the sustainability movement. By adopting these technologies and practices, they can greatly reduce their buildings’ water footprint and help address the global water crisis.

Their efforts not only conserve a precious resource but also promote a culture of sustainability within the workplace. With the right tools and strategies, facility managers can play a critical role in ensuring water availability for future generations.

Klaus Reichardt is the founder and CEO of Waterless Co. Inc., a provider of waterless urinals and restroom products. He can be reached at www.waterless.com.

Artificial Intelligence Increases the Need for Water Efficiency

As artificial intelligence expands, it is driving a hidden environmental cost: massive water consumption, especially in data centers that power AI systems. These facilities require massive amounts of water for cooling.

For example:

Training AI Systems: A University of California study found that training an AI system for text processing in one language requires up to 500,000 gallons of water. This amount could produce fifty-six cars or fill more than ten swimming pools. (See Sidebar: What is an AI language model?)

Daily Queries: Each AI search query consumes approximately one cup of water. But, with 66 percent of the global population already using AI technologies regularly, according to Forbes magazine, these individual queries add up quickly to billions of cups of water.

Data Center Operations: A single large-scale AI data center consumes between 3 and 5 million gallons of water daily just for cooling. This is equivalent to the daily water usage of a town with 50,000 residents.

AI’s demand for water exacerbates global water scarcity and puts pressure on local ecosystems. However, innovative water-saving technologies are emerging, such as:

• Air-based cooling systems for data centers

• Closed-loop water recycling

• Submersion cooling

• Seawater cooling

Further, these data centers are taking other steps to reduce water consumption such as landscaping with natural vegetation and installing water efficient fixtures in restrooms, including waterless urinals.

These solutions, often powered by AI itself, are essential to reducing the industry's water footprint.

AI is here to stay, so what we must do now is commit to broader water efficiency practices, including in homes and commercial spaces, and especially in water-stressed regions like California.

We need responsible AI development that aligns technological progress with sustainable water use.

-Klaus

Sidebar: What is an AI language model?

An AI language model is a type of artificial intelligence designed to understand and generate human-like text. It is trained on vast amounts of data to recognize patterns in language, enabling it to answer questions, provide explanations, generate creative content, and even refine messaging for clarity and impact. (This sidebar was AI generated)

Why Install a Commercial Drip Irrigation System

What is a Commercial Drip Irrigation System?

A drip irrigation system is a network of pipes, valves, tubing, and emitters that deliver water and nutrients at a controlled rate directly to the soil. This precise application offers numerous advantages for commercial properties, including:

• Superior Water Efficiency: With up to 95% of water infiltrating the soil, runoff and evaporation are virtually eliminated.

• Healthier Plant Life: By keeping foliage dry, drip irrigation helps prevent common plant diseases associated with excessive moisture on leaves.

• Reduced Weed Growth: Water is targeted only to specific plants, limiting water to weeds.

• Automated Precision: Most systems operate on timers or smart controllers, ensuring irrigation occurs only when and where it's needed.

• Remote Management: Modern drip irrigation systems can be monitored and controlled via smartphone apps, with some utilizing artificial intelligence to suggest optimal watering schedules based on historical data and weather patterns.

Direct Root Delivery

Implementing a drip irrigation system is a proactive step towards significant water efficiency. By delivering water directly to the root zone of plants, these systems eliminate the waste associated with traditional overhead watering methods.

Is Installing a Drip Irrigation System Difficult?

Contrary to past perceptions, modern drip irrigation systems are designed for straightforward installation, which has also helped reduce costs. With user-friendly components, in-house maintenance staff can often install these systems without the need for external contractors.

However, there are some essential components of an efficient system that should not be overlooked. These are the following:

• Backflow Preventer: This crucial component prevents irrigation water from siphoning back into the facility's main water supply, avoiding contamination.

• Sediment Filter: A filter is necessary to block particulates that could clog the emitters and compromise the system. These should be cleaned two to three times per year.

• Pressure Reducer: Drip systems operate best under low water pressure. A pressure reducer maintains the pressure at an optimal level, typically around 30 psi, to protect the system's longevity and ensure its long-term reliability.

Seasonal Maintenance for Your Drip Irrigation System

It is important to note that drip irrigation systems should not be used during freezing winter months. Steps must be taken to winterize the system, which includes completely draining the pipes. An air compressor can be used to blow out any remaining water.

A Smart Investment in Water Efficiency

The long-term rewards of installing a drip irrigation system are substantial. This includes:

·       Significant reduction in water consumption and water-related costs

·       Healthier landscapes

·       Minimized weed management

·       Surprisingly quick return on the investment.

When seeking ways to reduce water consumption beyond restrooms, facility managers should consider commercial drip irrigation systems as a straightforward path to enhancing sustainability and protecting our most valuable natural resource: water.

As a leading advocate for water efficiency, Waterless Co., Inc. highly recommends that our customers and all facility managers consider installing commercial drip irrigation systems. They have become a cornerstone of modern, efficient water management.