When it Comes to Water Problems, Who Ya Gonna Call?

For those that don’t know, there’s a song called “Who Ya Gonna Call?”  It was released in a Ghostbusters movie more than 25 years ago and quickly shot to the top of the charts.

Unfortunately, when building owners and managers ask, "who ya gonna call," it has nothing to do with a song.  Instead, it is an expression many ask themselves when they have water problems in their commercial facility.

This has been elevated with COVID-19. because problems with water may also trigger liability issues.

So, let us use this blog to answer some questions building owners and managers may have regarding water matters. Further, we can suggest who is responsible for correcting them if needed.

Stagnant Water. In another blog, we discussed some of the problems that can result due to stagnant water.  If your facility is now reopening, for instance, and stagnant water is an issue, this is your responsibility to rectify, not the utility company.

Treating and Delivering.  The utility company is responsible for treating the water, ensuring it is potable, and delivering it.  After that, it is yours.

Condition of the water. You might think the utility company is responsible for the “condition” of the water.  This often refers to whether the water is hard or soft. “Hard water” contains a lot of calcium.  “Soft water” tends to have more sodium. 

The condition of the water is your responsibility.  Once it is delivered, if you want soft or hard water, you will need to purchase equipment that turns the water into the condition you want.  Note: Hard water is often better for drinking; soft water better for cleaning.

Safety of the water. Right now, this is a question being asked by many people, again due to COVID. Is the water safe to drink?  Does it contain traces of the virus?  Currently, there are no specific government guidelines involving ways to ensure water safety as it pertains to the virus.  However, this is the utility company's responsibility, and most are actively taking steps to ensure water quality and safety.

Liability issues. This can be complicated when it comes to water.  If the water delivered to a facility contains an unhealthy amount of lead, as happened in Flint, MI, then the utility company is liable for any health consequences that materialize.  But what if the water delivered is potable and healthy but contains an unhealthy amount of lead when consumed by building users? Liability issues are now shifted to building owners and managers.  The problem is most likely due to pipes and plumbing in the building.

When it comes to reopening a facility, after being closed for a long duration, building owners and managers are responsible for the quality and safety of the water in the facility.  One thing building owners/managers can do to help protect themselves should problems arise, is to document all steps they have taken to ensure water quality. 

Further, "messaging" may be necessary. Post messages in restrooms, food service areas, and wherever water using devices are installed, urging users to run the water for a few seconds before using.  This will help flush any sediment or contaminants through the pipes, ensuring only safe, healthy water is dispersed.

Why Stagnant Water is Now a COVID-19 Concern

Building owners and managers have certainly had their hands full the past few months. For instance, in the rare situation a building must shut down, it is usually a temporary situation. In a few days at most, the facility is open, and things are back to normal.

But, as we have heard repeatedly, COVID-19 has created a new normal. Instead of being closed just a few days, buildings across the U.S. have been closed for several months.

Further, now that they are re-opening, building owners that once felt comfortable working or learning in these facilities now are genuinely concerned. Not only are their worries about masks and social distancing, there are also concerns about water.

And rightfully so. When buildings remain dormant, this typically means no water is being used anywhere in the facility. But just as cars are made to be driven regularly, pipes and drains in a building are made to carry water consistently. When that stops, a host of problems can materialize.

One of the most concerning is Legionella. This is the bacteria that causes Legionnaire's disease. We typically think it is related to bacteria development in air conditioning systems. That is true. But along with being dispersed through air conditioning systems, these droplets can also be released in showers and faucets, when they are first used after several weeks or months of inactivity.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) adds that other water-related hazards may greet building users as they return. These include the following:

·   Development of non-tuberculous mycobacteria in water. Often this is transferred to people from contaminated water entering an open cut on the skin. It results in lung disease, causing people to cough frequently, passing the disease to other building users.

·   Changes in water chemistry. Stagnant water can get corroded with metals, lead, and copper.

·   The release of sewer gasses. These enter the facility because the "J" pipes underneath drains have evaporated. Sewer gasses contain many types of pathogens and bacteria that can harm human health if inhaled.

To address these issues, the CDC says that managers should do the following:

·       Before re-opening, maintenance staff, wearing PPE gear, should check water heaters, air conditioning and cooling systems, along with water fountains, and all water-using mechanicals to see if they are operating properly. 

·       Begin flushing water through these systems and mechanicals. This will get the stagnant water flowing with the goal of removing it from the facility and down drainpipes.

·       All toilets should be flushed to remove stagnant water and ensure they are operating correctly. The same goes for water-using urinals.  

·       If waterless urinals are installed, BlueSeal should be poured into the urinal trap cylinder. This is a preventive measure. BlueSeal has minimal evaporation and is designed to last for months. But it helps ensure the trap/cylinder is working correctly.

·       Finally, we need to ensure drainpipes are not releasing sewer odors. While maintenance personnel can pour about a half-gallon of water down all drains, this may be a temporary "fix." A more permanent fix would be to pour a few ounces of EverPrime down drains. This fills in the J trap, blocking sewer gasses and also lasts for months.

This last point - that it lasts for months - may need to be heeded. As this is being written, states in many parts of the U.S. are considering postponing their re-openings. This is due to a rise in COVID cases. Because EverPrime lasts so long, sewer odor problems should not be an issue even if the facility must be closed again until conditions improve.

For more information click here.

Tips on how to handle Restroom Vandalism

Photo by Surchesth

In February 2019, the high-school newspaper of a Wisconsin school had the following headline: "Vandals Overrun the Bathrooms." The story details how vandalism in the bathrooms — more specifically, the boys’ bathrooms — is a growing concern. According to the article, toilets are filled to the brim with paper products, soap dispensers are broken and urinal flush valves are tampered with. Further, garbage cans are flipped upside down, some doors are off their hinges and garbage is "flooding the floors."

One boys’ bathroom is now closed indefinitely, according to the paper, with no estimate as to when it will be reopened. The school has notified students and parents that they only have "so much money" to spend on repairs and they don't want to ask teachers and staff to give up their free time to supervise bathrooms. As to who the culprits are, the article does not provide names or answers. What it does say is that "the school knows these events are on the rise during lunch and after school."

This same situation is occurring in schools throughout the country in varying degrees. It’s degrading to teachers, students and their parents. It makes schools unsafe, negatively impacts morale and, unfortunately, vandalism tends to breed more vandalism, making this an ongoing problem.

There may be several reasons why boys vandalize restrooms. Some studies say it is caused by school bullies, while other studies say it is the boys that are bullied that are the ones causing vandalism. Possibly it’s anger release either way. Maybe it's just part of growing up.

We will let the experts figure it out, and possibly provide some answers as to how to stop it. In the meantime, our focus here is on how to deal with it. The following are some suggestions for school administrators.

To read on, click here…

What Do N-Grams have to do with Waterless Urinals?

Recent studies indicate that the selection and installation of waterless urinals are on the increase and should continue to rise for from here on.

Most of these studies were conducted using manufacturers and distribution data as well as information provided by hundreds of retailers worldwide. This is a useful way to determine sales.

However, there is another way to determine the popularity of a product.

Popularity can be predicted by finding out how often the name of the product is used. And to find this out, we can use a tool called an n-gram viewer.

Google has the most popular n-gram viewer available. The system searches how often a specified term is used in thousands, if not millions, of books and related publications over a particular time period.

Let’s look at an example.

If we use an n-gram viewer to determine how often the word "television" has been used over time, we find that surprisingly, the term was being used as early as the late 1800s. However, the meaning of the word "television" then may not be how we use it today. Most likely, it is not even the same thing.

More relevant to our investigation, the n-gram tells us that the use of the word "television" really took off in the early to mid-1920s. I wonder if this has anything to do with the fact that most of the initial research into television technology started in the early 1920s. Think so?

And maybe as well because the first successful demonstration of television was on September 7, 1927, in San Francisco, California.

So, now that we have a better idea of how an n-gram works, let's see what it tells us about the words "waterless urinal."

What we find is that before 1900, the term “waterless urinal” was never used. The word "urinal" was being used, having been developed in the late 1800s, but the words “waterless urinal” together were not part of the vernacular.

However, starting in 1900, the term was being used, reaching a peak in 1907. Sure enough, waterless urinals first came on the market in Europe in the 1900s.  We should point out, however, these urinals were not built using the same technologies we use today.

By about 1911, the number of times we find the words “waterless urinal” in books and publications was just about zilch.

But eighty years later, in 1991, use of the term started climbing again. Why 1991? That was when Waterless Co., Inc., introduced waterless urinals in the United States.

After that, the popularity of the term continued to climb, until about 2004, when it declined slightly. At that time, it was revealed that some water-free systems were causing odor problems, which may have caused the downslide.

The situation reversed itself again in 2007. The n-gram shows another jump in the use of “waterless urinals” and it appears to be continuing.

Although we cannot use an n-gram to determine actual sales numbers or the sales performance of any product, we can still learn a lot. Based on how often the term “waterless urinal” is being used today, it looks like there is more interest in the product, and most likely this is because more people are selecting them for their homes and commercial facilities.

There's a New Term Out Their Due to COVID-19: Social Piss-Tancing

As we know, COVID-19 is turning the entire world upside down.  For instance, we are now using terms every day that were rarely used before. And in some cases, new words are being created to address COVID-related issues.

One that is now making the rounds in the restroom fixture industry is "social piss-tancing."

Here is how this all came about. 

Studies back in March revealed that traces of the pathogens that cause COVID had been found in urine.

What makes this a concern is that when urine splatters in the water of a water-using urinal, or when a urinal is flushed, it can cause what is termed "plume" to be released into the air.

The plume is essentially a bundle of particulates, including moisture, bacteria, germs, and pathogens, that become airborne. In time, they come down and cling to walls, floors, and surfaces surrounding toilets or urinals. 

But when airborne, there is also a chance these bundles of pathogens can be inhaled.

When this happens, someone can become sick with the disease.

To prevent this and protect health, we need social piss-tancing.

Currently, in the U.S., most urinals are installed about 30 inches to 48 inches apart. 

Usually, in airports, convention centers, and other busy facilities, we find them the closest together. This allows developers to install many more urinals, but this also heightens the possibility of more plume being released into the air.

Adding to the closeness of the situation, many urinals are no longer separated by partitions.  This means, any splatter or plume released from a traditional, water-using urinal, not only finds its way onto nearby surfaces, but on to your clothing and the clothing of other fellows in the restroom.

To help prevent some of these issues and protect health, advocates for more social piss-tancing in men's restrooms are asking for the following:

·      More space between urinals, 50 inches or more, six feet if possible.

·      Closing or removing every other urinal in existing buildings. This would be a very cost-effective option.

·      The return of partitions.  These were removed years ago to cut costs and to make it easier to clean restrooms. However, they did serve a purpose, helping to keep plume within each urinal's immediate area.

·      Taller partitions. Along with bringing them back, many advocates want partitions to be floor to ceiling, further minimizing plume issues. Additionally, partitions are now only required to extend six inches beyond the urinal.  These advocates would like to see that doubled or even tripled.

·      Installing totally enclosed urinal stalls.  This is the costliest option, making it low on the list of possibilities. 

·      Installation of no-water or waterless urinals. Installing waterless urinals would virtually eliminate the health problems associated with plume.  This is because with no water, there is extraordinarily little splatter, and there is no flushing with waterless urinals. This means waterless urinals virtually eliminate the plume problem.

Interestingly, recent studies have indicated that the next decade or so will be the era of waterless urinals.  Their many benefits, such as reducing water and energy consumption, are now well recognized and appreciated, which explains one reason for the uptick in sales.

However, these new studies were conducted before COVID.  What many now anticipate is that even more waterless urinals than expected will be installed around the world.  This is because we now realize that not only can they help reduce water and energy consumption, they can also help protect health, making them more needed than ever.

“More information on plume and coronavirus can be found here.”

The Seven U.S. Cities Where Water Bills Have Gone Up the Most

If you’ve noticed your water bills going up lately, you are not alone.

A recent study by Circle of Blue, a worldwide water information center, says water and water removal rates are surging in the U.S.

Overall, they have gone up more than 30 percent in the past decade. And in some areas of the country, such as Baltimore, they have more than doubled.

The main reason these rates are snowballing is that most water utility companies now realize it will be up to them to rebuild or improve their water infrastructure. The Federal government has provided few resources.

Further, with most funds now going to address coronavirus and getting the economy up and going, few if any more funds are expected.

“Most of the pipes in the U.S. were installed in the mid-20th century,” says Klaus Reichardt, CEO, and Founder of Waterless, CO., Inc., manufacturers of no-water urinals for home and office, as well as other restroom products. 

“A 2017 report from the American Society of Civil Engineers gave U.S. water infrastructure a grade “D.” However, some areas of the country did better and received a grade “D+.”

So, what U.S. cities have seen their water bills escalate the most? According to Reichardt, the cost of approximately 50 gallons of water has gone up the most in the following cities:

1.   Fresno led the way with a 14.7 percent increase.

2.   Baltimore, 9.7 percent

3.   Chicago, 9.6 percent

4.   San Jose, 8 percent

5.   Tucson, 7.9 percent

6.   Phoenix 7.5 percent

7.   San Francisco, 7.4 percent.

In the past, Reichardt has suggested that by installing water-reducing technologies, such as waterless urinals, we can help mitigate these increased costs. However, that has become more complicated in recent years.

“What’s happening is some [water] utility companies are charging more for water because we are using less. Still, those consumers that have reduced consumption will pay less for water than those that have not.”

Hop-On Board and Go to the Bathroom

If you’ve been paying attention to our blog, then you know we are a firm believer in ingenuity to help solve many of the water-related problems the world is facing. Waterless urinals, for example, have saved billions of gallons of water per year and will save billions more, now that more facilities are installing them.

This is just one example of how ingenuity, put to work, is addressing water concerns. There are many, many more.

However, we recently came across another ingenious invention that we found interesting. It does not deal with urinals specifically, or even saving water necessarily, but certainly applies to ingenuity and public restrooms.

In India, a couple of entrepreneurs have turned 12 old city buses into rolling public restrooms. Currently, these rolling restrooms, which are all painted pink, are for women only.  But they have become an instant success.

Plans for blue buses, for men, are right around the corner.

While they are referred to as “washrooms on wheels,” these really are not rolling washrooms. They typically are parked but moved at the end of the day.

Drivers try to park them in the same locations every day, so women know where to find them. Very often, women are already lined up at those locations, long before the bus arrives.

Users pay five rupees - about ten cents - to get on board. What they find are safe, hygienic, clean restrooms; something that can be very hard to find in many parts of India. The restrooms are cleaned regularly throughout the day. 

Further, they have water and electricity. As we shall discuss later, these are also a rarity in Indian public restrooms.

In addition to providing women with a safe, clean, and healthy restroom, they also are equipped with private breastfeeding and baby changing stations. While it may cost a few rupees more, these stations are equipped with sanitary towels, nappies (diapers), and other items used to care for babies.

They have become such a hit, the two entrepreneurs that started the company plan to add dozens more buses, parking them throughout India in the coming years.

But their inventiveness did not stop there. One of their significant obstacles to getting these washrooms on wheels rolling was energy. At first, they would leave the motors on the buses running, providing power to light the restroom areas and pump water to and from fixtures. But this became costly and produced harmful carbon dioxide. To address this, the buses were installed with solar panels mounted over the wheels.  This provides enough energy to light the buses and pump water.

As for water specifically the buses are filled in the morning. The waste is then properly deposited at the end of the day.

You might think this is all quite interesting, even cute. But then, you might not know that in India, finding a safe, clean, and healthy restroom with water and electricity is a rare find. The situation is so bad that the Prime Minister has created a program called “Clean India.” The main goal of the program is to build millions of public restrooms throughout the country during the decade.  That shows just how much they are needed.

For more information on how to reduce water consumption, waterless urinals, and to use water more efficiently, contact a Waterless Co Specialist

Thoughts on Home Urinals

A few years back, some people were installing home urinals primarily to make some type of design statement, make their bathrooms stand out, or have something nobody else had in their bathrooms.

Very often, these were unusual looking urinals, nothing like what we see in public restrooms.  Typically, they were colorful, uniquely designed urinals, looking like giant frogs, fish heads, snails, even cactus plants.

Today, however, we are finding more and more urinals installed in home bathrooms, but now they are no longer a fashion or décor statement.  Instead, they invariably look just like the urinals installed in men's public restrooms, and are installed for very practical purposes.

The following are stories about some men that have installed home urinals in their homes and their thoughts about them:

Kris Karnsworth, Oklahoma

The master bathroom of the home Kris purchased in 2013, had the typical bathroom arrangement: two sinks, toilet, bathtub, and a separate shower.  When updating the bathroom, he realized, as many people do, it's been ages since he took a bath.  So why go through the process – and the added costs - of installing a fancy bathtub.  Instead, "we punched out one wall and put in a big shower.  We had this drain leftover from where the old shower used to be, so I had the idea of putting in a urinal.  We had the space and the plumbing for it."

Now that the home urinal is installed, Kris says it offers many conveniences, "no one must worry about putting up or down the toilet seat, and it just seems to make sense.  It wasn't like it was some statement or anything, it just works for us."

Jerry of Arizona

Jerry and his wife also remodeled their master bathroom. “One night, my wife woke up at 3 a.m. with what she called an ‘epiphany.’ The next morning, she told me, ‘We’re not going to have a bathtub, we’re going to have a urinal!’ I didn’t say anything.  She’d already made up her mind.”

It was a good idea Jerry decided not to say anything.  It turns out that purchasing and installing the urinal would only cost about $500. To purchase and install the extravagant bathtub under consideration, would have been around $10,000.

Now, years later, Jerry still thinks installing the home urinal was a wise decision. “I’m fortunate enough that I live in a nice house. I’ve worked hard for it over my years, and the house has a lot of nice features, but I tell you, [when people come over], the number one thing they always talk about is that urinal. They love it.”

Curt Slater, Minnesota

When Curt and his wife were remodeling their home's basement, they both made a list of the things they would like to have installed.  At the top of his wife's list was a rock fireplace.  At the top of his list was a home urinal.

"See, before, whenever I had my buddies over, my wife would remark about how sloppy we all were, and now with the urinal, it cuts down on the splashing, and it's much easier to clean. It also just looks like a nicer bathroom with the urinal in there."

Apparently, his buddies and their wives agreed. "I put my home urinal in seven years ago, and since then, I know nine other people who have put urinals in their homes after seeing mine," adding "now my wife has her rock fireplace, I have my urinal, and everyone is happy."

Some of these home urinals were traditional, water-using urinals, while others were waterless urinals.  When it comes to costs, flexibility, and practicality, installing a waterless urinal is typically the best option.  They have fewer plumbing needs, are invariably less costly, and easier to install.

For more information on how to reduce water consumption, waterless urinals, and to use water more efficiently, contact a Waterless Co Specialist

Does This Mean Boeing Is Going Waterless?

In January 2020, the United States Patent and Trademark Office published an application for a “waterless urinal” and “waterless urinal cartridge.” This typically would not be news.

Because the market for no-water urinals is expected to grow significantly over the next decade, several restroom fixture manufacturers are jumping into the no-water urinal marketplace.

However, this application was different. Instead of being from a restroom fixture manufacturer, it was from Boeing, the company that makes passenger airliners. An abstract from the patent office referencing the application reads as follows:

A waterless urinal cartridge for waterless urinals includes a housing and a cover. The housing includes a waste reservoir configured to hold a predetermined volume of wastewater, and a drainage aperture configured so that an amount of wastewater exceeding the predetermined volume of wastewater flows through the drainage aperture to exit the housing.

But why the patent and why are they doing this?

Boeing is planning on installing urinal-only restrooms in some future airliners. It is believed that by installing urinal-only bathrooms, airlines will be able to carry a few more passengers when air travel returns to normal.

But why waterless urinals? The answer to that is Boeing discovered the following facts about waterless urinals that many building owners and managers are already aware of:

Waterless urinals tend to be less costly to purchase than traditional urinals. Primarily, this is because there are so many fewer parts.

They are less costly to install. A waterless urinal needs to be connected to the sewage pipe. That is all. No water or water connections are required nor the plumbing that comes along with them. On an airliner, the waterless urinals would be connected to an onboard reservoir that holds wastewater until it can be emptied at an airport.

Waterless urinals are most likely lighter than traditional urinals. While weight is rarely an issue when a no-water urinal is installed in a building, weight is everything on an airliner. The more weight the plane can shed, the more fuel-efficient it is. It’s highly likely that Boeing had their own form of “weigh-in,” and found waterless urinals, because of their fewer plumbing needs, came in lighter.

Because waterless urinals have fewer plumbing requirements, there is greater flexibility as to where they are installed. Boeing probably found this to be a significant plus.

Waterless urinals are easy to clean. Whether installed onboard a plane or in a restroom, in most cases, a waterless urinal just needs to be wiped clean using an all-purpose cleaner. A disinfectant can also be used once the urinal has been cleaned, adhering to cleaning “best practices.” However, no abrasive powder cleaners are necessary. Usually, powder cleaners are used to remove water stains and spots. These do not develop with a waterless urinal.

No-water urinals tend to be odor-free. It is water combined with urine, which increases the chances that bacteria will develop in the interior of the urinal. Without water, bacteria cannot survive, minimizing if not eliminating the opportunity that odors will develop.

Most men are accustomed to using waterless urinals now, unlike a decade or more ago when a sign had to be posted—“use it and then walk away.” Today, most gentlemen have used no-water urinals at school, in the office, at trade conventions and elsewhere. In fact, they are so accustomed to them, they often wonder why more facilities do not install waterless urinals.