Water Savings Tips for Business

A recent study showed that 99% of business managers surveyed ranked water conservation as a "top five" priority over the next decade.

Here are a few tips on how you can adjust water use within your business to drastically reduce water costs:

Company Motivation

  • Create a suggestion and incentives system at your organization to recognize water-saving ideas.
  • Include a water-saving tip in your employee newsletter. Find over 100 tips at the Water Use It Wisely website.
  • Implement a water management plan for your facility, then educate employees on good water habits through newsletters and posters.
  • Publish your organization’s monthly water use to show progress toward water-saving goals.
  • Invite your water utility conservation staff to your organization for Earth Day and other environmental events to help promote water savings.
  • Water audit your facility to find out your recommended water use, then monitor your utility bills to gauge your monthly consumption.
  • Become or appoint a water ambassador within your organization who creates, implements and maintains your water conservation program.
  • Become a proud WaterSense® partner and let all your customers know.
  • As part of the WaterSense® Fix-A-Leak Week in March, plan an employee campaign to look for leaks.
  • Show your company’s dedication to water conservation through a policy statement. Commit management, staff and resources to the effort.
  • Create a goal of how much water your company can save and plan a celebration once that goal is met.
  • Ask employees for suggestions on saving water and give prizes for the best ideas. Incentivize it!
  • Write feature articles on your employee website that highlight water-saving ideas and successes.
  • Test your co-workers or employees on topics like xeriscape, WaterSense®, and high-efficiency toilets. See how water-wise they are.
  • Ask your company to support water conservation events and education. ProjectWet hosts local events throughout the country.

Indoors

  • Install an instant water heater near your kitchen sink so you don’t have to run the water while it heats up. This also reduces energy costs.
  • Upgrade older toilets with water-saving WaterSense® labeled models.
  • Install water-saving aerators on all of your faucets.
  • Look for WaterSense® labeled toilets, sink faucets, urinals and showerheads.
  • Some commercial refrigerators and ice-makers are cooled with water. Upgrade to air-cooled appliances for significant water savings.
  • Post a hotline in bathrooms and kitchens to report leaks or water waste to facility managers or maintenance personnel.
  • Have maintenance personnel regularly check your facilities for leaks, drips and other water waste.
  • If you use processed water in your business or facility, look into water recycling.
  • Consider and compare water use when purchasing:
    • Coolers and cleaning equipment
    • Dishwashers
    • Ice makers
    • Reverse osmosis units
  • Determine how your on-site water is being used by installing sub-meters where feasible, then monitoring for savings.
  • Conduct a facility water use inventory and identify water management goals.
  • Don’t forget hidden water use costs, like energy for pumping, heating and cooling, chemical treatment, and damage and sewer expenses.
  • Shut off water to unused areas of your facility to eliminate waste from leaks or unmonitored use.
  • Scrape dishes rather than rinsing them before washing.
  • Use water-conserving ice makers.
  • If your facility relies on cooling towers, have maintenance maximize cycles of concentration by providing efficient water treatment.
  • When buying new appliances, consider those that offer cycle and load size adjustments. They are more water and energy efficient.
  • When ice cubes are leftover from your drink, don’t throw them out. Pour them on a plant.

Outdoors

  • Saving water on your landscape adds up quickly. Send the person in charge of your landscape to an irrigation workshop.
  • Marry the weather with your landscape water use. Water use should decrease during rainy periods and increase during hot, dry periods.
  • Be sure your irrigation system is watering only the areas intended, with no water running onto walks, streets or down the gutter.
  • While cleaning sidewalks, a hose and nozzle use 8 to 12 gallons of water per minute. A pressurized Waterbroom® uses closer to 3 gallons.
  • Inspect your landscape irrigation system regularly for leaks or broken sprinkler heads and adjust pressures to specification.
  • Give your landscape proper amounts of irrigation water. Determine water needs, water deeply but infrequently, and adjust to the season.
  • Establish a monthly water budget for your landscape based on the water needs of your plants.
  • Limit turf areas at your facility. Instead, landscape using xeriscape principles to cut water use in half.
  • Put decorative fountains on timers and use only during work or daylight hours. Check for leaks if you have automatic refilling devices.
  • Wash company vehicles at commercial car washers that recycle water.
  • Wash company vehicles as needed rather than on a schedule. Stretch out the time in between washes.
  • Consider turning your high-maintenance water feature/fountain into a low-maintenance art feature or planter.
  • Support projects that use reclaimed wastewater for irrigation and industrial uses.