Install a Shower Flow Control to Save Water

A Shower Flow Control valve is an inexpensive way to save water when you shower.  At the very least, you can use the control valve to:

• Turn off the water while lathering up with soap.  This could be done with the faucet, but then you will have to find that "perfect" temperature again when the water is turned on again, and waste water doing so.
• Turn any shower head into a "low-flow" shower head by using the control valve to set a "maximum" limit for the flow rate of water to the shower head.  Again, this could be done with the faucet, many faucets (like mine) are either open or closed, and the only controls are for the temperature.

This is relatively easy, especially if you have changed a shower head before.  You will need the control valve, Teflon tape, and might need joint pliers:

Here is the shower head before any changes:

I had to give the shower head a quarter turn counter-clockwise (lefty-loosey) with the joint pliers, and then I was able to remove it the rest of the way by hand.  Here we can see the old Teflon tape from when I installed the shower head.  That should be removed and replaced with fresh tape.

Here is a blurry shot of the pipe after cleaning off the old teflon tape.  I find it useful to use something with a point like a nail to dig out the old, crusty tape.  Just be careful to avoid damaging the threads:

You will need to wrap new Teflon tape onto the threads.  Thought I had a picture of this--sorry everyone!  When I put on Teflon tape,  I wrap it clockwise so that it will not be peeled off when the shower head (or in this case, the control valve) is installed.

The control valve itself is simple and inexpensive.  The valve turns continuously clockwise or counterclockwise to turn the water off and back on. Yours may or may not have stops for "on" and "off". Remember to put Teflon tape on the threads before installing the control valve:

The control valve is installed by twisting it on clockwise (righty-tighty). After hand tightening as much as I could, I used the joint pliers to give it an additional quarter turn. No need to strong-arm this; it needs to be just tight enough that it won't leak or loosen through normal usage.  This is a fine time to turn on the shower and check that the valve operates properly, and that the connection does not leak. Pictured here is the installed control valve.  Also, you can also see Teflon tape applied to the threads of the control valve, for the upcoming installation of the shower head:

Finally, the shower head is re-installed.  I did not need the joint pliers here--hand tightening was sufficient, though your mileage may vary.  Compare this to the picture at the beginning of the post and you will see that it doesn't make much of a difference in the positioning of the shower head.

Happy Greening!

-

Andy

More Sealing

My house has a gas furnace and a gas hot water tank.  Each of them occupies its very own closet in the hallway.  The thing about gas appliances is they need to breathe--they need a steady supply of oxygen to feed the flame.  Without a vent of some kind, the flame will either starve or--worse--it will "flash" out toward any oxygen source it can find--such as the oxygen coming in through the cracks around the closet door!

To mitigate this, a vent tube leading to the attic is installed to provide a steady supply to the appliance.  However, for our purposes, this becomes a liability in the pursuit of running our HVAC systems efficiently because that vital attic-air in the closet will exchange with the air inside the rest of the house.  Best if we can keep that attic-air tightly quarantined in the closet so our HVAC system won't have to work to treat that untreated air (not to mention the potential for particulate to wander down from the attic).

The good news is that we can seal the closets very easily and inexpensively.  I used a combination of two products--the "Draft Dodger" (often As Seen on TV) and foam tape--the same kind often used to weather-strip an exterior door.

"Draft Dodger" seals the gap at the bottom of the door.

Foam tape seals the door shut.

--

Happy Greening!

Andy

Caulk & Seal

If you can squeeze toothpaste from a tube, you can just as easily caulk and seal your house against energy-sapping leaks and cracks.  This task can get a be a little messy and sticky until you figure out the nuances of using caulk and expanding foam, but it is a great complement to other ideas like having your ducts sealed or sealing your outlets and switches.

Exterior

Take a walk around the outside of your house and look for gaps in the siding.  If your house is on a foundation, get low and inspect where the walls meet the slab, and inspect particularly where two materials meet to make a seam.  Fill small holes and cracks with a caulk formulated for concrete and/or mortar repairs.  Use a caulking gun to apply a liberal amount of caulk into the gap, and then follow behind with your finger or a rag to smooth out the material and push the excess into any remaining gaps.

If you find gaps too large to fill with caulk, you can use a can of expanding foam. Spray-on expanding foam comes out of the can as a wet, sticky "goo," so take care to ensure that you don't get it on yourself.  Follow the instructions on the can which indicate that you should fill the gap to less-than-50% full.

The expanding foam will expand.  You might be surprised how much it will grow!

Both of these products are difficult to save--that is, once opened, they tend to dry out quickly...especially the expanding foam (the instructions even indicate to expect only one use per can.)  So, plan on using up all the material, or coordinate with a friend or neighbor to share the cost and use of each.  This way, two households will gain the "green" benefits and less ends up in the landfill.

Expanding foam in a large gap where the siding meets the foundation.  This stuff really expands!

Concrete/mortar repair caulk at the seam between the wall and concrete foundation on the front porch.

Interior

Sealed-up kitchen drain pipe.

Much like the caulking for the exterior, a tube of caulk on the interior can close up many of the small cracks and leaks that lets our heated and cooled air escape into the interior of our walls and then into the attic.

Checking behind my stove, I discovered that the electrical outlet for the stove was surrounded by gaps on all four sides.  Similarly, the water supply lines and drain pipes that come out of the wall underneath my sinks all had wide gaps that was letting conditioned air seep straight out.

Bonus!

As much as this does to keep your heated and cooled air inside the house, it also serves to keep insects and rodents out.

--

Happy Greening!
Andy

Porch Light Timer

Porch light with CFL

Front porch lights are convenient. What better to light the way for evening-time visitors, or for yourself upon returning home after the sun has set?  And the big one--front porch lights are great for security!  Having a light on says "Hey, I'm home!  Don't come creeping around this house!"

Unfortunately, I have lost count of the number of times I have walked out the front door in the morning, only to be greeted by the glow of the porch light I forgot to turn off the night before--and feel the cringe of wasted energy.

Growing up, I seem to remember that--on occasion--we would leave a light on when we left the house and weren't expecting to be back until after nightfall.  Or worse--when we left for for vacation, just to ensure a bulb would be glowing at night. At best, we may have dug a cruddy old mechanical timer out of the Christmas lights box.  The timer really is a good idea, though--the lights are on long enough to provide that hey-i'm-at-home message, without burning the bulbs longer than needed, preventing electricity waste.

The faithful timer-switch

So...why not employ the timer tactic year-round?  Enjoy the convenience and security of a front-porch light without the energy consumption of accidental overuse.  And bonus:  When you go to leave for vacation, your security lighting scheme is already in place!

Good news--programmable timers have come a long way since that old mechanical marvel we used for the Christmas lights.  I replaced my porch light switch with a programmable timer model.  The new switch is a direct replacement for the original paddle switch, and requires only a basic knowledge of home electrical work to accomplish (turn off the circuit breaker first!)

When you're programming the timer, consider using "unusual" start and end times.  Rather than turning on at 7:30PM and off again at 10:00PM, have the switch turn on--for example--7:23PM and off again at 10:08PM.  Using times that don't fall on the hour or half-hour will seem more organic to an observer.

--

Happy Greening,
Andy

Full Loads

Dishwashers and Clothes Washers.  Two modern conveniences that many people have come to rely on.  Both machines use water and electricity to save us time and effort to clean things that we use every day.

Newer clothes washers use intelligent technology to weigh the load and make the most efficient use of water.  Dishwashers are available in more efficient designs, as well--even earning the highest possible Energy Star ratings.

Nonetheless, we may be able to apply human intelligence and human efficiency to save even more.  It goes without saying that we can save water and electricity--first and foremost--by running fewer loads per week, and making sure that each of those is a full load.

Why might we run anything less than a full load?  As I look through my drawers and cabinets, I realize that I head to the clothes washing machine when I get low on underwear.  And I fire up the dishwasher when I run out of silverware.  It would seem that I have plenty of shirts, bowls, pants, and plates...but I can't use any of them without silverware and underwear.

The solution?  More underwear and silverware!  Underwear can be relatively cheap.  Silverware can be too, depending on your preferences. The cost of this one, therefore, will vary from person-to-person.  However, the cost of additional silverware and underwear is fixed, and can lead to a savings of hundreds of gallons of water per year, and electricity as well.  Now that I have more of each, I don't run out of spoons before bowls, or underwear before socks.  Fewer loads.  Full loads.

Yep--I'm a briefs man.

--

Happy Greening,
Andy

Dual-Flush Toilet

During my trips to Scotland in 2007 and 2009, I noticed that almost every private toilet (meaning the ones in people's homes rather than the ones in the basement of the pubs) were dual-flush.  Now that I'm grown-up and I Can Do Whatever I Want^TM, I can't think of any reason not to rip out my traditional toilet and replace it with something smarter.

The old flusher.  I believe it was made for elves.  Short, shallow, and worst of all--inefficient!

First, a Little Math

What are the savings here?  I know I will be using less water, and any amount of savings is good.  The old flusher isn't marked, but because it is such a diminutive toilet, we'll assume its 1.6 gallons per flush (gpf).  This would already be considered a low-flow toilet--we've come a long way since the first half of the 20th century, when each flush was ~7 gallons!

The new dual-flush toilet is, natually, dual-rated.  Each "2" flush is 1.6gpf, and each "1" flush is 1.1gpf--meaning that each time I use the "1" flush, I'm saving a half gallon of water.

For the sake of calculation, we'll assume that I flush the toilet once in the morning before work, and three times in the evening/night.  Naturally, this figure will change from day-to-day, and as guests appear and disappear.  These numbers will suffice for practical demonstration.

Old Toilet: 4 flushes/day @ 1.6gpf x 365 days/year = 2336 gallons.

New Toilet: [(3 flushes/day @ 1.1gpf) + (1 flush/day @ 1.6gpf)] x 365 days/year = 1788.5 gallons.

This makes a difference of 547.5 gallons per year!  Keep in mind, this presumes the most conservative figure (1.6gpf) for the old toilet.  Your mileage will vary, and depending on the vintage of your toilet and its usage, you may be positioned to save many more gallons a year than I will.  Some figures I've read on the internet indicate that I may be already lower than the average home, which is 5 flushes per person per day.

The new hotness.  This is an Aquasource high-efficiency toilet.  I purchased it from Lowes in Gainesville.

Why Save Water? What am I saving?

At 547.5 gallons a year, I may save between $12-36/year.  My utility company's water rates are structured so that the more I consume, the greater the cost per KGAL (1000 gallons). Naturally, if I use less water, I am more likely to fall into the lower cost bracket--and that can make a serious difference in my bill.

Science--specifically the first law of thermodynamics--tells me that matter and energy cannot be created or destroyed.  No matter how hard I try, I won't be able to destroy the Hydrogen and Oxygen that make up our water supply.  So, what's the big deal?

Suffice to say that a great deal of energy goes into supplying water to our homes.  Costs include drilling and maintaining wells, pumping, and treatment/purification.  The actual calculation is beyond the scope of this journal, but it takes little imagination to see that there is a great utility machine at work to bring water to the toilet tank.  Even easier to see is the great deal of energy that goes into that machine.

Saving water doesn't just save you money on your bill--it saves a great deal of energy, effort, and expense further up the chain.

Replacing a Toilet

Replacing a toilet is not exactly trivial, and not for those with a weak stomach.  In toilet plumbing, the u-bend that keeps sewer gasses in the sewer and not in your bathroom is built into the toilet (rather than the drain below it, like in your kitchen sink). So while you are working, the toilet drain will be exposed.  You can stuff an old rag in the opening to keep the sewer smell at bay.

In addition to the toilet, you will need a replacement wax ring and some basic tools--screwdrivers, wrenches, pliers, and perhaps a putty knife to clean off the old wax. Wax rings come in shorter varieties (for flanges at or above floor-level) or taller (for flanges below floor-level) Many wax ring kits will also include replacement floor bolts, and this is a good time to replace those as well.

A word of caution: Once the new toilet is set in place, tighten the floor bolts gingerly. Often, the flange in the floor (against which the floor bolts tighten) is PVC and is as old as the house.  Over-tightening the floor bolts can cause the flange to break.  If that happens, this task becomes more costly and much harder to finish!

It is challenging to classify the difficulty of this task, since it highly depends on an individual skill and comfort level.  This task was easy for me because I have previously learned to replace a toilet and have done so on many occasions.  If you have never replaced a toilet before, this task will be more difficult, so it may behoove you to have an experienced friend or family-member on hand to lend some wisdom.

Additionally, the internet is full of comprehensive guides on how this is done, so I won't attempt to detail the process here. If you have any doubts at all, you can support your local economy by hiring a plumber near you to make the swap.

Alternative:  Convert Your Existing Toilet

Perhaps you really like your existing toilet, or you're not prepared to spend the money or time? Or the task is a bit outside of your comfort zone? Your local home-improvement store may be able to sell you a dual-flush conversion kit for ~$30.

I used one of these kits--with the blessing of my landlord--in the apartment where I lived before buying the Gainesville Green House. The skills required are the same as those required for replacing the components inside the tank--just a bit harder and requiring a few more tools than replacing the flapper. Consult the included instructions, and if you have any doubts, get some help! There is nothing worse than having a dysfunctional toilet--especially for those of us with only one bathroom!

Older Toilets:  Reduce the Flushable Water Volume

If you can't replace your old toilet, and converting to dual-flush isn't an option, there is still something you can do.  Improve your bathroom water consumption by adding a half gallon plastic container to the tank and reduce the volume with each flush.

--

Happy Greening!
Andy

Give the refigerator a break

This one is easy!

While I am happily not a bachelor, my refrigerator tends to look somewhat bachelor-esque.  A half-carton of eggs. A couple beers. Multitudes of condiments. And not much else! This is because I tend to do my cooking on Sundays with fresh ingredients, and then eat the product of my labors throughout the week, but I digress....

An empty refrigerator is costlier to operate!  To fulfill its function, your refrigerator must work to maintain the temperature inside its compartments. Gasses (air) are much less efficient at retaining cold than liquids and solids.  Furthermore, imagine what happens each time you open the door to get something out?  Whoosh!  Much of that cold air is replaced by warm[-er] air from your kitchen, and your refrigerator must kick on to bring the cabin temperature back down.  Water and ice will retain their cold-itude much longer than the air they displace.

Good circulation is just as important, so make sure you do not overfill the compartments.

The freezer.  A couple 5-lb. bags of ice will take up the remaining empty space nicely.

The refrigerator.  I think I can fit a few more gallons here and there.  On the other hand, I could fill the drawers and shelves with beer.  Any liquid will do!

Additional things you can do to take this to the next level:

• Keep the refrigerator compartment between 38-42*F, and the freezer between 0-5*F.  These temperatures are sufficient to keep your food from spoiling, and will save energy.  You may need to use a thermometer and a couple days of adjustments to get this just right.  Remember that an empty refrigerator will not maintain its temperature as well as a full one!
• Clean your refrigerator coils on a regular basis.
• Replace the door seals.  Close the door on a dollar bill--if you can pull it out easily, the seals should be replaced.

For a more comprehensive list of refrigerator-related considerations--especially if you are replacing your refrigerator--please see simplesteps.org.

Happy Greening,

Andy

P.S.  The best greenifications serve multiple purposes, and this is one of them. In Florida, we get these things called hurricanes, you know? Every hurricane season the grocers and news casters dutifully remind us to stock up on water and supplies in the event we should lose utilities to the wrath of the storms, as has happened in the past.  Stocking up on water?  Done!