Waterless urinals are becoming popular in public and business facilities due to the exceptional benefits and sanitary environment in public places. As the name shows, these plumbing fixtures use a water-free flushing system with a cartridge and liquid chemicals inside the bowl.
How Much Water Does a Waterless Urinal Save? Waterless urinals can save approximately 35,000 to 40,000 gallons of water per year, depending on the type of urinal, location, and usage. Less water consumption can reduce water and electricity bills, with less maintenance cost, and is more environment-friendly and hygienic.
The International Plumbing Code (IPC) ensures this fixture’s water-saving and sanitary properties and allows them in public restrooms to preserve less water consumption in a growing population.
How much water do waterless urinals save?
They save a lot of water and energy and are proven hygienic and efficient by many health agencies and International codes.
The waste is allowed to flow into the sewage naturally without using water for flushing through the small holes and gaps in the cartridge where liquid sealant chemical is present.
They can save approximately 35,000 to 40,000 gallons of water per year, depending on the usage, location, and type of urinal you previously have in the restroom.
As a general rule of thumb, about 80% of the water is saved in public bathrooms if you have installed waterless urinals.
You can save approximately 100,000 to 110,000 liters of water per urinal annually compared to a conventional urinal.
Sometimes, it is tricky to measure the amount of water saved in a year.
However, the fact is that the water consumption in these plumbing fixtures is drastically less as compared to the conventional ones.
Conventional urinals use a lot of water to clean and unclog the drains, but waterless urinals consume less water for cleaning, saving many gallons of water in a year.
The chances of blockage in drain pipes are less because of the cartridge, which acts as a trap to block the hair and debris, and this can save the water used for removing the clogs.
What factors determine the amount of water saving in waterless urinals?
The water savings in waterless urinals depends on different factors, and a few are listed here.
Type of old urinal
The type of sanitary plumbing fixture in the bathroom affects the amount of water saved.
For example, water consumption is more if you have a conventional urinal previously in the bathroom because it uses 1-2 gallons of water every time a person flushes the waste.
These plumbing fixtures cannot work without the water consumption to draw the urine from P-traps to the sewage.
Different types of urinals operate in different ways, and the water consumption varies for every fixture.
It can save 70,000 to 175,000 liters of water per year if installed in a company with few employees using this fixture three times a day. They do not need P-traps or U-traps for their functioning.
Location
The location of this plumbing fixture influences the amount of water saved for each flush in a year, such as in schools, hotels, malls, libraries, airports, and other places.
For example, an educational restroom with 10-12 urinals and 300-310 male students can consume 330,000-340,000 gallons of water annually.
Similarly, a restaurant with an average of 150 to 155 male customers in a day can use 72,000 to 75,000 water gallons per year, and you can save this water if you have installed this waterless plumbing fixture in these places.
The number of people using it and the location of the facility affect water consumption.
For example, the school has more students coming in a day to use the facility, while the restaurant has fewer customers coming in a day to use the urinal.
Usage
Using these plumbing fixtures in any public restroom can consume more water if the bathroom has a conventional one.
For example, the number of employees in a company increases from 50 to 200, which causes more usage of the facility and more water consumption for each flush.
You do not need to worry if you have this urinal in the facility because no matter how much a plumbing fixture is used and how many people are using it, there is no water consumption for flushing.
The water usage in this plumbing fixture can affect the working and damage the liquid chemical inside the bowl. Therefore, you can restore a lot of water from these fixtures and use it for other purposes.
Why do people want to use less water using waterless urinals?
Many hotel and restaurant owners use waterless urinals in the restrooms to save water for the following reasons.
Reduce water and electricity bills
More water usage causes more energy consumption and an increase in water bills, which can disturb the budget.
For example, a facility with more than three or four urinals uses 1-2 gallons of water in a year for flushing, which causes a massive increase in the bills.
Conventional products in a facility can cause more water bills as compared to waterless ones because you can save thousands of water gallons annually.
Another thing that is overlooked sometimes is the electricity used to supply water to the plumbing fixtures.
Theey have less electricity consumption used to deliver and remove water and minimize the electricity bills to some extent.
Environment-friendly
They are one of the most environment-friendly plumbing fixtures because of less water use for only cleaning but not flushing.
Less water use creates fewer sewers, as there is no need for water to transfer the urine in the sewage, and it goes down the drain naturally through gravity.
It is necessary to save water for future generations, as the population is increasing rapidly and the resources are decreasing.
Therefore, they are an excellent addition to the environment for saving more water and energy.
They do not use harsh and toxic chemical cleaners and reduce carbon dioxide emissions due to less water usage, which makes them more eco-friendly.
Less maintenance cost
Many people prefer them because of less water use in the maintenance and cleaning of these plumbing fixtures.
In addition, there is no need to spend money on the high maintenance of the plumbing fixtures because only they need liquid sealant and cartridge replacement after a few months, depending on the traffic in this area.
More water use increases the chances of clogging in conventional ones, and you need more water for cleaning and maintenance.
They have less maintenance cost because proper cleaning once a day can keep the odor and clog at bay.
Hygiene
Moisture and water is the reason for mold and mildew development which causes bad odors and diseases in a public restroom.
Conventional ones use a lot of water daily for flushing, which can cause mold and bacteria inside the bowl or on the floor because the water splashes when you flush the urine.
The waterless urinals consume no water; therefore, they are more hygienic, and mold and germs are less on the floor and inside the bowl because of disinfecting liquid sealant inside the cartridge.
