Water-Savers: So Many Choices | Most manufacturers standardize their faucet flow rates according to the maximum allowable by code. Trend-setters that we are, California building code requirements have nudged most plumbing brands to adopt the current 1.2 GPM CA maximum for all lavatory faucets because it's just easier than selling two different faucet flow-rates. But we're really trendy in California, so many of our counties have their own codes and/or incentives for even lower flow rates than many manufacturers offer. If your client is dealing with additional water-saving requirements, has an older faucet they want to keep but is putting pressure on their water bill, or they are simply looking for ways to save more water – Neoperl aerators are the answer, with retrofittable models for almost any major kitchen or lavatory faucet brand. Read all about it here!
Derek's Tech Tip: Neoperl Introduction
You may have heard the awful but unsurprising news about the severe drought in California and the West. There is no single solution to the water shortage we face—the answer will come in many small steps. But a key technology to the solutions in our industry is Neoperl’s pressure-compensating flow restriction.
“I know how to restrict the flow of water,” you say. “You put your thumb over the hose.” That’s exactly right. If you are holding your thumb over the end of the hose and you turn the hose faucet further open, the flow of water through the hose increases, raising the flowing pressure. If you do not adjust your thumb, more water will flow from the end of the hose. But you are an experienced slip & slide operator, and you know that you just need to squeeze a bit harder with your thumb to compensate for the higher pressure in the hose and keep the stream constant.
And so it goes with your faucets and shower heads. Water pressure in a building is ever-changing. When a toilet flushes or a clothes washer starts, the flowing pressure can change dramatically. But the rules for showers and faucets require them to keep within certain flow rates regardless of pressure. GROHE, American Standard, DXV, and other manufacturers need a way to regulate the flow in their products consistently across a range of pressures. Enter Neoperl, the world’s leader in pressure-compensating flow restriction. Neoperl has swapped your thumb with an O-ring in a special holder. This magical (okay, it’s really science) device is in every bathroom and kitchen faucet and every shower head and hand shower sold in the US. You have almost certainly seen one—It’s a colored plastic disc with some perforations and a captive O-ring. As the flowing pressure through the faucet increases, the O-ring gets smashed flatter, covering more of the perforations, keeping the overall volume of water constant. When the pressure is lower, the O-ring relaxes back into its round shape, more of the perforations are open, and the flow is maintained. And Neoperl probably made every one you have seen. Here’s a video of the concept in action.
Soon, the State of California will mandate further reductions of flow rates from showers and faucets. Neoperl has been developing the next generation of flow controls to help manufacturers achieve those rates without time-consuming and disruptive redesigns to existing products.
In addition to providing the flow regulation for over 75% of the showers and faucets sold in the US (and most of the rest of the world), Neoperl also sells replacement flow controls for installed products. If your 18k gold-plated, dolphin spout lavatory faucet from 1998 is still looking perfect to you, and you would like to save on your water bill, you can buy a replacement flow control to reduce the stock 2.2 GPM flow to 1.0 GPM—a water savings of 55%. Here’s a great brochure from Neoperl about their multitude of water saving products. And if you want help figuring out what replacement insert you need, there’s an app for that.
Water efficiency often gets a bad rap, but I can’t tell the difference in a lavatory faucet between 1.2 GPM and 1.0, and I bet you can’t either. That simple, inexpensive change would reduce your water usage at that faucet by 20%. Tell a friend and share the joy of making a small but measurable difference.
Thanks,
Derek
Reposting with permission from Western Sales Co July 2021 Newsletter
(This is not a paid advertisement)