THE WATER SAVING BENEFITS OF COMMON AREA LAUNDRY ROOMS A White Paper Prepared for Municipalities and Utility Water Professionals 1700 Kylie Drive Suite 100 Longmont CO 80501 Tel 800 380 3652 www laundrywise com Scope of This Document A B r i e f B a c k g ro u n d This document provides an introduction to the benefits of common area laundry rooms It presents the basic concepts highlights the advantages and provides information on developing common area laundry rooms Whether you are a city planner water engineer or utility manager this document can help you Water usage varies On average daily indoor water use per capita in America is about 56 gallons for a two adult household Forty five percent of this figure is dedicated to bathroom use while 21 5 percent is for laundry purposes 1 It s a simple fact As the population increases the demand for water rises Growing industrial needs compound this problem Unfortunately the supply of water is a finite resource and more and more cities are discovering that they must take action now to plan for their future water needs Otherwise many cities will face the hard realities of severe drought dried up rivers poor water quality groundwater depletion escalating infrastructure costs and diminishing alternatives Ask any city engineer responsible for procuring water what the most cost efficient method for solving this problem is Most without blinking an eye will tell you conservation For years cities have encouraged the conservation of water through a variety of methods including building codes and regulations incentive programs and public education Builders and developers are required to utilize low flow showerheads faucet aerators and low flush toilets and encouraged to conserve water in outdoor landscaping by installing automatic sprinklers and by xeriscaping While these methods take care of some water usage what about the 21 5 percent of water that is used for washing machines Many municipalities and utility companies across the U S are already taking action to encourage water savings in laundry appliances in single family residences However an often overlooked method of conservation which can be applied to a large sector is common area laundry rooms in multi housing properties A Comparison of In Unit Connections and Common A re a L a u n d r y R o o m s FIGURE 2 Estimated Total Laundry Water Use per Apartment Unit per Week On and Off Site Gallons Type of Laundry Facilities According to a 2002 water usage survey by an independent marketing research firm washing machines located in apartment rental units are a major drain on natural resources From September to December 2000 laundry water use was calculated using water meters attached to 191 inunit washing machines and 50 common area washing machines in eight apartment properties matched for quality and size in four cities across the U S In a head to head comparison of washing machine usage rates in apartment units versus that of coinoperated machines in common area laundry rooms the study found that each in unit washer used an average of 11 804 gallons of water annually Coinoperated machines in the common area laundry rooms on the other hand averaged water usage of only 3 588 gallons a year per apartment unit served That figure amounts to 8 216 excess gallons of water required per in unit machine per year In total residents with in unit washers used 3 3 times more water for their laundry than their counterparts in buildings with common area laundries gallons of water 250 FIGURE 1 Estimated Total Laundry Water Use per Apartment Unit per Week On and Off Site Gallons In Unit Cold Water 52 91 179 53 Hot Water 16 22 47 58 TOTAL 69 13 227 11 Ratio of In Unit to Common Area 3 3 times higher Differences between laundry water use in common area versus in unit properties were statistically significant p 0 05 Residents with in unit washers tend to operate the equipment far more often and less efficiently say researchers in explaining the water savings realized through the use of common area laundry rooms FIGURE 3 Total Laundry Loads per Week Type of Laundry Facilities Number of Loads Common Area In Unit 0 2 0 1 11 9 2 28 13 3 22 13 4 19 14 5 6 14 6 6 14 7 6 23 TOTAL 100 100 Average Loads 3 32 5 08 Differences between respondents from common area versus in unit properties were statistically significant p 0 05 179 150 53 69 48 50 0 Common Area 227 200 100 Meter Type 16 Common Area cold water In Unit hot water total water Differences between laundry water use in common area versus in unit properties were statistically significant p 0 05 C o n s e r v a t i o n Po t e n t i a l o f C o m m o n A re a L a u n d r y R o o m s C o m m o n A re a L a u n d r y Rooms as an Amenity In 2001 the U S Census Bureau completed an American Housing Survey for the United States to learn more about rental housing Included in the survey were questions about amenities available to residents The following table details their findings as they pertain to common area laundry rooms and in unit connections A common misperception is that apartment managers and owners believe their residents prefer in unit connections In reality well maintained affordably priced convenient laundry rooms make apartment complexes more desirable to residents than complexes that lack common area laundry rooms but provide laundry connections inside the apartment units And there are many benefits common area laundry rooms impart when residents utilize them rather than in apartment equipment For these reasons many managers are considering additions or enhancements to common area laundry rooms as a way to improve the property they manage FIGURE 4 Characteristics of Rental Apartment Units 2001 Thousands All Apartment Units Total 15 936 With Washing Machine 4 130 With Dryer 3 670 Source NMHC tabulations of the U S Census Bureau s 2001 American Housing Survey Based on the above figures more than 33 billion gallons of water could potentially be wasted across the U S in apartments with in unit washing machines in just one year With in apartment laundry equipment water isn t the only resource being wasted There s also the attendant gas and electricity as well as massive amounts of extra sewage generated by less efficient in unit washers Encouraging the use of common area laundry rooms in apartment complexes is an easy yet significant way to preserve resources without creating an insurmountable hardship for residents Cost Savings of Common A re a L a u n d r y R o o
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