In the last diary entry, I mentioned how glaciers that form the source of freshwater rivers and groundwater are both dwindling, how millions of people can depend on a single such source of freshwater, and how efficient water use fights global warming. We saw the interesting statistic from Wired that in California a fifth of electrical output was consumed by processing and pumping water. I also discussed waterless urinals.
In this diary, we’ll look at other new water saving measures.
We’ll start with the more exciting, newer ones. Then we’ll move on to a review you should not skip of some other tips and technologies.
You'll have to check out this article that’s about the Xeros waterless washing machine. Supposedly, it uses only 1 cup of water per load, the secret being special plastic chips that help with the washing. Will we all be using a washing machine like this some day? It certainly seems to hold a lot of promise for water-stressed areas and the environment in general.
In the same article, check the steam dishwasher and ultrasonic clothes dryer- and maybe some of you will like the smart shower, too.
In two or three places recently, I’ve read that clothes that don’t have to be washed are in development, and even a couple such shirts are on the market for $30-$40. The secret is coatings that cause dirt and germs to slide off, similar to coatings that waterproof cell phones. Supposedly they’ve already made a pair of boots that can’t get muddy.
If clothing that you don’t have to wash does come to market, just think of how beneficial that will be because people won’t be running their washing machines and drying machines anymore or at least as much (if the technology works for clothes, though, why not for linens, too?)- think of how much energy those mush use, with how often we have to use them, and how they produce kinetic energy for such a long cycle. (It takes a lot more electricity to move motors and other mechanical parts around than it does to just light a light or produce sound from a speaker). And then we’ll be polluting the waterways and oceans less, too, because we’ll be using less detergent and bleach.
Plus, of course, we’d be using less water. Just think what an effect people ceasing washing clothes entirely over the course of 10 years would have on water supplies.
Consider that together with waterless urinals. It should just be legislated that there be no more water urinals and no more clothing that needs to be washed. How much less water use would there be then? I think I’ve also read about installing urinals in homes as a way to live greener. New building codes could require homes to have (even waterless) urinals. (You may find information in home improvement books about installing urinals in homes as a means to save money on water use. So the urinal won’t be unsightly, you have a cabinet built around it. When you look in the bathroom, it’s just cute and you don’t even know it’s a urinal until you open the cabinet.)
Then there’s this design for a rain collecting skyscraper. If these are ever built, they would cut the carbon footprint by saving on water pumping costs. And they would keep less polluting from getting into waterways, because less rainwater would be hitting city streets and carrying away in the sewers pollution from asphalt and pollution dripped from passing vehicles.
This polar umbrella to shield the ice cap from the sun may seem promising at first, but then end up seeming hokey- you could ask yourself, how likely is it that these skyscraper-sized devices will ever be built, and in enough numbers to make a difference?
What might be more practical would be to start building lots of hard-top awnings that stand much lower to the ground, and using them to protect glaciers and the ice cap. Or, use the polar umbrella to protect the most important freshwater-source glaciers instead of the ice cap., and save the awnings for the ice cap
This also reminds me of an idea I had. Perhaps we could slow the melting of the ice cap or help the ice caps return once our carbon footprint is improved by edging the sea that meets it a sheet of floating, white plastic that sits a little below surface of water. This could lower the albedo to make it easier for ice to return to edges of ice cap. It could be targeted to times and areas where it would have the best effect.
Now on to some technologies and tips that have had more time to catch on.
The first thing to know, perhaps, about washing machines is that front-load washers are better than top-loaders. Front-load washers use a third less water, and third less heat energy and a third less detergent. That sounds great for the environment. And it makes sense because you always see front-load washing machines in laundromats- they must use them because it saves money and thereby makes profits higher. (Also, compare the Energy Star ratings on appliances- it’s an efficiency rating.)
Then consider water-saving water fixtures besides the waterless urinals described in the last entry. Such as:
Low-flow showerheads are supposed to reduce water use by 20,000 gallons (the Wired article from the last post described similar savings for the waterless urinals). They also reduce the cost of heating water 40%.
Low-flow toilets use 1/3 water of regular toilet. Great news is that plumbing codes now require them for new buildings.
There are ways you can turn your regular toilet into a low-flow. Some toilets use a rubber part called a flapper to control flushing. When you pull the lever outside the tank, the rod it’s attached to inside the tank lifts a rubber cap at the bottom of the tank that releases water held into the tank into a hole. Now, there are flappers on the market that can be adjusted with a dial- you just turn the round dial on the flapper, and it adjusts the shape so you can choose between a large flush, or a small, environment-saving, money-saving flush.
You can buy an adjustable flapper for around $4, so it’s even worth replacing before your old kind of flapper wears out, turning your friends and acquaintances on to them, or even giving them as gifts and installing them for friends. In fact, maybe it would be worthwhile for the government or some civic-minded group should just send free adjustable flappers to people through the mail with a letter explaining them- maybe you could get tens or hundreds of thousands of people to install the flappers within a week of a big program sending them out. A smaller version of the program- just in a municipality- could test it out. They could check compliance by doing a phone or door-to-door poll a week or two after, asking people whether they installed the flappers.
There’s also this tip I saw on YouTube that sounds a little less wise. But, it might work- and if there is more than one toilet in the house, and you use one of them mostly for urination, you could combine this technique with the adjustable flapper to give that toilet more of the flow or a urinal and less that of a toilet. You fill a plastic carton or bottle with enough stones to keep it on the bottom of the tank and so that it will be heavy enough to not get pushed around by the power of the flush. A one liter or one quart bottle or carton, or an even smaller one, might be the best. Close the cap on it and put it in the tank.
It will leave less space in the tank for water. So, each flush uses less water and it takes less water to fill the tank. It may not be as strong a flush, but this way you can help the environment and save money until you are ready to replace your toilet. For a person who needs a stronger flush, like an elderly relative or someone who can get absent-minded on the toilet, you could just remove the jug of stones when they visit or have to use the toilet.
Thanks for reading the Save The Environment Diary!
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