AWWA JAW53500

This paper discusses the Seattle Home Water Conservation Study (SHWCS) and compares it with the American Water Works Association Research Foundation's Residential End Uses of Water Study (REUWS). SHWCS is the first such study using samples taken from the original REUWS group. It provides important information on water-conserving fixtures and appliances through a before-and-after paired comparison of water use patterns. Precise data were obtained on reductions in per capita cold and hot water use that were achieved by retrofitting plumbing fixtures and appliances with new, high-efficiency devices. The most effective fixtures evaluated in the study, based on measured savings, were toilets, clothes washers, and faucet aerators. All told, the retrofit in Seattle reduced water use from around 70 gpcd to 40 gpcd or less by using new high-efficiency fixtures and appliances. Includes 13 references, tables, figures.