Apartments and Condominiums Can Earn WaterSense Label

EPA has modified its specification for new homes to enable apartment and condominium units to earn the label, update product requirements, and adjust landscape criteria. WaterSense-labeled new homes allow residents to save water and energy inside and out by using WaterSense-labeled plumbing fixtures, efficient hot water systems, and low-maintenance, water-smart landscapes. Homes labeled after January 1, 2013 must meet the criteria of the revised specification. Click here for more information. Highlights include:

• New apartments or condos can earn the WaterSense label. Individual units in new residential buildings are eligible to earn the label, and builders must ensure that the common areas of these buildings also meet specific indoor and outdoor criteria.
• WaterSense now requires builders of WaterSense-labeled homes to use EPA’s Water Budget Tool to inform their landscape design. An easy-to-use, interactive version is available on the WaterSense website.
• If an irrigation system with a weather-based irrigation controller is used to water the lawn, the controller must be a WaterSense-labeled model. WaterSense labeled controllers act like a thermostat for your lawn, using local weather data to determine when and how much to water.
• Showerheads must be WaterSense-labeled models that use 2.0 gallons per minute or less. WaterSense labeled showerheads save homeowners more than 2,300 gallons of water and 300 kilowatt-hours of energy per year