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Efficient spray valve saves restaurants water, money
A new weapon in the ongoing battle to conserve water throughout the West offers substantial energy and water savings for a very low investment, and has the added benefit of helping small businesses control costs. The low-flow, pre-rinse spray valve may be the magic bullet in water conservation. Restaurants and cafeteria kitchens use pre-rinse spray valves to rinse off dirty dishes before running them through a dishwasher. Standard spray valves or nozzles use more than three gallons of hot water per minute, plus the energy that goes into heating the water. Low-flow valves, by comparison, use only 1.6 gallons per minute. Depending on the quantity purchased, a new spray valve costs between $30 and $50, about $5 more than a standard valve. Each low-flow valve saves more than 50,000 gallons of water annually, along with heating costs. Where natural gas is the heat source, the payback period for replacing a standard valve with a $50 low-flow valve is two months or less. Cost-effective program is cost-free to customers The figures come from the Rinse and Save program, a pilot project launched by the California Urban Water Conservation Council in 2003 to get the food service industry to install the equipment. “This is one of the best programs we’ve ever done,” said CUWCC Program Manager Maureen Erbeznik. “It’s simple, and the savings are huge. Every dollar invested returns 12.” Funded by a $2.2 million grant from the California Public Utilities Commission, CUWCC bought the low-flow valves in bulk from Fisher Manufacturing. The Fisher valve had been tested by the Food Service Technology Center in San Ramon, Calif. “The valve had to clean dishes as well as a high-volume model and meet the 1.6 gallon-per-minute standard,” said Erbeznik. “The Fisher valve was the only one that met all the specifications.” Erbeznik added that two more products meeting the standards are now available, a valve by Niagara Plumbing Supply and one by T&S Brass. “The more products on the market, the more the price comes down.” In phase one of the Rinse and Save program, the valves were to be distributed and installed, free of cost, to commercial food service businesses throughout the state. A dozen water agencies contributed funding to the project. Western customers East Bay Municipal Utility District, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California and Sonoma County Water Agency were among the utilities participating in the roll-out. Personal approach increases participation CUWCC chose an unusual strategy to introduce Rinse and Save to its target industry. Despite the impressive performance of efficient spray valves, few businesses have installed them. After reviewing programs offering valves, CUWCC concluded that restaurants are generally run in a “heads down” manner—owners and managers deal with the work directly in front of them. They rarely respond to direct mail or attend industry conferences, so they don’t learn about programs. If they do hear about an offer, they consider it too much of a hassle to participate. To get around this obstacle, CUWCC used door-to-door canvassers to solicit participants and direct installation. “With direct install, we went from installing 60 valves a year to installing 20,000,” Erbeznik recalled. “This market wants you to come to them.” So CUWCC did and 40 percent of the eligible businesses agreed to participate. Between October 2002 and December 2003, program staff knocked on doors, installed low-flow valves and trained restaurant employees to use them. Low-flow valves spray in a flat, knife-like pattern different from the round spray of a high-flow nozzle. Once kitchen staff understood how to direct the spray valve, most agreed that it was more effective in removing food from dishes. Big savings inspire programs, legislation The low-flow valve was even more effective at saving water, energy and money. Kitchens that used their spray valve two hours per day could save $300 to $400 annually with the low-flow model. The low-flow valve could save larger restaurants between $700 and $1,300 annually, depending on the number of hours used. Restaurants using gas to heat water could save approximately one therm per day. About two-thirds of the participating businesses used gas heat. The results were even more impressive for electric heat, saving owners 7,629 kWh per year. With savings like that, it is hardly surprising that 95 percent of the participants continued to use their new equipment after the study ended. Phase two of the Rinse and Save program began July 2004 and runs to the end of 2005. CUWCC has distributed more than 5,000 valves so far and locked in 15,000 acre-feet of current and future water savings. Those results have not gone unnoticed in other parts of the country. Ontario, Florida and Washington state have all started similar programs. The low cost of the equipment makes the low-flow valve an excellent candidate for local incentive programs. Industrial customers would especially appreciate a program that gave them a head start on complying with new standards. In the latest round of appliance standards, California adopted a minimum efficiency standard for pre-rinse spray valves of a maximum flow of 1.6 gallons per minute. This applies only to valves purchased after the standard takes effect in January 2006. Food service businesses will not be required to replace functioning older spray valves. Arizona and Colorado, two states hit hard by drought, included the standard in appliance efficiency standards bills introduced in the 2005 state legislative sessions. In the West’s dry climate—especially in urban centers with lots of restaurants—a conservation tool that costs a little and saves a lot has a bright future. |
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