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EBOM 2009 WEc1: Water Performance Measurement
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9 Comments
Meter Calibration
We have meters from two different manufacturers; both do not have requirements or recommendations for calibration. Also, service providers and other contacts not able to perform requirement.
Question: Should we invest in a portable meter that can be tied in downstream of existing meters? By doing so, I would be able to compare/confirm GPM.
Note: One meter has hose bib down stream and can be isolated for testing. Second meter setup would not be a problem. Portable measuring device is designed for hose bib hookup and can be certified as well as calibrated.
Jenny Carney replied Director, YRG sustainability Feb 16 2010
Paul - seems like this might be workable.
My first strategy for meters not owned by the utility would be to figure out if the manufacturer guarantees meter performance up to a certain age or volume of water that has passed through, and then show that the meters are under that age/volume. In my experience, teams in the past have been able to use this approach where calibration intervals/protocols aren't established by the manufacturer.
An alternative would be for the project team (you) to perform and document the calibration or verification of the meters' accuracy. I am not aware of any requirement that calibration has to be performed by a third-party, so it seems this could be viable. Before investing in any specialized equipment, I'd suggest using a CIRCredit Interpretation Ruling. Used by design team members experiencing difficulties in the application of a LEED prerequisite or credit to a project. Typically, difficulties arise when specific issues are not directly addressed by LEED information/guide to get the green light on your intended approach. The more detail you could lay out in the CIR the better, including the specific equipment you intend to use, who will be performing the assessment, protocol followed, etc. The American Water Works Association's manual, "Water Meters - Selection, Installation, Testing, and Maintenance" might help you to come up with a valid testing scheme. Good luck!
PAUL ARAGAKI replied Mar 04 2010
Mahalo and Aloha from Hawaii
Water Metering for Multi-Building Applications?
What are the requirements to earn this credit for multi-building applications? The credit langage focuses on "the entire building and associated grounds" but how does this play out for campuses? Does each building need a meter, or is one meter for the whole campus acceptable? What about meters, such as irrigation, that can only effectively be installed to serve an entire campus?
Dan Ackerstein replied Principal, Ackerstein Sustainability, LLC Mar 02 2010
Good question - in terms of the building-level metering, the expectation is certainly that each building on a campus would have its own water meter. The more complicated question, which I'm not sure has a firm answer, is how campus buildings can document compliance with the irrigation meter component. I would think that one could focus on the credit intent, which is to ensure a level of metering granular enough to ensure effective performance monitoring and tracking of surprises like leaks or changes in use patterns. To that end, I think metering would be significantly more extensive than a single campus irrigation meter but perhaps not so ambitious as an individual irrigation water meter associated with every individual building on campus. That is, some kind of irrigation zone metering rather than a single figure for campus irrigation water use.
Recertification and Weekly Meter Readings
It's my understanding that once a project building is certified under the LEED EBOMEBOM is an acronym for Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance, one of the LEED 2009 rating sytems. rating system the building enjoys the privilege of being a "LEED certified" building for up to five years. Within five years the building must apply for recertification in order to maintain its LEED status.
To the best of my knowledge once a building is certified GBCI, USGBC or both define the recertification performance period as starting on the day of certification and extending until the application date for recertification.
Does this mean that for a period of up to five years management at the project building will have to obtain weekly water meter readings? I could understand monthly but will somebody educate me on the rationale behind requiring five years of weekly water meter readings?
Recertification and Weekly Meter Readings
Yes, Brittany, you're right - during the recertification performance period, all credit requirements should remain in place at the building, including weekly water meter readings.
The rationale for this is listed on pages 94-95 of the LEED Reference Guide for Green Building Operations and Maintenance: "Understanding a building's water use and consumption patterns can alert facility managers to consumption that may indicate leaks or other wasted water." and "Measuring water consumption at least weekly enables ongoing evaluation and improvement of fixtures and equipment over the life of the building."
By reading meters weekly, the facility manager is alerted to leaks or other water consumption issues when the problem starts, not weeks after the fact when the utility company's bill arrives. In addition, it helps the facility manager get a sense of the water usage and how it changes over the year, allowing him or her to quickly note and address any changes.
Sub metering clarification
Ours is a production facility which we are intending to achieve LEED. We have the main production building and other supportive building spaces (Canteen, hostels and toilets which are separate from the main building). We are thinking of applying for certification as a one facility and my question is that if we use meters for building spaces other than the main building will that be qualified as a sub metering?
Jason Franken replied LEED Consultant, YRG sustainability Mar 19 2010
Rashid, the LEED requirements for WEc1 specifically define sub-metering at the system-level, not at the space level, so a sub-meter that captures water consumption in your canteen, for instance, would not help you earn this credit, The qualifying types of sub-metering for this credit are: irrigation, indoor plumbing fixtures/fittings, cooling tower water, domestic hot water, or process waterProcess water is used for industrial processes and building systems such as cooling towers, boilers, and chillers. It can also refer to water used in operational processes, such as dishwashing, clothes washing, and ice making. use. You would need to demonstrate, for one or more of these sub-systems, that you are capturing at least 80% of the total water consumption on the entire project site for that sub-system.
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