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How to Recycle Water Safely in Your Business saving water.
Businesses are increasingly concerned with saving water as part of a drive to ‘go green’. And many customers opt for businesses that have eco-friendly credentials. Along with the environmental benefits, saving water also paints a positive picture of your company to its clients.
But there’s another appealing reason: the cost savings, and recycling water is key to achieving them. Water is the biggest waste product that we create, and learning to re-use it benefits the environment and your bottom line.
Your Business Water Footprint
Businesses contaminate water in many ways. Water used in manufacturing will be contaminated in some way. Water is used in catering, in sanitation, cleaning, and everyday operations. Added up, it can cost a fair amount.
And just as each business has a carbon footprint, it has a water footprint: the measure of the amount of clean water it consumes.
Most production lines and supply chains rely on water, so much so that a water shortage can cause production to cease. That should raise alarm bells for any business that is dependent on its water supply to maintain productivity.
Pollution is an obvious side-effect, and this is where some businesses shy away from reusing water for understandable reasons. Once used, water can be difficult to separate from those pollutants.
But there are plenty of situations when used but unpolluted water — which we call ‘grey’ water — can be easily recycled, providing both cost and environmental benefits.
Reclaiming and Recycling Water
In the United States, more than 26% of water used indoors is used to flush toilets. There’s no good reason why businesses can’t use grey water for this purpose, instead of using water from the mains supply.
The same concept applies to some use of water externally, like irrigation. There are many situations where grey water performs perfectly well without any need for expensive processing. Indeed, the city of San Diego has successfully committed to using recycled waste water for non-potable usage.
Care does need to be taken when reusing water, and that’s why expert advice is essential, in line with a well-planned strategy. The buildup of bacteria can be a problem if systems are not correctly designed. And there will always be some situations where regulations require clean water, or where it can be difficult to tell ‘grey’ water from ‘black’.
Consult Our Experts
We tend to think of water as being in limitless supply. We tend to think of it as being cheap. For businesses, neither of those things are true, and rising costs are forcing new approaches.
Depending on the nature of your business operations, you could be missing out on thousands of pounds of savings through water recycling. When your system is set up using the right expert advice, your employees won’t notice a difference, but your business will get an instant financial boost with no detriment to its day-to-day operations. In some cases, savings can be as high as 50%.
Consult H2O Building Services for a chat about grey water usage, water recycling, and rainwater harvesting systems and saving water on 01924 387 873 or email info@h2obuildingservices.co.uk