50 ROUND TABLE REVIEW: WATER EFFICIENCY IN NEW BUILD HOUSING
LOW FLOW, LABELLING & CONSUMERS There was consensus around the table that consumers had to be engaged fully in order to ensure that the design aim of lower water use and lower energy use were not compromised by problems with consumers’ lifestyles versus design assumptions, post-occupancy. Methods of engaging consumers on water savings and water and energy saving measures (such as via EPCs and the new product labels) were discussed, including the pros and cons of both options.
Simon Gibbins from event co-sponsor Hansgrohe International said that the water label would help towards the heavy-lifting job of trying to increase the value of water in consumers’ perceptions. However he added a caveat: “I’d love to raise the value of water in the eyes of the consumer, but I feel we need to live in the real world, and so I agree that we need a mandatory water label and to make it compulsory at point of sale.” He also pinpointed the dilemma for consumers as well as developers that the better performing products on water use and energy criteria may “potentially be a lower flow product, and the consumer sees that.” However, Andrew Tucker reassured the group that the new unified water label was “building quality of experience into the assessments.” Consultant Naomi Sadler took a practical view to bringing consumers on board on water neutrality from her experience assessing properties. She said labels were not the panacea, and instead advocated leveraging the link between water and energy savings. “When we do water neutrality statements, we calculate it on an occupancy rate on a per-house basis, in the same way as the water savings and SAP are calculated. It makes it more relatable – someone’s not going to calculate based on their floor area. She added: “If it’s on their EPC and it’s calculated for people, then they’re more likely to understand when the water bill comes through.” Andrew Tucker said that if the direction of travel towards the mandatory water
“YOU COULD USE ENERGY AS A KIND OF ENTRY ROUTE INTO WATER, AS HEATING WATER IS GOING TO BE A LARGE PART OF ENERGY BILLS”
JOHN SLAUGHTER, FUTURE HOMES HUB
WWW.HBDONLINE.CO.UK Naomi Sadler of consultant SEES
label continues as it has so far, it will “become almost the water version of performance measurement, in the same way that an EPC tries to do it for the whole house.” He told the developers at the round table: “I’d like to lift the burden from you; it shouldn’t sit with you. The label is an opportunity to make that so much simpler, and it’ll be the guarantee of in the same way that is done elsewhere in the world, of what is specified, purchased and installed post construction.” Richard Lupo highlighted that post-construction checks were key to discovering what is happening “between the design stage and what actually gets built, and this needs addressing.” The problem with this, he said, was “if you do find something, who picks up the pieces afterwards? The builders have gone, there’s got to be some kind of sort of lever to get it repaired properly.” Andrew Tucker reiterated that Defra’s new water label will have “a long term rampup benefit. tll drive two things, firstly procurement – youll slowly be wanting the better performing one, and also drive manufacturers in the same way the energy ratings have done. No manufacturer wants to be the only one with a G rated product when their competitors are A and B.” Kevin Wellman, representing plumbers and heating engineers, and echoing Tom Reynolds’ earlier ‘reinventing the wheel’ comments, voiced his concern about the possibility of hampering clarity for installers, “if we end up with two schemes for water efficiency ratings.
INFORMING CUSTOMERS
The key issue in customer information is, as articulated by Naomi Sadler, that “no-one reads home user guides.” She instead said that a monitoring system linked to smart meters could be used, which for example showed when water was “constantly on, so maybe there was maybe a leak.” She said this would help “action the homeowner,” because they’d be aware of the transparency of risk they’d be passing on to a potential buyer. Danielle Michalska-Morris said that education of customers was crucial: “At the minute, they take water for granted.
Energy bills are high, so everyone’s on it. Our customers are coming into sales centres and saying we can turn this plug off or do this to save energy, but nobody talks about water. Jack Brayshaw of Vistry agreed, warning that water saving and water scarcity isn’t on consumers agenda yet. “We’re not getting screamed at because they want it. nergy efficiency is a massive driver; now they want EPCs, and want to make sure bills are low, if not ero, but water efficiency is just not. John Slaughter said the Government had a major role to play in informing customers: “If you think about the history of energy and why we actually focus on that, it’s got a lot to do with the Government saying this is an important issue. They need to say something similar about water, I think. And you could actually use energy as a kind of entry route into water, as heating water is going to be a large part of your energy bill.” Naomi Sadler drew the crucial connection between reducing the water used in homes and the carbon savings required from heating water: “Water and energy are so closely linked. You could actually use the SAP calculations and have a section in there which you put all the fittings in, and it will then say how much and then, like an EPC, you have energy and you have water. This is how water efficient your house is, and you’re rewarding the developers that are doing the right things and reducing their water usage.”
ALIGNING WITH ENERGY SAVINGS & THE HOME ENERGY MODEL Water heating in properties is soon to become the highest energy demand in homes, post-Future Home Standard when much tighter fabric reduces heating bills significantly. Aligned with this, the carbon associated with water needs similar focus upon, agreed our delegates. However, the Home Energy Model aspect of the FHS was also under scrutiny, including how assumptions currently made on usage affect specification of water heating systems. The more comprehensive (and expensive) Option 2 for the FHS includes measures like waste water heat recovery, however it remains to be seen despite the general favourable views on Option 2 whether the Government will support this option, as the consultation concludes. John Slaughter advocated consumer KPIs built in alongside regs and labelling to ensure the new regime was realistic. “One of the things we recommended in our April 2024 ‘Water Ready’ report is that there should be a compulsory consumer aspect in the new regime; that you should have consumer KPIs built in. Tom Reynolds added: “I think we
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