Innovations in Smart, Universal, Energy-efficient and Water-saving Home Appliances

Design professionals can select innovative appliances to provide greater water conservation and energy savings in sustainably designed homes for people of all ages and abilities.
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Sponsored by TOTO and Whirlpool Corporation
Celeste Allen Novak AIA, LEED AP

Toilet seats with bidet functionality adds accessibility while eliminating the need for a separate fixture and expensive plumbing costs.

Photo: TOTO

Plugging into the power and water infrastructure, millions of households continue to have an effect on the capacity of an aging utilities grid. To respond to this demand, manufacturers are developing smart appliances that will talk to the national electric supply "Smart Grid," as well as provide consumer information that would even amaze George Jetson. In a recent press release, Whirlpool Corporation vice president, Dr. Henry Marcy, stated that "Smart Grid compliance is a critical step forward in creating a demand response environment in which energy reduction is systematically controlled across tens of thousands of homes at a time, providing automatic energy reduction without any inconvenience to consumers."

This course will review state-of-the-art appliances, controllers and fixtures that are helping to transform the modern kitchen and bath, with a special emphasis on how these products will save energy and water and provide accessibility for all ages and abilities.

Saving Energy, Saving Water:
How Individual Choices Can Have Community and Climate Impacts

When determining an energy budget, the design professional inventories all of the appliances as well as the mechanical systems in the home. According to the Department of Energy (DOE), there is a strong link between energy saving and water conservation. DOE statistics show that:

  • 8 percent of the electricity used in the U.S. is for the delivery and treatment of potable water.
  • The average home spends about $2,200 on energy bills every year.
  • Appliances use approximately 9 percent of a home energy budget.
  • Refrigeration accounts for 8 percent of a home energy budget.

Manufacturers have developed new appliances that can reduce those percentages to 10 − 50 percent less than standard models. In renovating existing homes, an inventory of existing appliances can begin to identify where savings are possible. In designing new homes, architects can leap forward in energy-saving technology by choosing new products that can be integrated into whole-house systems.

Timeline of water regulations

Image: TOTO

 

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Originally published in Architectural Record
Originally published in July 2010

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