Hotel & Motel Management - March 17, 2008 - (Page 18) 18 Maintenance Doctor IN THE details Sustainability is doable Update lighting options Conserve water Apply to common areas too H&MM March 17, 2008 | HotelMotel.com www.HotelMotel.com/digital_edition Go green without hurting your bottom line The industry is abuzz about implementing green practices. I want to do the right thing, but I have to pay attention to the bottom line. What can I do? Q By Stratton Michaels H&MM Columnist Focus your investment on two areas to reduce your property’s environmental footprint and save money: energy A and water use. Both energy and water are limited resources. Making changes in plumbing and lighting easily can have a positive impact on the environment. Lighting tends to be the single largest energy expense. If you have not already done so, start converting from incan- descent to compact fluorescent lightbulbs to save energy immediately. CFL bulbs use about 75 percent less energy than incandescent bulbs. High-efficiency electronic ballasts optimize energy savings at a rate of about 2 watts to 5 watts per ballast, or about $1 per lamp, per year. They are easy to use and compatible with the market’s wide variety of T8 fluorescent bulb options. They’re also ideal for use with T8 bulbs such as the 25-watt, 28-watt and 30-watt. Also, consider your exit signs. Replacing incandescent exit signs with LED signs will save energy and time. Incandescent exit signs typically use two 30-watt torpedo bulbs, which means 60 watts running for 8,760 hours per year. At 12 cents per kilowatt-hour, that adds up to $63 per year, per sign. LED exit signs use one 1-watt LED light strip, which amounts to about $1 in energy costs. The second area of focus for conservation is water use. Approach conserving water in two ways: fix leaks and install watersaving plumbing fixtures. Make inspections part of your regular maintenance checklist. Although dripping faucets and showerheads are easy to spot, other leaks, such as those from toilets and broken tub diverters, are more difficult to detect and require monthly inspections to be identified. To check toilets for leaks, place a drop of food coloring in the tank. If, within an hour, the dye has leaked into the bowl or has been flushed down altogether, you need to make repairs. Along with regular maintenance, changing plumbing fixtures can save water and reduce your water bill at the same time. For example, by replacing a 2.5 GPM with a 1.6 GPM showerhead, you can reduce water use by up to 36 percent. By adding a 1.5 GPM aerator, you can reduce water usage by 30 percent. Also, make changes in your common area restrooms. Use self-metering fixtures that are timed to deliver a predetermined amount of water. Replace older toilets that use three and a half gallons to seven gallons of water with ultra low-flow toilets that use 1.6 gallons of water per flush. hmm@questex.com Stratton Michaels is a National Account Manager for HD Supply Facilities Maintenance. He can be reached at stratton.michals@ hdsupply.com. CIRCLE NO. 155 http://HotelMotel.com http://www.HotelMotel.com/digital_edition
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