Energy usually gets top billing in the green building community. It has a huge impact on the environment. We sometimes pay a significant amount for it (although most of us付不够的钱to motivate serious change, but that’s another story). We can do energy modeling and home energy ratings. Plus, it’s just really interesting!

But water deserves a lot of attention, too, and green builders in New Mexico are innovating a way to move water to the fore.

Meet the WERS

If you’ve been reading this blog for any length of time, you’ve no doubt heard of aHERS rating。它代表家庭能源评级系统，其中包括产生一个的计算她的索引，一个主要参考点为100的数字。数量越低，房屋的能源效率就越高。一个零的索引将是一个净零能源房屋。

同样，WERS代表水效率评分¹并且具有0到100比例，较低的数字更好。由绿色建筑商联盟in cooperation withBuild Green New Mexico(BGNM),Santa Fe Area Home Builders Association（Sfahba）和圣达菲市保护委员会（SFWCC）的成员，是一个基于软件的计划，可告诉您您的房屋使用水的有效性。

You may be wondering why they felt the need to create this when the US EPA already has a water efficiency program,WaterSense。不过，两者之间有很大的区别。Watersense实际上是两件事。首先，它是厕所和水龙头等产品的标签，类似于计算机和冰箱等能源之星标签。其次，这是一个新房屋的程序。（查看在Watersense网站上的程序详细信息。)

因此，Watersense新房屋计划基于清单。WERS是一个类似于她的评级系统。

计算一个

The New Mexico folks have done a lot of work to put this rating system together, and it’s in the pilot stage now. The inputs and calculations are done in a spreadsheet (see Image #2, below), and it’s not that difficult to use. In fact, it’s easier than doing a home energy rating because you have a lot fewer inputs.

在图像2中，显示了之一severalWERS电子表格中的标签，您可以看到计算所需的输入。对于厕所，水龙头和其他室内用具和固定装置，您可以输入用水速度。然后，与行业基线和水效计划的规定路径要求相比，电子表格可以计算每个节水的节水。

The “Minimum Prescriptive Indoor WERS” box at the bottom left shows the WERS for a home with the same inputs as you see in the “Program Minimum Prescriptive Path Units” column. In the example above, that would be 85.4. The box to the right of that shows the WERS for the home as rated, using the numbers in the “Proposed or Actual Units” column.

目前，WERS仅包括室内用水，但可以通过重复使用灰水或雨水来减少它。但是，有一个清单用于户外用水，该计划最终也将其纳入WERS。

But doesn’t a HERS rating include water?

最简洁的答案是不。无论如何，都不喜欢WERS。是的，她的评级包括热水，但这只是与之相关的能源使用。它不包括有关厕所，水龙头和其他水固定装置中用水的任何内容。她的评级只是能量。

一旦新的ANSI Standard HERS协议生效，HERS评级就会更好。根据热水效率大师加里·克莱因（Gary Klein）的说法，对自己的评级进行建模的想法已经转移，以提高水效率和时间效率（它到达固定装置的速度多快），而能量影响第二。

但这不是一个。

Scaling water efficiency

关于WERS的最好的事情之一是0到100比例。与她的指数一样，它为建筑商，购房者以及任何感兴趣的人比较房屋的人提供了。金·沙纳汉（Kim Shanahan）是圣达菲地区房屋建筑商协会（Santa Fe Area Builders Association）的执行官，也是负责使沃斯（Wers）成为现实的人之一。他说：“ WERS计划的零至100范围正融入建筑商和市场的竞争性质。”²

新墨西哥州刚起步的计划取得了一个良好的开端。那里有很多兴趣，他们还与EPA和其他人讨论了将其提供给国家。我认为您将在未来几年内听到越来越多的有关WERS的消息。

艾莉森（Allison）迪凯特,乔治亚州,是一个演讲者,作家,能量consultant, RESNET-certified trainer, and the author of theEnergy Vanguard Blog。Check out his in-depth course,Mastering Building Scienceat Heatspring Learning Institute, and follow him on Twitter at@EnergyVanguard。

Footnotes

1。There’s one thing I wish they had done differently, though. WERS stands for Water Efficiency Rating Score. (At least that’s what it is in most places I’ve seen it defined.) What that means is that it’s going to become the next Grrrrrrrrrr-inducing term like ATM, PIN, and ECM because everyone is going to want to say WERS score the way they say ATM machine, PIN number, and ECM motor. I’m feeling it already. Grrrrrrrrrr!

2。Yes, “he.” Kim is a perfectly respectable man’s name. Which reminds me: In case you haven’t heard, I’ve started a new movement to get parents to reclaim names that were traditionally boys’ names but which have since been co-opted by girls. Come on, parents! Don’t be afraid to name those boys Allison or Kim or Kelly or Mary Ann. Well…maybe not Mary Ann, but did you know that John Wayne’s original name was Marion Robert Morrison?