A Water Standard that works

AECB - the sustainable building association have now launched a Water Standard applicable to new homes, the refurbishment of existing dwellings and also to non-domestic buildings. The Standard sits alongside the AECB’s well-established CarbonLite Energy Standards.
The Water Standard is aimed at architects, designers, house builders and specifiers and has two levels – ‘Good’ and ‘Best’ Practice, with a third ‘Experimental’ category.

As an ‘appliance based standard’, the AECB Water Standard avoids many of the pitfalls of the CSH whole house calculation method and encourages the uptake of properly functional user-friendly appliances and fittings that are robust and energy and water efficient.

"The water calculator within the Code for Sustainable Homes is a fundamentally flawed approach to driving water efficiency in the home. The problems arising from this method are becoming increasingly apparent as more homes are built to the CSH" explains Marcus Zipperlen, at the Centre for Alternative Technology.

The AECB Water standard has also resolved vital issues relating to plumbing system design and hot water use - thereby robustly addressing the energy impacts of water in the home.
Another key difference between the AECB standard and CSH, is that the AECB standard does not unduly emphasise the use of rainwater and greywater systems, owing to their higher cost and environmental impact compared to mains.

The AECB standard is available as a free download from:

Volume 1 – the standards
http://www.aecb.net/PDFs/waterstandards/1503_AECB_Water_Vol_1_V3.pdf

Volume 2 - technical report supporting the standards
http://www.aecb.net/PDFs/waterstandards/The_AECB_Water_Vol_2_V3.pdf