If you review a facility’s water bill, you’ll notice a charge called “sewer fee”. The sewer fee is based on the amount of incoming water supplied by your water provider. By default, the provider assumes that the amount of water sent down the drain to the sewer is the same as the amount of incoming water as measured by the water meter. For cooling towers, this is absolutely not the case.
As you can see in the diagram, much of the water supplied to the cooling tower evaporates as part of the cooling process (often 50% or more). Therefore, the water company is charging you a sewer fee for the water that evaporates. If log-books are maintained to document the amount of water that flows into a cooling tower and the amount of water that is sent down the drain, many water providers will issue a credit for a portion of the sewer fee. Here’s where WaterSignal comes in.
Like a doctors stethoscope, WaterSignal uses sensors to listen to the pulse of your existing meters. Usage data is then collected and sent wirelessly to a secure web portal where water consumption can be drilled down by month, day, or even by hour. When it’s time to submit your log-book for credit, simply log on to your secure WaterSignal dashboard, select your desired dates, and export your data into Excel or PDF format.
Cooling tower evaporation credits can be a great way to produce substantial savings and free up capital for other sustainability projects. A small investment now can prevent profits from evaporating and reduce expenses in the future.
With water rates rising and state conservation mandates growing, why pay more when you can conserve water and pay less?