look for
WaterSense Labeled
Multi-Family
Homes
Whether you're building your career in a bustling metropolitan area or empty nesters
downsizing in your favorite locale, living in a multi-family building is often a wise choice that can
reduce up-front costs and your environmental footprint.
Choosing an apartment or condo is not just an investment in
your and your family's future. When you purchase or rent a
water-efficient unit, you're investing in the future of your
community and the planet as well. WaterSense is making it
easy to identify homes in multi-family buildings that save
both water and energy. WaterSense labeled homes and
multi-family units are third-party certified to use less water
than typical homes while still performing well.
Residential water use accounts for more than half of the
publicly supplied water in the United States. The U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) established
WaterSense to protect the future of the nation's water
supply and to promote water-efficient products and
services with a simple, easy-to-identify label.
Units in multi-family buildings can earn EPA's WaterSense
label. EPA criteria include WaterSense labeled plumbing
fixtures, efficient hot water delivery systems, individual
metering systems, and other water-saving features inside
the unit, aiong with outdoor criteria for common spaces
on the property. Units that earn the WaterSense label are
third-party certified to meet these criteria, giving
San Diego, California
(Courtesy H.G. Fenton Company)
residents confidence that their home will really save water
—inside and out.
HOW CAN MULTI-FAMILY HOMES SAVE WATER?
Apartments and condos that have earned the label will
have WaterSense labeled toilets, faucets, and
showerheads that have been third-party certified to be
high-performing and water-efficient—saving 20 percent
more water than standard models. In addition, these
homes include ENERGY STAR® certified dishwashers and
clothes washers, if those appliances are installed when the
property is built.
An efficient hot water distribution system decreases the
amount of time it takes for hot water to reach the faucet or
shower—so you won't waste time, energy, and thousands
of gallons waiting for hot water to reach the tap or tub.
WaterSense labeled units must also be able to give
residents access to information they need to understand
their own water use.
Outdoors, buildings that include WaterSense labeled
homes have water-smart landscapes. These include
regionally appropriate plant choices and, if irrigation
systems or pools are installed, efficient technologies that
help keep water use low.
MOVE INTO AN EFFICIENT HOME
Builders interested in constructing WaterSense labeled
homes in multi-family buildings can join the WaterSense
program as partners and receive tools to support their
efforts. Builders then work with an EPA-approved Licensed
Certification Provider (LCP) or Home Certification
Organization (HCO) and one of its trained WaterSense home
verifiers to confirm that the home meets the WaterSense
specification. To learn more about the WaterSense labeled
homes program or to find a WaterSense builder partner near
you, visitwww.epa.gov/watersense.
phone (866) WTR-SENS (987-7367) website www.epa.gov/watersense email watersense@epa.gov
A CQlA EPA-832-F-09-012
August 2012

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