Chris d Craiker
Now that spring has arrived, everybody is turning on their irrigation systems and many are discovering leaks that developed over the winter or never got fixed last year. We're all trying to conserve our natural resources while minimizing our expenses, especially for utilities, which only seems to go up. Surprisingly, almost 30% of an average household water consumption is for outdoor irrigation and general outdoor use. Up to another 10% is wasted on leaks and poor connections. Getting a handle on all of these factor makes good sustainable sense for all of us.
A recent article by Kevin Courtney in the Napa Valley Register highlighted his discovery of a water leak after multiple months and was shocked with a $825 bill for a lost 70,000 gallons of precious City water. It appears this had been leaking over a long period of time, only to discover it was well hidden in a landscape bed where a 2-inch PVC pipe had blown without detection or notice. Kevin and Cheryl were able to get a partial refund, but the closing bill was still significant.
My assistant encountered the same situation when she received an exploded bill for $285. By the time they got that bill, it was already halfway through the next billing cycle, making the second bill outrageous as well.
I have to assume there is a flood of gushing water all around the city as people discover how rotten their hoses and underground water lines are. In Napa, the water department is an integral part of the City and tries to maintain good communications with all its customers. So, I asked Joy Eldredge, Napa Water Deputy Utilities Director, if there was any way the water department could monitor customers water consumption so as to alert them when a spike occurs. Joy noted, “We are very aware of the issue and make a multi-pronged approach by advertising on social media, KVYN public announcements, periodicals and our website to publicize to our customers these issues as we transition into the irrigation season.” Every spring the city participates in the EPA WaterSense Sprinkler Spruce- Up campaign to remind customers to inspect for breaks, leaks, ensure proper connections of sprinklers, direct sprinklers for proper water coverage and to select water sensible labeling irrigation controls. It makes a lot of sense, but many people just don’t get the message.
Joy noted that the city is limited to only reading meters as drive-bys and billing every two months. High-read notifications are based on comparing customers usage of the previous four years. This often gets lost with active irrigation system leaks which can spike often in the course of the seasonal temperature spikes. The city does have a automatic meter reading system, AMR, that allows them to drive by for remote electronic readings but it does get complicated. While the technology has been changing rapidly, eventually they'll be going to a cellular based system instead of a fixed network infrastructure, which comes with a high price tag of multi- millions of dollars.
I noted to Joy that there are post water meter devices that can shut a system off when a spike occurs but Joy noted that would be dangerous for homes with fire-suppression sprinklers which are becoming the majority of residences.
Interestingly, Joy noted that there is a smart irrigation controller available from that allows customers to install and customize your details to determine how much water is necessary and when. The Rachio 3 can personalize your water schedule and hopefully balance your landscape needs.
Another solution is the smart home water monitor or flume that can monitor your indoor/outdoor water uses from your phone. Currently, there's a limited number of these available through grant funding and if they run out I would hope the water department would consider making them available to all Napa customers.
We all know that conserving our precious resources is essential for our future, even as we periodically have water surpluses in our reservoirs and mountains. I try to remember the 6 R's: refuse, reduce, reuse, repurpose, recycle, and for architects, renovate.
Chris d Craiker AIA/NCARB would be bankrupt without both a well with storage and city water
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