Our mission: to help save water and energy while contributing to the protection of the environment by changing consumer and plumbing heating and air conditioning behavior through education and use of energy-efficient technologies.
What is the GreenPlumber Program and why is it important?
The green plumber program is an innovative, national training and accreditation program. Its purpose is to help plumbers understand the vital role they play with regard to the environment and public health.
The training our plumbers receive focuses on using new water-saving technologies and energy efficiencies that they can pass on to you, our customer. I’m sure you would agree that we could all use extra education in conserving water and the reduction of GHG(greenhouse gas) emissions.
The beauty of this program is that it is a grassroots effort, completely voluntary, so it can be implemented quickly without legislation or regulation.
We are leading the way in what we hope will be an army of thousands of GreenPlumbers®
The GreenPlumbers® ultimate goal is nothing less than a complete cultural change for the entire plumbing industry.
Did you know?
Some Fun, Some Interesting, Sometimes a Little Scary…. Facts
- Did you know that a leaking toilet in a month’s period of time could leak enough water to fill a swimming pool?
- Did you know that the overall amount of water on our planet has remained the same for two billion years? Water use in the last century has increased at double the rate of population growth. Population growth globally has tripled. Water use per capita has increased by 6 times.
- Did you know that the average family of 4 uses between 116,000-175,000 gallons/year? (This is assuming they have no pool or spa)
- Did you know that starting in the year 2010 manufactures will not be able to produce air conditioning units that use R-22 ((hydrochlorofluorocarbon) because of concerns about the ozone layer? (Use of R-22 in existing units will be O.K. until the year 2030.
- Did you know that one chlorine or bromine molecule can destroy 100,000 ozone molecules? (found in R-22 Freon)
- Did you know the Montreal Protocol is a series of international agreements aimed at the reduction and eventual elimination of ozone depleting substances?
- Did you know the Montreal Protocol became effective in 1989? Currently, 160 countries are involved.
- Did you know if we replace inefficient home cooling systems with efficient ones, it’s like taking 275,000 cars off the road? (SDG&E Flex Your Power web site)
- Did you know setting your thermostat just 5 degrees higher can save you 10 % on your cooling costs?
- Did you know that cutting your shower time from 7 minutes to 4 minutes could save over 6500 gallons per person per year?
What can I do to Go Green? What Steps Can I Take To Reduce My Carbon Footprint?
Probably first and foremost is to understand what the heck is a carbon footprint?
By definition “A carbon footprint is the measure of the amount of carbon dioxide — the major man-made global warming greenhouse gas — that goes into the atmosphere as you go about your daily life.
On average, every American is responsible for about 22 tons of carbon dioxide emissions every year, according to statistics compiled by the United Nations. (The world average is 6 tons per capita)
Here are 5 simple things you can do to reduce you and your families “carbon footprint.”
- Move thermostat down 2 degrees in the winter and up 2 degrees in the summer can save 2000 lbs of carbon dioxide per year.
- Replace just three bulbs with energy-efficient fluorescent bulbs. (If every household in America replaced just three bulbs with energy-efficient fluorescent bulbs, we would all save $60 a year and collectively keep a trillion pounds of CO2 out of the atmosphere.)
- Unplug the “vampire” energy users. Your TV when not in use your phone charger, your electric shaver, VCR’s, your stereo….just to name a few. Even if they are turned off, they are still drawing power. 10 “vampire” energy users can use as much as 240 watts per day.
- Weatherizing your home could save as much as 1000 lbs of CO2 annually.
- Tune-up your air conditioner. This can save you as much as 10-15% annually.