Log in
LEED v4.1

Core and Shell

Water Efficiency
Indoor Water Use Reduction

LEED CREDIT

CS-v4.1 WEc2: Indoor water use reduction 1-4 points

See all forum discussions about this credit »
View the LEED v4 version of this credit »

SPECIAL REPORT

LEEDuser expert

emily reese moody

LEED AP BD+C, LFA, EcoDistricts AP, ENV SP, Fitwel Ambassador, WEDG Professional, ActiveScore AP, GGP, GPCP, GCP

Jacobs
Sustainability Director, Certifications & Compliance

SPECIAL REPORT

LEEDuser’s viewpoint

Frank advice from LEED experts

LEED is changing all the time, and every project is unique. Even seasoned professionals can miss a critical detail and lose a credit or even a prerequisite at the last minute. Our expert advice guides our LEEDuser Premium members and saves you valuable time.

Credit language

USGBC logo

© Copyright U.S. Green Building Council, Inc. All rights reserved.

Requirements

Further reduce fixture and fitting water use from the calculated baseline in WE Prerequisite Indoor Water Use Reduction. Additional potable water savings can be earned above the prerequisite level using alternative water sources. Include fixtures and fittings necessary to meet the needs of the occupants. Some of these fittings and fixtures may be outside the tenant space (for Commercial Interiors) or project boundary (for New Construction). Points are awarded according to Table 1.

Table 1. Points for reducing water use
Percentage Reduction Points (BD+C) Points (CS) Points (Schools, Retail, Hospitality, Healthcare)
25% 1 1 1
30% 2 2 2
35% 3 3 3
40% 4 4 4
45% 5 -- 5
50% 6 -- --
Schools, Retail, Hospitality, and Healthcare only
Meet the percentage reduction requirements above.

AND
Appliance and process water
Install equipment within the project scope that meets the minimum requirements in Table 2, 3, 4, or 5 . One point is awarded for meeting all applicable requirements in any one table. All applicable equipment listed in each table must meet the standard. Schools, Retail, and Healthcare projects can earn a second point for meeting the requirements of two tables.
Table 2. Compliant commercial washing machines
To use Table 2, the project must process at least 120,000 lbs (57 606 kg) of laundry per year.
Washing machine Requirement (IP units) Requirement (SI units)
On-premise, minimum capacity 2,400 lbs (10 886 kg) per 8-hour shift Maximum 1.8 gals per pound * Maximum 7 liters per 0.45 kilograms *
* Based on equal quantities of heavy, medium, and light soil laundry.
Table 3. Standards for commercial kitchen equipment
To use Table 3, the project must serve at least 100 meals per day of operation. All process and appliance equipment listed in the category of kitchen equipment and present on the project must comply with the standards.
Kitchen equipment Requirement (IP units) Requirement (SI units)

Dishwasher

Undercounter ENERGY STAR ENERGY STAR or performance equivalent
 Stationary, single tank, door ENERGY STAR ENERGY STAR or performance equivalent
Single tank, conveyor ENERGY STAR ENERGY STAR or performance equivalent
Multiple tank, conveyor ENERGY STAR ENERGY STAR or performance equivalent
Flight machine ENERGY STAR ENERGY STAR or performance equivalent

Food steamer

Batch (no drain connection) ≤ 2 gal/hour/pan including condensate cooling water ≤ 7.5 liters/hour/pan including condensate cooling water
Cook-to-order (with drain connection) ≤ 5 gal/hour/pan including condensate cooling water ≤ 19 liters/hour/pan including condensate cooling water

Combination oven,

Countertop or stand ≤ 1.5 gal/hour/panincluding condensate cooling water ≤ 5.7 liters/hour/pan including condensate cooling water
Roll-in ≤ 1.5 gal/hour/pan including condensate cooling water ≤ 5.7 liters/hour/pan including condensate cooling water

Food waste disposer

Disposer 3-8 gpm, full load condition; 10 minute automatic shutoff or 1 gpm, no-load condition 11–30 lpm, full load condition; 10-min automatic shutoff or 3.8 lpm, no-load condition
Scrap collector Maximum 2 gpm makeup water Maximum 7.6 lpm makeup water
Pulper Maximum 2 gpm makeup water Maximum 7.6 lpm makeup water
Strainer basket No additional water usage No additional water usage
gpm = gallons per minute gph = gallons per hour lpm = liters per minute lph = liters per hour
Table 4. Compliant laboratory and medical equipment
To use Table 4, the project must be a medical or laboratory facility.
Lab equipment Requirement (IP units) Requirement (SI units)
Reverse-osmosis water purifier 75% recovery 75% recovery
Steam sterilizer For 60-inch sterilizer, 6.3 gal/U.S. tray
For 48-inch sterilizer, 7.5 gal/U.S. tray
For 1520-mm sterilizer, 28.5 liters/DIN tray
For 1220-mm sterilizer, 28.35 liters/DIN tray
Sterile process washer 0.35 gal/U.S. tray 1.3 liters/DIN tray
X-ray processor, 150 mm or more in any dimension Film processor water recycling unit
Digital imager, all sizes No water use
Table 5. Compliant municipal steam systems
To use Table 5, the project must be connected to a municipal or district steam system that does not allow the return of steam condensate.
Steam system Standard
Steam condensate disposal Cool municipally supplied steam condensate (no return) to drainage system with heat recovery system or reclaimed water
OR
Reclaim and use steam condensate 100% recovery and reuse
See all forum discussions about this credit »

What does it cost?

Cost estimates for this credit

On each BD+C v4 credit, LEEDuser offers the wisdom of a team of architects, engineers, cost estimators, and LEED experts with hundreds of LEED projects between then. They analyzed the sustainable design strategies associated with each LEED credit, but also to assign actual costs to those strategies.

Our tab contains overall cost guidance, notes on what “soft costs” to expect, and a strategy-by-strategy breakdown of what to consider and what it might cost, in percentage premiums, actual costs, or both.

This information is also available in a full PDF download in The Cost of LEED v4 report.

Learn more about The Cost of LEED v4 »

Addenda

4/21/2023Updated: 5/9/2023
Reference Guide Correction
Description of change:
Add the following as a second bullet under International Tips:

"o Where local building code conflicts with LEED prescriptive requirements, project teams may select fixtures that comply with local code and compensate by selecting more water-efficient fixtures for other fixture types, provided that the flow rate for the fixture is the lowest allowable by code, and the project meets in aggregate the required 20% reduction from LEED baseline. Provide an excerpt of the local code highlighting the flow rate requirements when submitting for review."
Campus Applicable
No
Internationally Applicable:
No
4/9/2021Updated: 4/20/2021
Rating System Correction
Description of change:
Revise the intents for both WE prerequisite Indoor Water Use Reduction and WE credit Indoor Water Use Reduction to read as follows:
"To reduce indoor potable water consumption and preserve no and low cost potable water resources."
Campus Applicable
No
Internationally Applicable:
No
4/9/2021Updated: 4/19/2021
Reference Guide Correction
Description of change:
Below the Further Explanation section titled "Occupant Types" add a new section titled "Campus or Municipal Alternative Water Sources" that reads as follows:

"Campus or Municipal Alternative Water Sources
Projects may count future infrastructure for reclaimed water systems in Water Efficiency credit calculations if:
 the future systems will be functional within 2 years of project occupancy,
 the project provides documentation, such as a signed contract, confirming that the reclaimed water will be provided to the project within a 2-year period from project occupancy, and
 the project provides confirmation that the reclaimed water supplier has agreed to supply the volume of treated wastewater or seawater claimed by the project."
Campus Applicable
No
Internationally Applicable:
No
11/9/2020Updated: 11/30/2020
Rating System Correction
Description of change:
In the sentence below Table 1. Baseline water consumption of fixtures and fittings, delete the following phrase: "the supply pressure must be consistent in the baseline and proposed case."

Revise the sentence below Table 2. Standards for appliances so that it reads as follows: "*Projects in Europe may install residential appliances meeting the EU A label."
Campus Applicable
No
Internationally Applicable:
No
11/10/2020Updated: 11/25/2020
Reference Guide Correction
Description of change:
In the International Tips section, delete "+++" in the bullet point that begins "The EU ..." so that the sentence reads as follows:

"The EU A label for residential appliances is an acceptable alternative to ENERGY STAR. The EU Ecodesign and Labelling framework establishes minimum performance standards for the energy and environmental performance of appliances and products."
Campus Applicable
No
Internationally Applicable:
No
7/25/2019Updated: 7/30/2019
Reference Guide Correction
Description of change:
After the Referenced Standards section in the Further Explanation section, add new section:

"Exemplary Performance
Achieve 55% savings."
Campus Applicable
No
Internationally Applicable:
No
See all forum discussions about this credit »

Documentation toolkit

The motherlode of cheat sheets

LEEDuser’s Documentation Toolkit is loaded with calculators to help assess credit compliance, tracking spreadsheets for materials, sample templates to help guide your narratives and LEED Online submissions, and examples of actual submissions from certified LEED projects for you to check your work against. To get your plaque, start with the right toolkit.

LEEDuser expert

emily reese moody

LEED AP BD+C, LFA, EcoDistricts AP, ENV SP, Fitwel Ambassador, WEDG Professional, ActiveScore AP, GGP, GPCP, GCP

Jacobs
Sustainability Director, Certifications & Compliance

Get the inside scoop

Our editors have written a detailed analysis of nearly every LEED credit, and LEEDuser premium members get full access. We’ll tell you whether the credit is easy to accomplish or better left alone, and we provide insider tips on how to document it successfully.

USGBC logo

© Copyright U.S. Green Building Council, Inc. All rights reserved.

Requirements

Further reduce fixture and fitting water use from the calculated baseline in WE Prerequisite Indoor Water Use Reduction. Additional potable water savings can be earned above the prerequisite level using alternative water sources. Include fixtures and fittings necessary to meet the needs of the occupants. Some of these fittings and fixtures may be outside the tenant space (for Commercial Interiors) or project boundary (for New Construction). Points are awarded according to Table 1.

Table 1. Points for reducing water use
Percentage Reduction Points (BD+C) Points (CS) Points (Schools, Retail, Hospitality, Healthcare)
25% 1 1 1
30% 2 2 2
35% 3 3 3
40% 4 4 4
45% 5 -- 5
50% 6 -- --
Schools, Retail, Hospitality, and Healthcare only
Meet the percentage reduction requirements above.

AND
Appliance and process water
Install equipment within the project scope that meets the minimum requirements in Table 2, 3, 4, or 5 . One point is awarded for meeting all applicable requirements in any one table. All applicable equipment listed in each table must meet the standard. Schools, Retail, and Healthcare projects can earn a second point for meeting the requirements of two tables.
Table 2. Compliant commercial washing machines
To use Table 2, the project must process at least 120,000 lbs (57 606 kg) of laundry per year.
Washing machine Requirement (IP units) Requirement (SI units)
On-premise, minimum capacity 2,400 lbs (10 886 kg) per 8-hour shift Maximum 1.8 gals per pound * Maximum 7 liters per 0.45 kilograms *
* Based on equal quantities of heavy, medium, and light soil laundry.
Table 3. Standards for commercial kitchen equipment
To use Table 3, the project must serve at least 100 meals per day of operation. All process and appliance equipment listed in the category of kitchen equipment and present on the project must comply with the standards.
Kitchen equipment Requirement (IP units) Requirement (SI units)

Dishwasher

Undercounter ENERGY STAR ENERGY STAR or performance equivalent
 Stationary, single tank, door ENERGY STAR ENERGY STAR or performance equivalent
Single tank, conveyor ENERGY STAR ENERGY STAR or performance equivalent
Multiple tank, conveyor ENERGY STAR ENERGY STAR or performance equivalent
Flight machine ENERGY STAR ENERGY STAR or performance equivalent

Food steamer

Batch (no drain connection) ≤ 2 gal/hour/pan including condensate cooling water ≤ 7.5 liters/hour/pan including condensate cooling water
Cook-to-order (with drain connection) ≤ 5 gal/hour/pan including condensate cooling water ≤ 19 liters/hour/pan including condensate cooling water

Combination oven,

Countertop or stand ≤ 1.5 gal/hour/panincluding condensate cooling water ≤ 5.7 liters/hour/pan including condensate cooling water
Roll-in ≤ 1.5 gal/hour/pan including condensate cooling water ≤ 5.7 liters/hour/pan including condensate cooling water

Food waste disposer

Disposer 3-8 gpm, full load condition; 10 minute automatic shutoff or 1 gpm, no-load condition 11–30 lpm, full load condition; 10-min automatic shutoff or 3.8 lpm, no-load condition
Scrap collector Maximum 2 gpm makeup water Maximum 7.6 lpm makeup water
Pulper Maximum 2 gpm makeup water Maximum 7.6 lpm makeup water
Strainer basket No additional water usage No additional water usage
gpm = gallons per minute gph = gallons per hour lpm = liters per minute lph = liters per hour
Table 4. Compliant laboratory and medical equipment
To use Table 4, the project must be a medical or laboratory facility.
Lab equipment Requirement (IP units) Requirement (SI units)
Reverse-osmosis water purifier 75% recovery 75% recovery
Steam sterilizer For 60-inch sterilizer, 6.3 gal/U.S. tray
For 48-inch sterilizer, 7.5 gal/U.S. tray
For 1520-mm sterilizer, 28.5 liters/DIN tray
For 1220-mm sterilizer, 28.35 liters/DIN tray
Sterile process washer 0.35 gal/U.S. tray 1.3 liters/DIN tray
X-ray processor, 150 mm or more in any dimension Film processor water recycling unit
Digital imager, all sizes No water use
Table 5. Compliant municipal steam systems
To use Table 5, the project must be connected to a municipal or district steam system that does not allow the return of steam condensate.
Steam system Standard
Steam condensate disposal Cool municipally supplied steam condensate (no return) to drainage system with heat recovery system or reclaimed water
OR
Reclaim and use steam condensate 100% recovery and reuse

LEEDuser expert

emily reese moody

LEED AP BD+C, LFA, EcoDistricts AP, ENV SP, Fitwel Ambassador, WEDG Professional, ActiveScore AP, GGP, GPCP, GCP

Jacobs
Sustainability Director, Certifications & Compliance

See all LEEDuser forum discussions about this credit » Subscribe to new discussions about CS-v4.1 WEc2