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EBOM-2009 WEp1:Minimum Indoor Plumbing Fixture and Fitting Efficiency

Baseline for plumbing upgrades

Jessica Hawley

Sustainability Consultant

LEEDuser Basic Member

43 thumbs up

April 3, 2012

Please help me figure this out... We're working with a building built in the 80's, all original plumbing and fixtures. They registered with LEED, then performed a complete renovation (plumbing, porcelain, the works). So when I fill out the on-line form, in the Fixture Groups Definition table, do I list the fixtures as replaced pre-1994, or because they were all renovated in 2011, do I list them as replaced after-1994? Of course, I want to hold the pre-1994 baseline of 160%!

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Brittany Bliffen

Sustainability Manager

YR&G

LEEDuser Basic Member

26 thumbs up

Fri, 04/06/2012 - 19:24

Refer to Jason's comments below.

Jessica Hawley

Sustainability Consultant

LEEDuser Basic Member

43 thumbs up

Fri, 04/06/2012 - 19:02

Thank you, Brittany. All fixtures were replaced. So this statement from LEEDUser text, above, Is incorrect?: "If you have a pre-1994 building, and are planning on performing a major bathroom renovation as part of the overall LEED project, be sure to register the project through LEED Online before starting any retrofitting in order to claim the less stringent 160% baseline."

Jason Franken

Sustainability Professional

LEEDuser Expert

430 thumbs up

Fri, 04/06/2012 - 19:10

If the renovations were performed for the purpose of meeting the LEED requirements, and were completed after the project was registered with USGBC, you can still claim the 160% baseline typically associated with pre-1994 fixtures. This is one of the nice little secrets that is not prominently published by USGBC, but is allowed to project teams.

Jessica Hawley

Sustainability Consultant

LEEDuser Basic Member

43 thumbs up

Fri, 04/06/2012 - 19:14

That's what I thought, Jason. But how do I document this on the form? You are asked to list the number of pre- and post-1994 fixtures. Do I list the new, efficient fixtures as pre-1994?

Jason Franken

Sustainability Professional

LEEDuser Expert

430 thumbs up

Fri, 04/06/2012 - 19:16

Yep, list them as pre-1994 when you are building your fixture usage groups and feel free to include a narrative to explain the circumstances so that the reviewer understands why pre-1994 fixtures are being claimed with much better flush/flow rates that would normally be expected.

Michael Miller

Project Architect

LEEDuser Basic Member

146 thumbs up

Sat, 04/07/2012 - 20:28

One comment to keep in mind for the future: I would assume that when you come to recertification in 5 years, the fixtures will be considered post-1994. That would mean that any WEc2 points you are getting from the increased baseline will no longer be available, so you could potentially see a loss of points under WEc2, despite having the same fixture stats. (Can Jason or someone else confirm if I am understanding this correctly?)

Jason Franken

Sustainability Professional

LEEDuser Expert

430 thumbs up

Tue, 04/10/2012 - 20:09

Yes, that's true. You are only allowed to count a renovation like this as "necessary to meet the LEED requirements" once in the total LEED lifecycle of a building. When the building gets recertified under either LEED 2012 or "LEED 2015" (or whatever that future version is called), you would need to group these renovated fixtures into the newer category, so the relative reduction from the LEED baseline will be lower in the future.

Katherine Ann Resurreccion

Arcadis Philippines, Inc.

LEEDuser Basic Member

116 thumbs up

Thu, 12/06/2012 - 03:10

1. If the renovations were performed before the project was registered, then all renovated plumbing fixtures will be listed as post-1994? And all fixtures that were not renovated but meets the UPC/IPC Standard will be listed as pre-1994? 2. If some renovations (water closet replacement) were performed for the purpose of meeting the LEED requirements, and were completed before the project was registered with USGBC (our situation above), then the baseline 120% or 160%?