'Double ZeroHouse 2.0' Demonstrates Potential of On-Site Water Recycling

KB Home has recently set new standards for water efficiency in California home construction with its Double ZeroHouse 2.0 in the city of Lancaster.

It is called the "Double ZeroHouse 2.0" because it achieves both net-zero energy status, and uses zero freshwater for irrigation. The Double ZeroHouse 2.0 features an eWater Recycler capable of treating on-site two out of every three gallons of city water used indoors. After it is first used indoors, the water is treated and then used a second time on the landscape.

With a family of four, the Double ZeroHouse 2.0 is modeled to use just 42 gal per person daily (gpcd) of municipal water for all indoor and outdoor water use.

In comparison, a new standard home with typical water-efficient landscape will use 2.6 times more water at 109 gpcd, and a typical resale house built in the 1990s will use 3.5 times more—147 gpcd.

"We first used WaterSense labeled fixtures and low-water landscaping to minimize water use," explained Tom DiPrima, executive vice president of KB Home's Southern California division. "To potentially cut about 40,000 more gallons of water use, we then advanced to recycling virtually every drop of water from showers and laundry. On-site water recycling is a big new step forward in water efficiency."

To recycle water, KB Home tapped the "eWater Recycler" by U.S.-Australian company Nexus eWater. Capable of recycling up to 200 gal daily, the eWater Recycler is a complete solution for the treatment, storage and reuse of water in homes.

"A critical goal was to have a 'turn-key' approach that would make water recycling automatic without the need for active homeowner involvement," DiPrima continued. "The Nexus solution fit that bill and it works without the addition of chemicals or the balancing of a biological culture."

Source: Nexuz eWater