The average restaurant uses 5,800 gallons of water per day. As a comparison, the average individual uses between 75 and 100 gallons of water per day. That’s a whole lot of water!
Where does all the water go?
Kitchen 50%
Domestic 35%
Irrigation 2%
Cleaning 1%
Other 12%
What are some water saving strategies that we can use?
- Reuse water where possible
Water from the steamers, the 3-compartment dishwashing sink, and other areas can be reused to make the most efficient use of the water. Train your employees to take control of their own water usage.
- Use a Rethermalizer for defrosting
A rethermalizer uses warm water to reheat bagged frozen items. Since the water is being reused in a closed system, it’s already far more water-efficient than running water over the frozen chicken or turkey. Another advantage is that the rethermalizer heats evenly – unlike setting it under the faucet.
- Choose your Energy Star Equipment
The Energy Star system was implemented to save both energy and money for anyone needing an appliance. In fact, the standards are usually so high for the Energy Star program that restaurants who switch over to equipment with the Energy Star label have saved hundreds of dollars per year.
- Fix all leaks when you find them
When you find a water leak, get it fixed as soon as possible. Check out the water lines going to the bathrooms as well, just to make sure. A ‘little’ water leak can trickle out hundreds, even thousands of gallons, and all of them end up on your water bill.
- Look into Low-Flow Toilets
If you’ve got an older restaurant with older toilets, you might be looking at up to 7 gallons of water per flush. This is compared to some of the more efficient toilets which use just a little over a gallon of water per flush.
Making your restaurant water efficient doesn’t have to be done at the expense of your stress levels or budget. These low-impact solutions can make quite a difference in the water usage.
Thanks go out to Ramesh Rasaiyan on Flickr for the Creative Commons use of the picture.
