WaterSense for Homes Celebrates its First Version 2.0 Certification

The WaterSense® label for plumbing products is one of the most highly recognized consumer labels in the residential construction industry, according to findings from NAHB's What Home Buyers Really Want, 2019 edition. The WaterSense for Homes program — a voluntary, above-code certification for both water savings and performance — can help assure home buyers in a competitive market where third-party certifications matter, provide them a choice in efficient homes, and help them save water, energy and money.

The new WaterSense 2.0 program allows whole-home performance-based water efficiency rating programs to be used in achieving the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) WaterSense label for homes. NAHB member KB Home was recently awarded the first certification under this pilot program for a new home in its Inspirada master plan subdivision in Henderson, Nev.

"The Version 2.0 pilot is an important opportunity for WaterSense to gain feedback on how to best support the building industry as well as ensure that the needs of home buyers are being met," said Jonah Schein, national program manager for WaterSense labeled homes, in the press release announcing the certification.

The WaterSense program will also utilize that feedback to continue compiling estimates of the annual water, energy and utility bill savings derived from the use of WaterSense products. Those accomplishment reports and how they are created, along with myriad data sources used to carry out the program, have been compiled on a new user-friendly Data and Information EPA webpage. Data available may be useful in conversations with local jurisdictions about water policies that support residential building, and include per capita water use, water withdrawals, end uses of water, national building stock and energy use, and savings from avoided water heating.

For more information about NAHB's sustainable and green building programs, visit nahb.org/sustainability. And to stay current on the high-performance residential building sector, follow NAHB's Sustainability and Green Building team on Twitter.