The waterless urinal and the fly: a water saving love story

What’s happening in our men’s rooms? Waterless urinals? Flies on the porcelain? Here’s one fact that struck me. Each commercial-use waterless urinal can save between 15,000 and 45,000 gallons of water a year. Ah…no wonder waterless urinals are showing up in airports, malls and office buildings? But what about the fly on the porcelain? With an interest in learning more about this fast growing sector, the business of saving water and that fly…. I reached out to Klaus Reichardt. Klaus should know. He invented the waterless urinal and with the company he founded, San Diego based Waterless Co Inc., Klaus and his team sell more waterless urinals than anyone in the world.

Klaus, 15,000 to 30,000 gallons per year. How much does that save on the water bill?

With approximately $7 per 1000 gal of water and sewer cost, each urinal will save approximately $105 to $210 per urinal per year, and that is just the savings on water and sewer. Factor in the normal maintenance on a flushed urinal, flush valve repair, vandalism etc and the savings are usually around $350 total per urinal per year.

How much do waterless urinal’s cost?

Our line ranges from about $200 up to $500 for our most extravagant and cool looking urinals that have a granite look.

How big is the market for the waterless urinal?

We figure there are about 8-9 million flushed urinals installed in the US alone that can be converted over time. That would be 100% of the potential.

Are you selling them to residential customers as well?

Actually we are receiving more and more interest from residential users as they have seen their water and sewer rates go up plus their increased awareness in water efficiency and conservation. But it is still a very small sector.

What about innovation? How has Waterless evolved the offering?

We are the only company offering high performance composite urinals as well as standard vitreous china (ceramic) fixtures. In addition, we came up with the first soybean based resin No-Flush™ urinal this year. Soybeans are a renewable resource.

What are some other water-saving devices you are impressed with?

I particularly like the Leak Beeper which lets you know about leaks in your toilets (really great for hotels as well) and the WaterBroom.

Tell us about the Fly in the urinal? Where did it come from and what’s it all about?

I think the best way to answer that is that it is an aiming device ☺. In every public restroom there are usually lots of… you know what… drips on the floor in front of the urinal. This is from spray and not standing close enough. Positioning the fly in the right curvature of the fixture makes the urine donation fun plus avoids spray.

Does the fly have an environmental impact as well?

In the farthest sense yes in that it keeps the restroom cleaner with less bacteria.

If someone gets excited about this industry how can they become involved in it as a businessperson or as an investor?

I believe that water conservation is not only a necessity but also makes good common sense. Anything that has these two components would be a natural to be involved in as a business or as investment. There is huge room for further product improvements,
Education, distribution as well as simple investments. Best to get involved online under conservation, waterless, drought etc.

Thanks Klaus!

To visit Klaus's company Waterless Co, Click Here

Here's how Klaus's system works:

This post was originally published on Smartplanet.com