Choosing Your New Eco-Friendly Bathroom
16/11/2009 | So you've decided to do up your bathroom and change your fifteen year old, water-guzzling, energy-sapping suite. Good decision. Now is the time to get it all replaced with one of the bright, new, contemporary style suites which use less water and less energy and start saving on those ever increasing utility bills. But where do you start looking for the best in water efficient bathroom products? There is so much information out there that it can be quite daunting to find a super new toilet, basin, bath, shower, taps and all the rest. Fortunately help is at hand and the Bathroom Manufacturers Association, based in Stoke, has just re-launched its special scheme which does just what you need. WEPLS as it is known – the Water Efficient Product Labelling Scheme – has been on line for a couple of years but from October 2009 the WEPLS website has a new look, is easier to use, and lists over 700 of the very best eco-friendly bathrooms currently available in the UK market. Modern bathroom suites have come a long way in recent years and the latest designs have water and energy efficiency built in. This scheme reflects those products which meet the strict criteria laid down by industry experts. Independent tests ensure that the products actually do what they claim to do. New toilet suites can flush with as little as 2.6 litres. Compare that with the current UK average of 9 litres. Yours may even be designed to flush with 13 litres and using a brick or a water displacement device doesn't always work. WEPLS lists products which will save you water and save you money. They also help save the planet. The illustrated database can be browsed at www.water-efficiencylabel.org.uk The site is easily navigable. Besides the product lists and details of their manufacturers, links to stockists, fact sheets, advice on using water wisely, and a water-use-calculator are included. And to help you complete the job a simple 'shopping list creator' can be used to aid you through the process. All listed products now have a new and easy to understand label. It's similar to the energy label seen on fridges and washing machines and shows you at a glance how much water your chosen product actually uses and where it fits in the water efficiency tables. WEPLS is managed by the BMA, which represents over seventy of the most well known bathroom brands in the UK. More details from http://www.bathroom-association.org/