Major Water Main Break in Bowness Area

[Torture]

Originally Posted by Jimmy Stang

I'm a proponent of working from home (I do full-time). But does this really save much water? I still shower before work, and use the bathroom during the work day.

I suppose working from home gives people "permission" not to shower daily, so that can save a bit. But aside from letting the toilet fill with piss all day vs. having urinals flushing after every use, I'm not sure where the savings come in.

Of course the city is trying to set an example, every little bit helps, and it is better to use a carrot vs. a stick. Which answers my question - it is more about optics and encouraging others, and that's fine with me. I just see the savings being nominal, if anything, but... every little bit helps.

That's exactly it it. Plus you have the folks that live in say, Okotoks that don't have to come in and put pressure on the water system.
Frankly all of the asks are marginal savings but if added up across the city they add up to enough to keep us in the sustainable zone. Farkas says on reddit that 2/3rds of usage is residential, 1/3 is commercial.


Farkas was saying on Reddit that they've sent City staff home and are asking employers to WFH through various associations/industry groups.
I told him that recommendation/ask needs to be a lot clearer if they want employers to take it up (ie. he needs to say it in one of the updates). I've been watching for it and hadn't seen it until he responded to me on Reddit.

[PepsiFree]

I also think people underestimate both the amount of water they’re wasting and the amount you can save. For someone working from home who showers every day, flushes after every bathroom break, runs the dishwasher every day, and does laundry, a savings of 50+% is totally possible and reasonable.

If you’re already having less regular showers, running the dishwasher only when full (regardless if it’s a day or 2-3 days) and only doing full loads of laundry, then the savings could probably only be expected in the 10% range maybe, but if everyone reduces by a baseline of 10% and water wasters reduce by 50% then that’s a very meaningful difference.

[Torture]

I for one am blaming the folks with top load washing machines when we run out. (chart in link below)

The average residential home fixtures use the following volumes of water:

Low flow toilet (per flush) uses 4.8L
Non-low flow toilet (per flush) uses 6L
Dishwasher (per load) uses 28L
Low flow faucet (per 5 minutes) uses 28.5L
Low flow showerhead (per 5 minutes) uses 38L
Regular faucet (per 5 minutes) uses 41.5L
Regular showerhead (per 5 minutes) uses 47.5L
Watering lawn (1/2" hose size for 5 minutes) uses 52.5L
Front load washing machine (per cycle) uses 62L
Leaks (per day) amount to 67L
Watering lawn (5/8" hose size for 5 minutes) uses 85L
Typical bathtub (per use) uses 92L
Top load washing machine (per cycle) uses 112L

https://www.calgary.ca/water/program...your-home.html

[Roughneck]

If the city running out of water is the price we collectively must pay so I never have to deal with a front loading machine again, it's a price worth paying!

[Reggie Dunlop]

No gubmint ain't gunna come to confiscate my bidet without a fight.

[fotze2]

Originally Posted by Fuzz

There are underground cisterns scatter around high places. These act as buffer tanks and natural water pressure providers. At night when usage is low the city is able to refill them for the next day(during the day they are filling as well) but what the red means is we are drawing more during the day than can be recovered overnight, so the next day they are 80% full, then 70%...and so on. Once zero, we lose water pressure which is the big issue for fire fighting.

But another issue exists, which I think is the bigger one. Glenmore can process around 500ML a day. If we need more than that, they need to compromise processing, which means releasing less or unprocessed water into the system. Once this happens, we'd all be on boil water, and they'd have to flush everything before being deemed safe, which I think is a week or so process.

Going on memory from last time here, feel free to correct me. The 'ol pickle ain't what it used to be.

Where are these cisterns? What are they made out of? How big would they be? I seem to remember something underneath Richmond Green Golf course

[fotze2]

Originally Posted by Torture

I for one am blaming the folks with top load washing machines when we run out. (chart in link below)



https://www.calgary.ca/water/program...your-home.html

Looked at a typical wand wash, google says approximately 56 litres and subtract the recycle its less than a shower! I shower once a week because I get brutal exzema/skin for a few days after and I hate it and I don't tend to crap all over was ass crack. So I am better than you guys by six times!

[Bill Bumface]

[Locke]

Originally Posted by Caged Great

There are reserve tanks, those get drained when they can't be refilled.

So once those go dry, there will be outages.

We can just cut off all the leeches. Stop providing Airdrie and Calgary will be just fine!

Its not like those Neanderthals wash much anyways and the Boston Pizza will just have to suck it up.

[Roughneck]

Originally Posted by fotze2

Where are these cisterns? What are they made out of? How big would they be? I seem to remember something underneath Richmond Green Golf course

Richmond Green is where a couple big ones are (and why any development around there is limited). Big giant concrete reservoirs.


As for the other water infrastructure:

Spoiler!

[TorqueDog]

Originally Posted by Torture

I for one am blaming the folks with top load washing machines when we run out. (chart in link below)

https://www.calgary.ca/water/program...your-home.html

This top-load washing machine only uses between 9.6 - 12L between its wash and rinse cycles.

[Ironhorse]

Originally Posted by Roughneck

Richmond Green is where a couple big ones are (and why any development around there is limited). Big giant concrete reservoirs.


As for the other water infrastructure:

Spoiler!

Interesting how south of Glenmore Trail there are only two of them. Compare that with the multitudes in the north.

[Bill Bumface]

Originally Posted by Ironhorse

Interesting how south of Glenmore Trail there are only two of them. Compare that with the multitudes in the north.

Water flows downhill

[Roughneck]

Originally Posted by Ironhorse

Interesting how south of Glenmore Trail there are only two of them. Compare that with the multitudes in the north.

Elevation means you get a lot of free pressure and flow going towards the SE.

[PepsiFree]

Originally Posted by Bill Bumface

Water flows downhill

Innnnnteresting

[Torture]

Originally Posted by Bill Bumface

Water flows downhill

Big if true.

[Fuzz]

Originally Posted by TorqueDog

This top-load washing machine only uses between 9.6 - 12L between its wash and rinse cycles.

Gonna have to assume that's AI, because only a computer would be dumb enough to put a TP holder there. Though I also assume you know this, because you made it.

[Dentoman]

Originally Posted by Roughneck

Richmond Green is where a couple big ones are (and why any development around there is limited). Big giant concrete reservoirs.


As for the other water infrastructure:

Spoiler!

Based on the map, the far NW once again is the place to be

[Cappy]

Originally Posted by Fuzz

Gonna have to assume that's AI, because only a computer would be dumb enough to put a TP holder there. Though I also assume you know this, because you made it.

Dumb enough to put KitchenAid mixer in the toilet seems fair. but that toilet paper holder...

I kid

[Jimmy Stang]

Originally Posted by Dentoman

Based on the map, the far NW once again is the place to be

This came up two years ago, but I can't recall the exact answer, but... suppose a suburbanite lives in a part of the NW, say, Tuscany. I believe that the water would still be coming from the Bearspaw water treatment facility, and not the Glenmore facility which is working overtime trying to reach areas of the city that Bearspaw currently can't. So Bearspaw has plenty of water, and is still delivering it to a reduced number of communities.

Obviously the city can't fragment the group effort and the "we're in it together" sort of thing. But for communities that Bearspaw is still servicing, is there any actual benefit to the cause to conserve?

The optics and simple messaging are certainly more important in a time like this, so the city isn't going to start drawing lines.