FACT SHEET: WATER CONSERVATION IN SELF-SERVICE LAUNDRIES
THE AVERAGE COIN LAUNDRY SAVES ITS COMMUNITY MILLIONS OF GALLONS OF WATER OVER THE COURSE OF A YEAR.
- Home washing machines typically consume 30 to 40 gallons of water per wash load, or 2.5 to 3.0 gallons per pound of clothes laundered. High-efficiency, commercial clothes washers found in self-service laundries typically use as little as 0.5 to 1.5 gallons of water per pound of clothes laundered.
- Commercial clothes washers are designed by manufacturers to deliver superior washing results while consuming the absolute minimum volume of water.
- Utilities are the single greatest expense for the operation of self-service laundries. Laundry owners are driven by profitability to install the most efficient equipment possible for their customers.
- By washing clothes at the local Laundromat, residents in drought-stricken areas will save at least half of the water they would typically use at home.
- Further water-savings are achieved in self-service laundries as consumers launder full loads of clothes, whereas home launderers tend to under load washers and unnecessarily waste water.
- Typical self-service laundries present even greater water savings by offering large-capacity washers that can wash multiple loads of laundry at a fraction of the water consumption. Most stores have washers as large as a 50lb. capacity which enables customers to launder four to five loads in a single machine.
- As part of an overall energy conservation plan, the national Coin Laundry Association educates its members to alert customers to the benefits of using commercial equipment to reduce water and sewer demands.
- Self-service laundries provide a basic public health service to the community. The coin laundry industry serves many of the lower income residents who cannot afford to own and operate their own washers and dryers.
- During times of water shortage and drought, self-service laundries are a significant way for communities to conserve water.
