Reducing consumption of water and electricity is the answer for lowering utility bills

Being a property owner is not as profitable as it once was because operating cost have been increasing at rates faster than rent rolls. The two most damaging costs have been water and electric costs. If water increases have not been hard enough, electric rates have been squeezing owners from the other end. The best way to return owning commercial and residential properties to profitability is to reduce consumption in responsible ways. These costs can be brought down with relatively simple ways. Low-Flow Water Fixtures Starting July, the DEP will increase the water rate by nearly 13%. For a small 50-unit building, the bill increases to $62,000 from $55,000. A typical 50-unit building is not being charged for using more water, but bills have increased by 65% since 2004. Since 2000, water rates have increased annually by approximately 10%. For owners having a hard time covering their utility bills, it's a wonder where the extra money will come from. To ensure fiscal survival of their property, owners need to consider ways to reduce their water usage, either by aggressive leak prevention or by installing aggressive low-flow fixtures. Aggressive low-flow fixtures can dramatically reduce building water usage, while maintaining or even improving the experience provided to tenants. The biggest complaint with many low flow fixtures are they do not perform like current fixtures that use more water. Building owners need to demand to the lowest flow possible available from their suppliers. Suppliers commonly do not provide the lowest flow fixture, in an effort to secure future business. Most of these fixtures are already being used by large facilities such as stadiums, parks and airports. If large facilities have done it, why can't commercial property owners install them in apartment buildings, where usage is higher and money is less available. LED Lighting In April, Con Edison increased the electric rate by 4.3%. The rate increase could not have come at a worse time, as the economy has begun to come out of recession. Most disturbing is Con Ed plans to continue to increase the rate by at least 4% in coming years. What can bill payers do to lower their utility bill? Lower your kWh hours by changing your lights to LED. The push to change to compact fluorescents lights (CFL) or fluorescent is beginning to get national attention and acceptance. However when compared to shatterproof LED's they are fragile and carry a high risk for mercury exposure. New technology has made LED lights cost competitive. They are no longer the future of the lighting industry, they are the present. When buying LED lights one has to look at the entire life cycle, rather than the just upfront costs. LED's are better than CFL in all aspects of performance while giving you a reduction of total wattage used. An 8 watt LED light is equivalent to a 14 watt CFL or a 60 watt incandescent. Low energy usage is only the most obvious benefit of LED lights. LED's do not get nearly as hot as CFL and fluorescents lights, reducing air conditioners cooling costs. Another benefit is that LED lights last three times as long as compact fluorescents, reducing the amount companies will have to pay in maintenance. No doubt rates for water and electricity will continue to rise with no way for owners to increase rents the same amount. The long term health of buildings could be in jeopardy. For owners to get back in the black, they need to reduce the consumption of their buildings. The path is lit with LED lights and low flow fixtures. If owners bought fixtures now, they would become less affected by rate increases in the future. Turn a negative into a positive, go from dreading the day your bills arrive, to anticipating it. Mark Bourbeau is the owner of GreenCents Solutions, Pelham, N.Y.