Special Maintenance Considerations - Effective Building Maintenance: Protection of Capital Assets - page 96

• Replace inefficient lighting sources : Existing lighting sources should
be replaced with more efficient types of lighting based on the fol-
lowing:
— Replace incandescent lamps with compact fluorescent lamps
(CFLs). CFLs provide a 75% reduction in lighting energy with a
life that is 3-5 times longer.
— Replace older fluorescent T-12 lamps and magnetic ballasts with
T-8 (or even T-5) lamps with electronic ballasts. (This process
typically requires that the entire fixture be replaced and imple-
mentation can be part of planned renovation/replacement over
several years.)
• Implement lighting operating schedules : The amount of energy
consumed by lighting systems (kWh) is dependent on the type and
level of lights (kW installed) and its hours of use each day. To re-
duce hours of use, lighting schedules based on the facility work or
use schedule should be implemented, typically on a area-by-area
basis.
The least cost approach to implementing this measure is simply
to schedule housekeeping rounds as early as possible in the after-
noon and evening and assign the housekeeping staff with respon-
sibility for cutting off lights as they finish cleaning each area. Thus,
when the facility occupants return the next morning, they can turn
lights on as needed.
A more expensive approach is to install lighting contactors at
each lighting panel and connect these contactors to controllers (or,
if available, a facility-wide direct digital control system) to turn the
lights on and off in accordance with a pre-set schedule.
Indoor Water Consumption
Since 1993, all new facilities have been required to use “low-flow”
plumbing fixtures—water closets and urinals, lavatory and sink faucets,
and shower heads. These fixtures reduce water use by 50-78% over pre-
1993 fixtures. Older facilities, when replacing older fixtures that have
reached the end of their service life (or when renovating), must replace
them with the current low-flow type. However, no matter which type of
fixture is currently installed, indoor water consumption can be reduced
with the following measures that can be incorporated into the mainte-
nance program.