The next time you shower, take note — you see an average of 17 gallons rinsing down the drain. Between toilets, showers, handwashing, dishwashing, f

Denver plans to look to sewage heat recovery as an ally in the fight against climate change.

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2021-06-21 13:00:20

The next time you shower, take note — you see an average of 17 gallons rinsing down the drain. Between toilets, showers, handwashing, dishwashing, face washing, laundry, we're flushing a continuous stream of water into the sewer lines each day.

The U.S. Department of Energy estimated in 2005 that Americans wasted the equivalent of 350 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) of energy each year from unused hot water — about 3,000 kWh per household. To put things in perspective, the average American household consumes roughly 11,000 kWh of electricity every year. By gathering excess warm water flowing through the sewer lines and storing it in a temperature-controlled pit, the stored heat can serve as a year-round energy source.

By gathering excess warm water flowing through the sewer lines and storing it in a temperature-controlled pit, the stored heat can serve as a year-round energy source.

The city of Denver plans to tap into those underground heat reserves by constructing North America's largest sewage heat recovery facility — increasing our renewable energy options to fight climate change.

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