Homeowner Associations Tap into Water Conservation
Corte Madera, Calif., (March, 2006) — This is the "Year of the Water," say environmental industry experts. As water becomes a dwindling resource nationwide, ETwater Systems, LLC (www.etwater.com) of Marin County, California, is making strides to conserve this precious commodity. ETwater has developed a state–of–the–art landscape irrigation system that uses web–based technology and real–time weather data to make sure plants receive the right amount of water at the right time.
The patent–pending ETwater Smart Controller combines "Best of Breed" Internet technology and horticulture science to promote healthy plants and conserve water through smarter irrigation. The company contracts with homeowners associations, land developers and property managers to help create "green" communities that address looming water scarcities.
"Water is the gold of the 21st century," said Bruce Cardinal, chief executive officer of ETwater Systems. "Our smart irrigation system conserves water and reduces pollution caused by over–watering. This is an industry changer."
Dollar savings for Homeowners' Associations (HOAs) may be significant — estimates range from 20 to 50 percent reduction in irrigation water usage, that can produce 12 to 25 percent overall savings on HOA water bills.
Rich Perona is Landscape Manager of the Rossmoor HOA in Walnut Creek, CA, which oversees irrigation for a community with 2,600 acres and close to 7,000 homes. He has been systematically replacing Rossmoor's irrigation controllers with ETwater smart controllers. Said Perona, "Usually water and labor are our biggest landscape maintenance costs. These new ETwater Smart Controllers will save us water and labor dollars. We've been able to save on labor costs because we don't have to manually reprogram controllers during extreme weather conditions."
With more water shortages forecast, homebuilders and HOAs increasingly must secure their own water rights for new developments; with that, costs of water in some regions are accelerating quickly. "The benefits for homeowner associations are huge," said Snow. "For their residents, landscape watering can account for 50 to 60 percent of water bills. Outdoor water usage goes down with our controllers, so homeowners associations quickly get back the cost of the controllers through reduced water bills."
In 2005, ETwater tapped into the estimated $68 billion landscape product and service market by forging relationships with homebuilders, land developers, commercial landscapers and property managers. It has landed several key contracts; D.R. Horton, the nation's largest homebuilder, recently chose ET Water to supply controllers to all of its homes in Caserro Ranch, a new community development in Sparks, NV. D.R. Horton plans to use Caserro Ranch as a model for smart environmental design. ET Water assisted D.R. Horton with presentations to local Nevada water agencies in the process of acquiring water rights. Other D.R. Horton communities using ET Water controllers include Twelve Bridges in Lincoln, CA, and Augustus in Sacramento, CA.
The company also partnered in California and Nevada with several of the most respected landscape maintenance contractors, including Valley Crest, TruGreen and Gardeners' Guild.
John Ossa is director of Gardeners' Guild in San Rafael, CA., a winner of many landscape design awards. Gardeners' Guild maintains the landscape for SpyGlass Hill's HOA in San Jose, CA. Said Ossa, "I prefer the ET Water controller for SpyGlass Hill because I can monitor and adjust watering schedules from a remote location via the internet. I have the peace of mind that comes from knowing my sites are getting the right amount of water — no more, no less."
Scott Ezinga is property supervisor for Eugene Burger Management Corporation, which hired Gardeners' Guild. The Spyglass Hill HOA recently installed five ET Water controllers to irrigate seven landscaped acres within the property. Said Ezinga, "I see these systems as the wave of the future for all commercial and residential applications. The ETwater controllers are not only "smart" but also user friendly. I really enjoy the web accessibility.
He continued, "My 2005 water budget was $60,000. If the Association sees only a 25 percent reduction in costs, these controllers will have paid for themselves in the first year; in 10 years they will have saved the Association $150,000."
Conventional irrigation systems use "controller clocks" which are manually set to water at a specific time and duration, regardless of weather conditions or seasons. ET's smart controller instead factors in local weather conditions, using a combination of public and private real–time weather data networks with more than 9,000 stations. Partnering with WeatherBug, the nation's largest weather station network, ETwater can provide on–site weather stations to optimize schedules for the micro–climate. Added services for HOAs include access to online, HOA specific WeatherBug data for all residents.
Press Contacts
Steve Snow, ETwater Phone: 415-357-5146 Email: ssnow@etwater.com