No, Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia is Not One of Them

As building managers begin to reduce their facility's water consumption and use water more efficiently, one of the first things they realize is that there are several terms and abbreviations used to describe water use.

Although these are not complicated words like hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia, which refers to the fear of pronouncing long words, some water-related terms may put us in a quandary.

Here to rinse away this predicament is Klaus Reichardt, CEO of Waterless Co., manufacturers of waterless urinals. Reichardt defines for us some common water-usage terms and abbreviations we all should know:

Cubic Feet. The cubic feet of water, or Ccf, is a measurement of water. One Ccf is 7.48 gallons of water.

Water Friction. When water is traveling through pipes, friction can develop. Friction can slow the movement of water.

Water Flow. An easy one. This term refers to the amount of water coming out of a hose, pipe, or faucet.

Water Pressure. Water pressure is the amount of force needed to move water from one place to another. Water flow and water pressure are not the same.

Waterless Urinals. A urinal that uses no water at all.

GPM. Gallons of water per minute.

Leak Dial. A leak dial, also called a water movement indicator dial, is the dial on a water meter. It is called a leak dial because if all water-using appliances are turned off in a facility and the dial is still moving, it indicates there are water leaks in the facility.

Water Velocity. The speed at which water flows in a pipe; for instance, 100 gallons of water would flow much lower in a one-inch diameter pipe compared to a five-inch diameter pipe

Water Volume. Volume is found by multiplying length by width by depth. For example, if an Olympic-size pool is 164 feet by 82 feet by 6 feet, then the cubic feet of water in the pool equals 164 x 82 x 6, or 80688 cubic feet. Because one cubic foot of water is 7.48 gallons, the volume of water in the pool is more than 603,500 gallons of water.

High-Efficiency Toilet. These toilets use 30 percent less water per flush than a standard toilet.

Energy-Efficient Toilet. An energy-efficient toilet removes waste by water velocity instead of water volume, the amount and weight of the water.

"Adding to the confusion is that many times water meters and water bills use abbreviations and acronyms to describe water terms," says Reichardt. "If you don't know what a term means, call the utility. They are too important to not understand."