New Homes Background Information
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Final New Homes Specification (Version 1.2)
WaterSense released Version 1.2 of the WaterSense New Home Specification on July 24, 2014. Effective immediately, all homes must meet the requirements of Version 1.2 in order to earn the WaterSense label. For more information, please visit the Final Specification for New Homes page.
Previous versions of the WaterSense New Home Specification, supporting materials, and other background information supporting the specification’s development and subsequent revisions are provided below.
- New Home Specification (Version 1.1)
- Draft New Home Specification (Version 1.1)
- NOI to Modify the 2009 WaterSense Single-Family New Home Specification (Version 1.0)
- New Home Specification (Version 1.0)
- Revised Draft New Home Specification (Version 1.0)
- First Draft New Home Specification (Version 1.0)
- Landscape Water Budget Tool
- Final New Home Certification System (Version 1.2)
- New Home Certification System (Previous Versions)
New Home Specification (Version 1.1)
WaterSense released Version 1.1 of the WaterSense New Home Specification on August 30, 2012, which was effective through July 23, 2014. Version 1.1 revisions expanded the scope to enable homes in multi-family buildings to earn the label, updated product requirements, and adjusted landscape criteria. Below are the materials and documentation supporting this version of the specification.
- Version 1.1 WaterSense New Home Specification (PDF) (20 pp, 236K)
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Inspection Checklists and Guides:
- Inspection and Verification Guidance for WaterSense Labeled New Homes (Version 1.1) (PDF) (20 pp, 444K)
- WaterSense Labeled New Homes Inspection Checklist (Version 1.1) (PDF) (4 pp, 112K)
- WaterSense Labeled New Homes Irrigation Audit Checklist (Version 1.1) (PDF) (3 pp, 100K)
- WaterSense Labeled New Home Irrigation Audit Guide (Version 1.1) (PDF) (2 pp, 68K)
- WaterSense Labeled New Homes—Additional Information for Single-Family New Homes Covered by a Sampling Protocol (Version 1.1) (PDF) (3 pp, 64K)
- WaterSense Labeled New Homes—Additional Information for Units in a Multi-Family Building Covered by a Sampling Protocol (Version 1.1) (PDF) (3 pp, 56K)
- Builder Resource Manual (Version 1.1) (PDF) (76 pp, 904K)
- Guide for Efficient Hot Water Delivery Systems (PDF) (28 pp, 484K)
Draft New Home Specification (Version 1.1)
On March 22, 2012, WaterSense issued the Draft Version 1.1 WaterSense New Home Specification. Below are the final draft documents, public comments, and EPA's response to comments on the draft.
- Draft New Home Specification (Version 1.1) (PDF) (21 pp, 1MB)
- Draft Appendix D: Summary of Additional and Adjusted Criteria for Multi-Family Buildings (PDF) (3 pp, 94K)
- Response to Public Comments Received on March 2012 Draft New Home Specification (Version 1.1) (PDF) (33 pp, 344K)
- Stakeholder Comments on Draft New Home Specification (Version 1.1) (PDF) (81 pp, 881K)
- Public Meeting Presentation on Draft New Home Specification (Version 1.1) (38 pp, 545K)
- Public Meeting Summary (PDF) (7 pp, 76.2K)
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Revised Inspection Checklists:
- Draft WaterSense Labeled New Homes Inspection Checklist (Version 1.1) (PDF) (4 pp, 74K)
- Draft WaterSense Labeled New Homes Irrigation Audit Checklist (Version 1.1) (PDF)(3 pp, 53K)
- Draft WaterSense Labeled New Homes—Additional Information for Units in a Multi-Family Building Covered by a Sampling Protocol (PDF) (2 pp, 49K)
- WaterSense Statement on Proposed Modifications (PDF) (2 pp, 307K)
NOI to Modify the 2009 WaterSense Single–Family New Home Specification (Version 1.0)
On October 21, 2011, WaterSense released a notification of intent (NOI) to modify the 2009 WaterSense Single–Family New Home Specification to gather comments on the proposed modifications and information on the outstanding issues. Below are the documents pertaining to this NOI.
- Notification of Intent (PDF) (5 pp, 99K)
- WaterSense New Homes NOI Public Meeting Summary (PDF) (14 pp, 102 K)
- Comments on the Notification of Intent (PDF) (62 pp, 3.80MB)
New Home Specification (Version 1.0)
Below are the final documents supporting the 2009 WaterSense Single–Family New Home Specification (Version 1.0), which was effective through December 31, 2012.
- Final 2009 WaterSense Single-Family New Home Specification (Version 1.0) (PDF) (15 pg, 120K)
- WaterSense Single-Family New Home Specification Supporting Statement (PDF) (17 pg, 196K)
- WaterSense Labeled New Homes Inspection Checklist (Version 1.0) (PDF) (3 pg, 78K)
- WaterSense Labeled New Homes Inspection Checklist—Additional Information for New Home Covered by a Sampling Protocol (Version 1.0) (PDF) (2 pg, 78K)
- Guidelines for Irrigation Audits on WaterSense Labeled New Homes (Version 1.0) (PDF) (2 pg, 48K)
- WaterSense Labeled New Homes Irrigation Audit Checklist (Version 1.0) (PDF) (3 pg, 48K)
- Research Report on Turfgrass Allowance (PDF) (12 pg, 208K)
Revised Draft New Home Specification (Version 1.0)
WaterSense released the Revised Draft Water–Efficient Single–Family New Home Specification on May 8, 2009. Below is a list of documents supporting the second draft.
- Revised Draft Single-Family New Home Specification Cover Letter (PDF) (2 pp, 84K)
- Revised Draft Single-Family New Home Specification (PDF) (8 pp, 85K)
- Public Comments for the Revised Draft Single-Family New Home Specification and Related Materials (PDF) (419 pp, 1.7MB)
- Response to Public Comments for the Revised Draft Single-Family New Home Specification and Related Materials (PDF) (36 pp, 159K)
EPA held two public meetings to discuss the Revised Draft Water–Efficient Single–Family New Home Specification on June 10, 2009, in Washington, D.C., and on June 22, 2009, via webinar. For more information, please see the public meeting summary (PDF) (26 pp, 276K) and the public meeting presentation (PDF) (25 pp, 532K).
First Draft New Home Specification (Version 1.0)
EPA released the original Draft Water–Efficient Single–Family New Home Specification on May 22, 2008. Below are the documents supporting this first draft.
- First Draft Single–Family New Home Specification Cover Letter (PDF) (2 pg, 84K)
- First Draft Single–Family New Home Specification (PDF) (8 pg, 85K)
- First Draft Single–Family New Home Specification Supporting Statement (PDF) (17 pg, 190K)
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First Draft Single–Family New Home Specification Inspection Guidelines:
- Draft Inspection Guidelines (PDF) (14 pg, 146K)
- Draft Irrigation Audit Guidelines (PDF) (4 pg, 56K)
- Public Comments by Author for the First Draft Single-Family New Home Specification (PDF) (205 pp, 893K)
- Public Comments by Subject for the First Draft Single-Family New Home Specification (PDF) (190 pp, 888K)
EPA held an online public meeting to discuss the first Draft Water–Efficient Single–Family New Home Specification on June 18, 2008. For more information, please see the public meeting summary (PDF) (5pg, 241K).
Landscape Water Budget Tool
EPA’s Water Budget Tool supports Section 4.1.1 of the WaterSense New Home Specification.
WaterSense has revised the Water Budget Tool to correspond with revisions to the WaterSense New Home Specification. You can find previous versions of the Water Budget Tool and other supporting documents below.
- WaterSense Landscape Water Budget Tool (Version 1.01) (XLS, 83K)
- Water Budget Quick Start Guide (June 2010) (PDF) (4 pg, 792K)
- Water Budget Approach (December 2009) (PDF) (14 pg, 256K)
- Draft Water Budget Tool (XLS, 72K)
- Public Comments on the November 2008 Draft Water Budget Tool for New Homes (PDF) (128 pp, 576K)
Final New Home Certification System (Version 1.2)
To correspond with the latest version of the WaterSense New Home Specification, EPA released the WaterSense New Home Certification System (Version 1.2) (PDF) (27 pg, 520K). For more information on the WaterSense New Home Certification System, visit the New Homes Inspection and Certification page.
New Home Certification System (Previous Versions)
EPA has revised the WaterSense New Home Certification System to correspond with revisions to the WaterSense New Home Specification. You can find the final documents, drafts, and public comments related to the revisions of the WaterSense New Home Certification System below.
- WaterSense New Home Certification System (Version 1.1) (PDF) (27 pg, 471K)
- WaterSense New Home Certification System (Version 1.0) (PDF) (26 pg, 156K)
- Response to Public Comments Received on December 2008 Draft New Home Certification System (PDF) (10 pg, 55K)
- Public Comments on the December 2008 Draft Inspection and Certification Systems for New Homes (PDF) (32 pg, 157K)
- Draft WaterSense New Home Certification and Labeling System (December 18, 2008) (PDF) (22 pg, 132K)
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