Commercial & Facility Rebates

Valley Water offers a variety of rebates and free services for commercial properties, including HOAs and schools. Find additional information on rebate amounts, requirements, and eligibility below.

Water Efficient Technology (WET) Rebate

The Water Efficient Technology (WET) Rebate Program is designed to help commercial, industrial, institutional facilities, and multi-family residential complexes implement equipment changes that reduce water usage.

Your property may qualify for rebates up to $100,000 per conservation project.

Program Benefits

Get money to modernize your facility with the latest water-efficient technology
Save money on your water bill – and possibly your energy bill, too
Demonstrate that your business is a water conservation leader
Select from a wide variety of qualifying equipment

WET Projects Map

Check out this interactive story map to view examples of successfully completed WET projects! The map contains written descriptions of individual projects and highlights water savings, rebate amounts, and project costs.

Find additional project inspirations in case studies from WaterSense.

Who Qualifies

Business customers in Santa Clara County, including:

Commercial facility
Industrial facility
Institutional facility, which may include schools, parks, hospitals, and government agencies

Multi-family residential customers in Santa Clara County, including:

Condominium complexes
Apartment complexes
Townhome complexes

Rebate Amount

The maximum rebate is $100,000 per conservation project.

Rebates are based on measured water savings, and must save at least 100 CCF per year to be eligible for rebate (1 CCF = 748 gallons). The rebate amount is based on the lesser of either:

$4 per CCF saved annually or
up to 100% of the equipment costs (excluding taxes and labor)
- Equipment costs may include costs associated with planning a project, such as surveys, audits, engineer reports, etc.

San José & Morgan Hill Properties

Properties serviced by the City of San José (San José Municipal) or the City of Morgan Hill are eligible for an additional $4 per CCF ($8 per CCF total), up to a maximum of $10,000, for a total rebate cap of $110,000. This higher rebate amount is not available if the rebate is determined by the cost of equipment.

Rebate Availability

Current program funding lasts until June 30, 2027 or until depleted. Applications will be accepted and evaluated on an ongoing basis in the order received as long as funds remain available. .

How to Apply

Apply for a rebate by identifying a project that meets the eligibility requirements and then submitting your application.

Projects must meet the following eligibility requirements:

Directly reduce water use by at least 74,800 gallons per year.
Be able to be directly submetered thirty days before and after retrofit to document water savings. Expect 4 inspections: Two pre-inspections to measure water use on the old equipment, and two post-inspections to measure the new equipment's water use.
Equipment and projects have minimum life expectancy of five years.
Equipment must be purchased, or leased with a minimum of five years. Qualifying equipment and installation receipts, lease agreements, or both must be provided after the Notice to Proceed (after project approval and equipment installation).
Maintenance projects do not qualify
Converting from potable to recycled water does not quality
Projects must meet all applicable federal, state, local codes and regulations

Qualifying equipment

Onsite water reuse
Treated wastewater used again at the facility
Untreated process water used for a different purpose
Cooling tower efficiency upgrades
Air-cooled chillers
Ozone laundry retrofits
Water softeners
Water-saving ice machines
Any other equipment that results in measurable water savings, including customized equipment

When submitting your application, you will need to provide a project description along with an estimate of how much water the project will save.

Project description:

A project description can be a few sentences that outline what equipment is currently in use, what new equipment will be installed, and how the new equipment will save water.
A project description does not need to be professionally prepared.
Check out our WET Story Map for examples of project descriptions.

Estimated water savings:

Estimated water savings can be calculated by comparing the water use of the current equipment to that of the new equipment while factoring in frequency of use.
Estimated water savings are used to provide a potential rebate amount.
If you are unable to provide estimated water savings, you may still submit an application.

Rebates from other agencies

Commercial facilities may also be eligible for rebates from other agencies:

PG&E offers rebates for a variety of retrofit projects, including for restaurants.
Silicon Valley Power (SVP) and BASE Energy, Inc. are offering the City of Santa Clara businesses an opportunity to upgrade equipment to qualifying energy- and water-saving projects at no cost.
View Valley Water’s Agricultural Assistance Programs for incentives that may also benefit food or beverage processing facilities.

Video: Small Changes, Big Impact

Learn about a rebate project that reclaimed and reused 97% of the facility’s water, saving 10 million gallons per year.

Questions

For more information about the WET rebate program, call (408) 630-2205 or email [email protected].