VIDEO: Smoke In Your Shower? Maybe It’s the Burning Money
Loading ...Posted on: November 4, 2009
Posted in: Appliances & Gadgets, Featured, Video, Water Conservation
Click Here to listen to our shower head segment on The Environment Report syndicated on public radio stations nationwide
POP QUIZ:
Which of These Household Items Wastes the Most Energy? HINT: It’s the one without the plug
a. Refrigerator
b. Dishwasher
c. Plasma Screen with Surround Sound
d. Showerhead
Wasting Shower Water Wastes Energy
We Americans really love our showers. We shower more often and longer than any other culture on the planet (see below for useless facts about shower habits). To enjoy our drenching showers, the average household annually spends $400-600 on water-heating, which doesn’t include the additional $300 spent on water bills.
By 2013, 36 states are expected to experience catastrophic water shortages. But, if don’t care that 900 million people globally don’t have access to clean drinking water, maybe you’ll have some compassion for that $100 bill in your wallet.
It’s easy to forget that saving water in the shower is actually saving energy. After your heat and a/c, your showerhead and sink faucets are the second biggest energy hogs in your home.
The good news is there is a really simple solution, even if you can’t afford to upgrade your water heater. Replacing your current showerhead with a state-of-the-art low flow will save you between 40% – 70%. [Translation: $100 to $220 per year]
State-of-the-Art Low Flow Showerheads Really Satisfy
Let’s be honest. The original low flow showerheads really sucked. There’s a Seinfeld episode where Kramer is forced to go to the black-market to find a shower head made for circus elephants, just to avoid the lame performance of the poorly designed low-flow installed by his landlord.
But, the latest generation of high-efficiency shower heads are engineered to feel the same or better than your old-school energy hog of a showerhead. They are also stylish. In fact, high-end hotels like Paris Las Vegas and Ceasar’s Palace are using Bricor shower heads which use as little as 1.25 gallons per minute. If it’s good enough for the suite as Ceasar’s, it’s good enough for your shower at home.
Check out the list below of what some of the manufacturers are offering in high-performance low-flow showerheads.
The Math of Showerheads
Click here to calculate how much you can save
Non-conserving showerheads (pre-1992) use 5 to 8 gpm, consuming up to 64 gallons of water for a single 8-minute shower. That’s more than an entire tank of hot water. If your showerhead is old enough to vote . . . it’s time to replace it.
Here’s the math:
Average U.S. household shower use (based on assumption of three 10-minute showers per day)
| Bricor 1.5 gpm | Standard 2.5 gpm | Pre-1994 5.5 gpm |
|
1.5 gallons per minute 45 gallons per day 17,375 gallons per year |
2.5 gallons per minute
75 gallons per day 27,375 gallons per year |
5.5 gallons per minute
165 gallons per day 60,225 gallons per year |
SAVINGS PER HOUSEHOLD USING A 1.5 Gallon Per Minute showerhead
| versus 2.5 gpm | versus pre-1992 5.5 gpm |
|
30 gallon savings per day 10,950 gallon savings per year 1400 kwh per year savings $100 per year energy savings |
120 gallons 42,850 gallons 3080 kwh $220 per year energy savings |
Useless Facts About Showering Habits
Peeing in the shower once a day can save 1,000 gallons of water per year
63% of Americans shower at least once a day
11% shower more than once a day
1% less than once per week
Men tend to shower more often than women
Favorite way to save water: Showering together
Sixty percent of Americans share a shower area with a spouse or significant other
25 percent share space with children, and 17 percent allow guests to use their shower
GTV recommends these high efficiency showerheads which use 1.75 gallons or less:
Bricor – 1/2 gallon to 1.5 gallons per minute options A Greenovation favorite (but tough to find retail)
Available at Natural Abode
Price: $109
Hansgrohe – 1.6 gpm A Greenovation Best Buy
Available at NeedPlumbingSupplies.com
Price: $27.55
American Standard Flowise – 1.5 – 2.0 adjustable
Available at Home Depot
Price: $48.75
High Sierra Showerhead 1.5 gpm
Price: $24.95 – $29.95
Kohler – Forte’ 1.75 gpm
Available at Home Depot
Price: $63.71
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November 5th, 2009 at 12:03 pm
The EcoFlow products from WaterPik perform better than these and are already available at major retailers like Bed Bath Beyond Home Depot, Lowe’s, Target, Walmart. I’m surprised you didn’t mention those showerheads?
November 5th, 2009 at 4:29 pm
Thanks for the note about the WaterPiks. Here’s a link for those interested: http://www.waterpikecoflow.com/
November 5th, 2009 at 5:48 pm
I recently bought the “Roadrunner” showerhead from a small company called “Evolve”. I was very pleasantly surprised — pressure is good and it has the spray pattern of a ‘regular’ shower. It does have a somewhat narrower spray than some showerheads. But for a 1.5 gallon showerhead, it’s remarkable that none of my family (or 8-10 visitors) have been bothered by (or even noticed) the switch.
November 5th, 2009 at 7:51 pm
Is there a reason you don’t recommend any handheld showerheads? I see that WaterPik has some, thanks kc.
November 5th, 2009 at 8:29 pm
Many of these models mentioned do come in handheld as well. The Hansgrohe and the Bricor both offer handheld models. Many other manufacturers not mentioned here also make 1.5 gpm showerheads in a handheld model.
November 8th, 2009 at 1:06 pm
I’ve had the Evolve Roadrunner for about a year now & really like it. It also has a cool auto switch-off valve that turns the water off when it hits a certain temperature so if you leave the water running in order to warm it up, you don’t waste tons of hot water if you get distracted.
November 9th, 2009 at 10:50 am
Y’all should listen to Rob’s mini-review above. He should know. Rob is one of my personal heroes and the father of the LEED green building standards. Thanks for the comment Rob! Even with a 1.5 gpm showerhead – if you wait two minutes after your water gets hot, you’ve wasted 3 gallons of water. So, the temp sensitive switch on the Evolve showerhead really minimizes waste. Here’s a link to the Evolve showerhead Rob uses (you can buy these at Target.com): http://evolveshowerheads.com/lower_flo_showerheads.html
November 30th, 2009 at 12:46 pm
This EcoFlow (http://www.waterpikecoflow.com/ECO-533/) is the one I tried last weekend. It doesn’t actually state how many gpm anywhere on the packaging, and the fixture says “2.5 gpm” max. That tells me that only a specific setting saves water — my guess is “mist” — but still there’s no indication from the manufacturer that I should use that setting!