Power Your Shower with a Low-flow Showerhead

Jan 12, 2010 | Energy Efficiency, Water Conservation

Snapshot | Environmental benefits | How to choose | Take action!

Snapshot

One of the easiest ways to save energy and water is the low-flow showerhead. They are now easy to install, and thanks to pressure sensors built in to the showerhead, the showers feel great.

Replacing a standard showerhead with an ultra-low-flow showerhead can save $50 to $75 per year on water bills and $100 to $150 per year on the energy costs to heat water. Your results will depend on your current showerhead and your utility rates, of course.

With comfortable new technology, today's low-flow showerheads provide more shower power with a lot less water. Low-flow showerheads typically use 1.5 to 2.5 gallons per minute (gpm). A 10-minute shower with an low-flow showerhead uses only 15 to 25 gallons of water. Compare that to an old-style showerhead, which typically leads to 40- to 50-gallon showers.

Before 1992, showerheads blasted 5 or more gallons per minute. Federal law cut that to 2.5 gallons, but many new water-mizer models do better still, flowing as low as 1.5 gpm. Showerhead designers lowered the flow but increased the force by engineering the movement of water. Good engineering leads to showerheads that control droplet size, focus the stream of water, and offer pulsing.

It's easy to give your current showerhead the flow test. Place a one-gallon container (such as an empty milk jug) under the showerhead, turn on the water, and measure how much water the container collects in 20 seconds. If it overflows, you are a candidate for a low-flow showerhead.

Environmental benefits

Low-flow showerheads are a 2 for 1 deal: They save energy and water. It is hard to know which is more important. California has serious water challenges, and water planners are looking at every possible way we can reduce our water use. This is not a problem about our future but a problem that is hitting water systems throughout the state right now.

And, most homes in California use natural gas to heat water. So once you've insulated your home and reduced your use of natural gas for home heating, low flow showerheads are the next step. In fact, we think they should be the first step in saving natural gas because they are so cost effective.

Low-flow showerheads are hard to beat for cost-effective environmental benefits.

How to choose

There are many low-flow and ultra-low-flow showerheads on the market. Some are "full-face" showerheads with as much as 4-inch-diameter heads with larger emitters. Others are small, inexpensive nozzles with tiny emitters for a more concentrated spray-like shower. When shopping for showerheads, you'll see two main types:

• Aerating showerheads mix air into the water to maintain a constant water pressure. Some adapt to low or variable water pressure. Note: Aeration can cool the water temperature a bit. These are best if you like a softer, more diffused shower.

• Non-aerating showerheads produce a very strong spray, because no air is mixed with the water. If you like a more concentrated water stream, this type's for you.

We encourage you to purchase the ultra-low flow models. A 2.5 gpm showerhead uses 66% more water in each shower than a 1.5-gpm unit, and once installed, you'll be living with that higher water use for years. Sometimes it's hard to find the gpm on the packaging, but keep looking. You can also find the flow rate imprinted on the neck of the showerhead itself.

Some consumers are scared off of low-flow showerheads because the early models were uncomfortable or caused plumbing problems. We've tried many models in clients' homes, and today's models will make you quickly forget you are actually saving energy and water, too. They're great!

Other showerhead features help you control the flow manually:

Flow-adjusting levers: Some showerheads have levers or even a chain you pull to adjust the flow rate from 1.5 gpm to 2.5 gpm.

Shut-off switches: Get a showerhead with a shut-off switch at the head, so you can shut off water when you're sudsing up and turn it back on to rinse off.

Take action!

Install low-flow showerheads

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