Shower yourself with savings!

Showering is one of the leading ways we use water in the home, accounting for nearly 17 percent of residential indoor water use. Two factors influence the water usage of a shower: flow rate and duration. 

According to WaterSense (think EnergyStar only for water), the average household could save more than 2,300 gallons per year by installing WaterSense labeled showerheads. And since these water savings will reduce demands on water heaters, households will also save energy.

WaterSense also estimates that if every household in the United States installed WaterSense labeled showerheads, we could save more than $1.5 billion in water utility bills and more than 250 billion gallons of water annually (not to mention that we could avoid about $2.5 billion in energy costs for heating water!).

While the standard flow rate for showerheads is 2.5 gallons per minute (GPM), there are some older showerheads in use that use as much as 5 GPM! 

You can save up to 50% of the water used for showering by replacing your older showerhead with a water efficient model. (Showerheads typically need to be replaced every 10 years.) WaterSense labeled showerheads use no more than 2 GPM and are third party tested to ensure they meet EPA water efficiency and performance criteria (i.e. you will not have to sacrifice a good shower in order to achieve water savings!). There are also showerheads on the market that effectively use less than 2GPM. 

When replacing your old showerhead, whether you select a WaterSense labeled showerhead or not, be sure to look for a one that has a flow rate of less than 2.5 gpm for maximum efficiency. Many water providers give high efficiency showerheads out to their customers for free, or you can purchase one at most home improvement stores for about $10-20.

Not sure what your shower's flow rate is? Use this quick test to find out.

• Place a bucket-marked in gallon increments-under your shower head.
• Turn on the shower at the normal water pressure you use.
• Time how many seconds it takes to fill the bucket to the 1-gallon mark.

If it takes less than 20 seconds to reach the 1-gallon mark, your shower uses about 3 gpm and you could benefit from a low-flow shower head.

How to install your water efficient showerhead:

1. Remove old showerhead from shower arm. If you need to use a wrench to remove it, use a second wrench to hold the shower arm while you loosen the old showerhead. Use pieces of cloth to protect the finish.
2. Briefly turn water on to rinse out pipe (turn it off before going to next step).
3. Screw on the new showerhead and hand tighten.
4. Test the showerhead. If it leaks, tighten by using one wrench on the shower arm and another one on the showerhead. Tighten until snug (DO NOT over tighten!). Leaks may also be prevented by applying two or three wraps of Tephlon tape in a clockwise motion to the threads of the shower arm before installing the new showerhead.