On a national scale, if every home in the United States installed WaterSense labeled showerheads, we could save more than $2.9 billion in water utility bills and more than 260 billion gallons of water annually.
Save water
Showering uses large volumes of water in the home. A standard (non water efficient) showerhead uses 12 - 22 litres per minute. A water saving showerhead (HHH WELS rated) uses 9 litres per minute or less.
The largest use of household water is to flush the toilet, followed by taking showers and baths.
If a standard showerhead is fitted, it will use around an extra half a gallon each minute, accounting for a 25-gallon emittance every 10 minutes, or 50 gallons throughout a 20-minute shower. *1 gallon = 4.54 litres.
Generally, taking a shower uses less water than a full bath. A standard showerhead flows at a rate of 2.5 gallons per minute . This means that a ten-minute shower only uses 25 gallons of water. A full bath can use up to 50 gallons of water .
With a low-flow showerhead, you can expect to use about two gallons of water each minute, equating to 10 gallons over a 5-minute period. If a standard showerhead is fit, the shower will likely emit around an extra half gallon of water per minute, so a 5-minute shower will use in the region of 12.5 gallons.
Are electric showers expensive to run? Following our calculations based on a 10-minute shower, you can expect to spend 73p per electric shower and 40p per gas shower. Overall, it's cheaper to run a gas shower.
The #1 water waster in your home is the toilet.
A leaking toilet can waste 15,000 gallons of water a month. To check if your toilet has a leak, place several drops of food coloring in the toilet tank. If the color seeps into the toilet bowl within 30 minutes without flushing, your toilet has a leak.
If your home is newer than "1994" it probably was equipped with toilets using 1.6 gallons of water per flush. Available on the market now, are toilets which use 1.28 gallons per flush.
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), a full bathtub requires about 70 gallons of water, while taking a five-minute shower uses 10 to 25 gallons. You might argue that very few people fill the tub to the top, but a simple calculation shows that either way, baths use more water.
A standard showerhead uses 2.5 gallons a minute, or 25 gallons for 10 minutes. Either way, the shower saves water – as long as you don't go past 10 minutes. The shorter the shower, the greater the savings.
If you take an eight- minute shower using one of those showerheads, you will use 48 to 64 gallons of water. That 15-minute shower will use 90 to 120 gallons.
Install Flow Restrictors
Flow restrictors belong on all bathroom and kitchen faucets. Each one can save you up to 5,000 gallons, or about $10 every year.
For water conservation purposes, most plumbing codes require faucets and showering devices to not exceed a certain maximum flow rate. Removing the flow restrictors could cause these devices to no longer meet these codes.
Since these shower heads mix the water with the surrounding air, it can cause the water to cool down quickly. There can also be a delay in warming the water, so a fast shower might not be as satisfying.
A standard 2.5 GPM shower head uses 2.5 gallons of water each minute. That's 25 gallons for a 10-minute shower. VS. A low-flow 1.8 GPM shower head uses 1.8 gallons of water each minute.
Taking shorter showers is just one of many ways to reduce water use and conserve our drinking water . It's also an easy way to reduce your water bill. Shorter showers can also save up to 350 kilograms of carbon dioxide a year and help cut down your energy bills.
Generally, taking a shower uses less water than a full bath. A standard showerhead flows at a rate of 2.5 gallons per minute . This means that a ten-minute shower only uses 25 gallons of water. A full bath can use up to 50 gallons of water .
Mitchell suggested showering or bathing once or twice a week, and experts generally say a few times a week rather than daily is plenty. Also, keep showers short and lukewarm, as too much water, particularly hot water, dries out the skin. Showering less often in winter makes sense, Herrmann noted.
The standard showerhead uses about 2.5 gallons of water per minute. If you shaved 1 minute off your daily shower, you could save more than 900 gallons of water per year. And if every American did that, it would save billions (yes, billions) of gallons of water per year.
Get a low-flow toilet.
Flushing is the biggest water hog in the house. Older, conventional toilets can use 5 to 7 gallons per flush, but low-flow models use as little as 1.6 gallons. Since the average person flushes five times a day, the gallons can really add up.
Take Shorter Showers
A long, hot shower is great, but it wastes a lot of water. By shortening your shower by just four minutes, you can save up to 4,000 gallons of water per year. This can cut your bill by about $100 annually. Taking shorter showers may also help lower your gas or electric bill.
Try reducing the length of your shower by a minute or two a few times a week. You could also turn the flow off while you apply shampoo. Fitting a water-efficient showerhead is another great way to make savings. They use around six litres of water a minute, which is half the amount of a standard showerhead.