Together, faucets and showers account for approximately 33 percent of residential water use in the average home. Showers represent about 17 percent of water use, and faucets make up about 16 percent. Limiting the amount of water used through showers and faucets greatly affects the home’s water footprint and water costs. Installing low flow devices is a simple way to solve this problem.
Modern showerheads are constructed to deliver no more than 2.5 gallons of water per minute (GPM), while showerheads in older homes sometimes use as much as 5 GPM. Replacing your current showerhead (old or new) with a low flow model is a great way to reduce water consumption without sacrificing comfort. The technology in these low flow devices is such that there is no air mixing with the water, which allows the water-efficient showerhead to deliver a satisfying spray. In addition, these water savers often come with multiple spray options. Furthermore, energy savings and a reduction in water heating costs can be expected, as with less water used for showering also equals less hot water used in the home.
Surprising, the average faucet installed in a modern home uses between 2.2 to 2.5 gallons of water per minute. This is very close to the amount of water used by modern showerheads! Low flow faucet aerators use 0.5 to 1.5 gallons of water per minute. These low flow devices significantly reduce the amount of water that goes down the drain at the sink as well as the amount of hot water used here. While consumption at the sink may not seem like much, consider that if each home in the US installed water saving faucet aerators, the nation could save over 60 billion gallons of water every year.