The series continues...

Day 2: Install low flow shower heads for all your
showers and faucet aerators on all your faucets.

Somebody needs to invent a better name for "low
flow shower head". While it accurately describes
it's purpose (to save water), it implies a weak,
drippy shower, when in fact, it can actually
provide what seems like MORE water with MORE
pressure. This is an illusion, as described
below, but as they say these days, "perception is
reality". So we need a better name for
"marketing" purposes.

A ten minute shower with a regular shower head can
use as much as 42 gallons of water. A household
of 3 people may take more than 1000 showers a
year. This can be about 20% of the typical
household's water usage. Unless you are in the
unlikely habit of taking cold showers, much of
that water detours through the hot water heater en
route to the bathroom.

Low flow shower heads work by mixing air with the
water and forcing it through tiny apertures. So
you get just as wet with much less water. Low
flow shower heads are typically 2.5 gallons per
minute or less.

Make sure the low flow shower head has a shut-off
valve on it. You save even more water if you use
the shower to get wet, then cut the water off with
the shut-off valve while you soap and scrub and
shampoo, then turn the water back on to rinse.

Installing it is easy, even for non-plumbers. Use
a crescent wrench to unscrew the old shower head.
You can take the old shower head with you to the
store to make sure you get a low flow unit with
the same diameter and threads of the existing
unit. Use the same crescent wrench to install the
new shower head. If you get some drips, take the
shower head off and wrap the threads once with
some white plumbers tape, and then put the new
shower head back on.

I bought ours at Ace Hardware, it was about
$12.99, and we have been very happy with it.

Regarding faucet aerators, many faucets already
have them, and nearly all faucets are threaded to
accept them. They should have a water flow rating
on the side. It should be 2.75 gallons per minute
or lower. If it is higher than this, replace it.
Generally this is a simple matter of unscrewing it
by hand and putting the new one on, also
tightening it by hand. Generally you should wrap
the threads with white plumbers tape before
installing the new aerator (wrap once). Use
pliers if necessary to tighten it so it doesn't
leak, but wrap the faucet with a rag first so you
don't damage the finish of the aerator.

Regarding showers, if you are one of those "ten
minute shower people", now is the time to think
about reducing the time in the shower with the
water running. As noted above, you can use the
shut-off valve to turn off the water while soaping
and scrubbing. Showers involve water and energy,
and both of those resources are in increasingly
short supply. If you think you can't live and
function without a ten minute shower with the
water running all the time, meditate a bit on your
sense of personal entitlement. Question that
authority.

In the meantime, you can be certain that by:

(1) Installing low flow shower heads and faucet
aerators, and
(2) Reducing the amount of time the water is
running through the shower, and
(3) Using wash rags and towels that are air or
solar dried,

you will reduce your household's water consumption
and energy use, and that means more money in your
pocket, less pollution in the biosphere, and
greater quality to your life! Not to mention the
virtue. . .

THANKS to everybody for the great comments about
Day 1. I will be sending a follow-up message with
some snips from those messages, sharing even more
tips and ideas about using the solar clothes
dryer.