Daily TELEGRAPH Builder Jeff Howell gives it to you straight
SHOWER FOR LESS? ? ?
Q
A recent advertiser in the Telegraph claimed significant savings of water (and therefore energy costs) by using shower heads, which introduce air into the water stream. Do these things actually work, or are they another example of "eco-correctness" being used to sell products? BE, by email
A
I have tested a few of these aerated shower heads and, yes, they can save money by reducing the flow of water, but the savings are unlikely to be as large as the advertisers claim. The shower heads work by mixing air in with the water, producing a "champagne" effect, so that you can use less water but still feel as though you are under a full flow. The advertisers claim a potential water saving of up to 70 per cent, and a cost saving of up to £200 a year, but I measured the water saving to be about 20 per cent, which would save around £30 per year on the average household's water heating costs. The savings would be greater for readers who have water meters installed.
Consumer Reports.org
Be choosy if you like it hot. Some showerheads aerate the spray to make it feel more substantial, but that cools the water by about 15 degrees before it hits your back. To compensate, you have to adjust the mix of hot and cold water using the shower controls. If you like a very hot shower, get a model judged very good or excellent for hot-water temperature.
Home Energy Magazine On-Line
Alan Meier notes, "Aeration is often used in the low-flow showerheads to give them extra body, but it results in rapidly declining temperature between the time the water leaves the showerhead and hits the naked body. (Aeration is in fact the principle behind power plant cooling towers and evaporative coolers.) Without knowing it, many users raise the temperature of the water 1°F to10°F to maintain the same "impact temperature".