Showers

  I tirShowers are the third largest water use (almost 17%) in an average American home. In addition to the water use, showers require energy to heat the water.

• The average shower lasts about 8 minutes. Shortening your shower by one minute saves 550 gallons of water per year. 
• Don’t wander away while you’re waiting for the hot water to reach the shower. Stay by the shower and monitor the water temperature so you can get in as soon as it’s warm enough.
• Standard showerheads use 2.5 gallons of water per minute (gpm). WaterSense labeled showerheads must demonstrate that they use no more than 2.0 gpm. Per the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the average family could save 2,900 gallons per year by installing WaterSense labeled shower heads. Since these water savings will reduce demands on water heaters, they will also save energy. In fact, the average family could save more than 370 kilowatt hours of electricity annually, enough to power a house for 13 days.

 I found some of these facts on the EPA website at http://www3.epa.gov/watersense/products/showerheads. The website also has more information on the low-flow showerheads. I tried to include a live link but the EPA's website is being remodeled and the link doesn't work for now.