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Low-Flow Shower Head Confusion?
Recently I installed a Peerless Low-Flow Shower Head I had sitting around in my closet. The one I had previously installed was starting to not work well.
Originally I thought that the "Low-Flow" meant it was supposed to use less water. When I took the old head off though I look at it a little bit and noticed it said 2.5 gpm. The Peerless Low-Flow Head also uses 2.5 gpm!
I was confused by this since the "Low-Flows" are supposed to be more efficient than other heads. So I'm wondering, are Low-Flow Shower Heads really Low-Flow? Should I really be looking for GPM and not what the packaging says on the box? Do you think I'm saving any water?
5 Answers
- 1 decade agoFavorite Answer
yes they shoot out air with the water. mine is an 18 dollar low flow that uses 1.5 gallon per minute or something, but its incredible and i assure you it saves a hell of a lot of water
- 7 years ago
the best low flow shower heads are ones that are WaterSense certified. These shower heads must be under 2.0 GPM which is set by the EPA. The Niagara Earth Massage 1.25GPM is a really good one that I would recommend as I have one and you would never know if was low flow as it puts our really good water pressure.
- Nata TLv 61 decade ago
the showerheads do not shoot air to make it use less water. A shower head uses water based on a very simple principle called friction.
Go pick up your garden hose. open the valve wide ope. Huge amounts of water come out right. now close the valve all but 1/2 turn. Now how much water comes out? a lot less huh? The valve causes friction in the system. the more the valve is closed, the less water comes out. If you have water valve control to your shower water use.
Each state can pass a law that defines low flow. In some states its 3 gallons per minute, in others its 1 gallon per minute.
NOW the shower head has to be rated at say 2.5 gallons per minute at some inlet pressure, so 50 psig. If your water pressure is only 2 psig, that that head won't allow but a cup per minute. Likewise, if the pressure is 100 psig, that head will allow several times 2.5 gallons per minute. This inlet pressure as a specification is also defined by each state.
- John WLv 71 decade ago
You have to be careful with any advertising, it is low flow when compared to say a 5 gpm shower head. It's like those low cholesterol eggs often having more cholesterol than normal eggs because they defined low as being half the legal maximum allowed, then there's the cholesterol free french fries (french fries don't have cholesterol to begin with). Put out a bucket and time how long it takes to fill under the respective shower heads, there's nothing like empirical evidence.
- Anonymous6 years ago
tricky thing. seek over yahoo. that will help!
