Your showerhead is lying to you

https://www.washingtonpost.com/ ^ | February 26, 2025 | Mark Lasswell

[Jonty30]

On the morning of March 10, I intend to take a shower, turn my face up to the spray and burble, “Thank God for the Guardian!” Not because I admire the left-wing politics of the British newspaper, where they seem to long for the days when the Brits’ income tax rate topped 90 percent and Nigel Farage hadn’t been born. No, March 10 will mark precisely one year since the Great Shower Debate ended.

Or at least it ended for me when the Guardian published an article with the immortal headline “High shower pressure can help people save water, study suggests.” Intrepid researchers at the University of Surrey had placed sensors in 290 showers around campus, recording data for 39 weeks from 86,421 individual shower sessions. “Water consumption,” the study found, sensationally, “was reduced by up to 56% with high water pressure.”

[GOPJ]

I mentioned to a plumber about the low flow in my kitchen faucet and he said something like ‘I shouldn’t do this’ then he fixed the problem. It’s not a low flow faucet anymore.

[Deaf and Discerning]

Huh? With normal settings the tank empties, 5 gallons is a 5 gallon flush and 2 gallons is a 2 gallon flush.

You're right, older toilets often emptied the ENTIRE tank, resulting in a 5-gallon flush. When they first designed the more water saving toilets with smaller tanks, they held less water but didn't flush well. Then they redesigned them again, with larger tanks and only partially emptied for a more efficient flush - like the one I have. Modern toilets typically have tanks that hold around 3 to 5 gallons but use only about 1.6 gallons per flush or less. This design allows for effective flushing while conserving water. Lowe's or Home Depot websites don't always give the specs of tank size for each model. Their specs provide gallons per flush - regardless of tank size.

[EVO X]

Old time Navy guy chiming in. When I was on a ship, the rule/expectation was to water down, lather up with soap and rinse. Even to this day it takes me about 3 minutes to shower. I don’t need a special shower head..

[ansel12]

I don't know where you picked all that up but toilets empty the tank when they are flushed, you adjust the ballcock to set the water level and the height of the flush valve tube determines how high the water level can be.

This is by far the most common toilet tank type.

[ansel12]

A better example of the most common toilet tank, when that handle is pressed the flapper comes up and slowly settles as the entire tank empties

[GingisK]

Do they still? I thought the feds required permanent ones when they found out people were just removing them

Files go through Z-mac like crap through a goose.

[GingisK]

My street pressure is 150 PSI. Whenever my plumbing sings on its own, I replace the regulator just inside the house. That fixes the “auto-hum”.

[ansel12]

I’ve seen 150, you really, really want to keep that regulated, I bet you even get shorter life on your regulators.

I’m not big on rebuilding things but if money is an issue you can get the rebuild kits.