Taking cold showers. Does this help the environment?

This is all true, but you have to factor in the significant shrinkage caused by the cold water.

Tom

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(burritos @ Mar 29 2007, 01:32 PM) [snapback]414314[/snapback]</div>

Yeah, taking colder showers does help the environment and your energy bills. I have changed all of my lightbulbs, bought a Prius, use mass transportation and my legs to do most of my traveling, but warm showers is one thing I will never give up.

 

or you could just get solar hot water

 

I don't know how much taking a cold shower helps the environment, but after seeing the pics posted by the women of PriusChat on the "what do you look like" thread, I needed to take one! :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

You're cookoo if you can tolerate cold showers! My water saving technique still uses energy but I'm a little more comfortable than you may be. I have a space heater in the bathroom. When I get up, I put it on and close the door. In a short while, it gets nice and toasty in there, so much so that I wet up and shut the water off. I lather up and then turn the water on to rinse off. I know I'm not saving energy for heating, but I am saving a lot of water and also the energy required to transport water to my house as well as the energy saved in the water treatment process. I'm hoping it's an overall net effect benefit for the environment.

My husband and I collectively use 80 gallons less per day than the average but there's clearly more that can be done in our household to bring this down by about 20/day.

 

Smug Galaxee with her solar apartment :lol: ........

 

Best hot-water saving tip that I can offer is to double up in there. Shower with a friend, and get a two-fer.

Hoestly, if you have several people in your house who all shower at different times, that means quite a bit of waste just while you wait for the hot water to find its way through the pipes to the shower. Once the water is warm to the fixture - use it!

Now let me go find the "Prius owner babes" thread...

 

you can also:
-install one of those insta-heat devices that heat the water in the pipe so you don't have to waste water waiting for it to heat up.
-install flow-efficient shower heads
-install one of those water cutoff switches on your shower head for while you lather.

I've done the last two and have been trying to persuade my landlord to install a solar heater or insta-heater. but now I'm about to move. oh well.

 

you can also:
-install one of those insta-heat devices that heat the water in the pipe so you don't have to waste water waiting for it to heat up.
-install flow-efficient shower heads
-install one of those water cutoff switches on your shower head for while you lather.

I've done the last two and have been trying to persuade my landlord to install a solar heater or insta-heater. but now I'm about to move. oh well.

 

you can also:
-install one of those insta-heat devices that heat the water in the pipe so you don't have to waste water waiting for it to heat up.
-install flow-efficient shower heads
-install one of those water cutoff switches on your shower head for while you lather.

I've done the last two and have been trying to persuade my landlord to install a solar heater or insta-heater. but now I'm about to move. oh well.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(SSimon @ Mar 29 2007, 02:20 PM) [snapback]414372[/snapback]</div>

actually i'm bad. i think i'd probably be more efficient if my hot water use was during the day when the sun is out, rather than at night when the water isn't being heated and is sitting in a storage tank. but i never end up getting around to showering till at least 10pm.

i also should wait to use the dishwasher until i leave for work in the morning, rather than setting it to run overnight. and i think that about accounts for 90% of our hot water use. bah. i need to rearrange my internal timer or something.

and... i'll never be as smug as mr. darell here. :lol:

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(SSimon @ Mar 29 2007, 01:02 PM) [snapback]414357[/snapback]</div>

Were you in the Navy? Still don't take "Hollywood" showers? Of course, space heaters draw a tonne of electricity.

Low flow shower heads anyone? We've got the standard 2.5 gpm shower head. I've thought about putting a 1.5 low-flow one on.

Taking a cold shower when it's 10F outside and you water comes from a reservoir would be hardcore. Serious shrinkage and shiekage too!

 

You could always stop showering altogether.

 

A hot shower is just too civilised to give up. I'll put up with just a trickle - I don't need a massage at the same time - but it's gotta be hot. Showering two at a time doesn't seem to save any water, for some strange reason.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(burritos @ Mar 29 2007, 02:45 PM) [snapback]414337[/snapback]</div>

Cold showers => fewer babies => less population explosion

Yeah, its very good for the environment.

- Tom

 

Cold showers are bad for the environment. You will use more energy and produce more CO2 to keep your body temperature at 37C/99F.

Hey, I had to find a reason not to give up my warm shower

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(larkinmj @ Mar 29 2007, 02:58 PM) [snapback]414355[/snapback]</div>

Well in that case.......... I turn the water on full with a hot, steamy blast and let the water sloooooooowly course it's way down my body..........

 

Now it's HOT and WET. B) Do we need a parental advisory on this thread now? :blink: