The shower is one of the largest uses of water in a typical residence. Even if you don’t want to use a lot of water so that your bill doesn’t rise, you’ll need more than a few minutes to get completely clean.
Dermatologists recommend keeping showers short. If you have skin conditions such as eczema or psoriasis, hot water, soaps, and other products you use in the shower can cause irritation. The American Academy of Dermatology recommends showering under 10 minutes if you have itchy skin or psoriasis. But you may want to go further and limit showers to just five minutes. Warm water is better than hot, it also helps you save energy.
A five-minute shower doesn’t mean you have to stand under the shower head for four minutes and then soap up casually at the last minute. Good hygiene is important. If you’re getting into the shower, you need to make sure you wash properly. This could mean spending a lot more time than five minutes. Those of us with long hair need to be there for 10 to 20 minutes to wash their hair and style it properly, and combing the hair for wrinkles and other requirements while in the shower can also take time. Probably some of these jobs can be done with the water turned off, but if you’re not willing to forego long, hot showers, perhaps reducing the number of showers you take can counteract the harmful effects on your skin and the environment. Experts say showering once or twice a week is hygienic enough for most of us and better for our skin, too.
What is the ideal shower time?
The majority of existing shower recommendations cite around five minutes as the ideal shower time. But the fact that dermatologists point to between five and 10 minutes, and some of us need more time, suggests it might make sense to aim for the middle of that range.
When it comes to water usage, standard showerheads use 9.5 liters per minute, but some showerheads can reduce this to 7.5 liters per minute or less. So you can shower for 6.2 minutes with a low-flow nozzle and use as much water as someone who takes a five-minute shower with a standard nozzle. In addition, you save energy as you use less hot water.
He illustrates the three most important steps to benefit both your skin and the environment: using an efficient shower head, not keeping the heat too high, and not spending more time in the shower than you really need.
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