Finding New Fixtures
a project by Inesh Dey
3/28/25
Some of the places our water bill is being spent out of
The Problem
So... recently I checked out our water bill, and turns out we're spending some crazy amount of money I wouldn't have ever guessed. And maybe, you are too! So strap on and maybe you'll find some new fixtures too!
So what is a lot?
I don't know about yours, but our water bill was at
a month
( in 63 days / 30.4 days per month)
yikes...
Identifying the wall of shame
With a bit of Google reverse image search and online resources, I got information about each of the pictured items. Turns out, we're pretty good at choosing the good stuff, but some of these are definitely not good
- Kitchen Faucet - 1.8 GPM. By modern standards, alright! 1.5 GPM could be better.
- Shower Head - 2.5 GPM is a bit much. Minimum ideal: 1.8 GPM
- Washer- Sure it's pretty energy efficient, but it uses a lot of water, typically around 28 gallons on a full load. This is not good! Some energy star washers use way less than 15 gallons per load.
- Bathroom Faucet - 1.5 GPM is pretty good, and is the maximum allowed by law in the US. This is a good one, but 1.2 GPM is better.
Replacing them
Based on my research online, I've found a ton of great alternatives for each! I tried searching for a wide price range, so you can find the right one for you!
| Brand & Model | Price | Water Efficiency | Store |
|---|---|---|---|
| BLACK + DECKER - BFLW27MW | $759.45 | 8.64 gal / cycle | @ Home Depot |
| Summit - LW2427 | $1,172.83 | 8.64 gal / cycle | @ Home Depot |
| LG WT6105CW | $528.00 | 14 gal / cycle | @ Home Depot |
Turns out mine was pretty good, but here's some efficient ones to consider if you're above 1.8 GPM
| Brand & Model | Price | Water Efficiency | Store |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grohe 31518DC0 Concetto | $213.52 | 1.5 GPM | @ Amazon |
| FORIOUS Kitchen Faucet | $39.90 | 1.8 GPM | @ Amazon |
| Kohler 596-VS Simplice | $219.99 | 1.5 GPM | @ Amazon and @ Home Depot |
| Brand & Model | Price | Water Efficiency | Store |
|---|---|---|---|
| Delta 15840LF-PD | $157.00 | 1.2 GPM | @ Amazon |
| GROHE 23085001 Bauloop | $79.20 | 1.2 GPM | @ Amazon |
| IKEA - Saljen | $25.00 | 1.2 GPM | @ IKEA |
| Brand & Model | Price | Water Efficiency | Store |
|---|---|---|---|
| IKEA - Brogrund | $69.99 | 1.8 GPM | @ IKEA |
| Delta 75554C | $22.98 | 1.75 GPM | @ Home Depot |
| SparkPod Shower Head | $25.46 | 1.8 GPM | @ Amazon |
Results!
- Bathroom Faucet: 126 gallons/week
- Kitchen Faucet: 126 gallons/week
- Shower Head: 245 gallons/week
- Washer: 57 gallons/week
Total: 554 gallons/week and $1.64/week from our house!
Maybe you could save some water too! Since our water usage was 29642 gallons a week, we save at least 1%, a conservative estimate, which is likely much higher! Data for timing was collected over a short time, and not complete.
What are you waiting for?
See what you're missing out on and swap to more water efficient fixtures, and maybe you'll save some money too!
Detailed Calculations
Click to check out the calculations!
- Bathroom Faucets:
(1.5 gpm − 1.2 gpm) × (60 min/day × 7 days) = 0.3 gpm × 210 min = 126 gallons/week
- Kitchen Faucets:
(1.8 gpm − 1.5 gpm) × (60 min/day × 7 days) = 0.3 gpm × 210 min = 126 gallons/week
- Shower Head:
(2.5 gpm − 1.8 gpm) × (50 min/day × 7 days) = 0.7 gpm × 210 min = 245 gallons/week
- Washer:
(23 gallons/load − 8.64 gallons/load) * 4 loads / week = 57 gallons/week
Total: 554 gallons/week
$2.20 per cubic meter / 748 galloner per cubic meter = $0.002964 per gallon
$0.002964 per gallon * 554 gallons/week = $1.64 per week
- 554 gallons/week * 2 weeks = 1108 gallons for project time
- $1.62 per week * 2 weeks = $3.28 for project time