Water-saving showers conserve one of the world’s most precious resources, but their flow rate leaves something to be desired. Enter Hamwells’ e-Shower, which pumps out recirculating water at a pressure reminiscent of less efficient showers. Lloyd Alter at Treehugger points out how the sustainable system values comfort and luxury, all while saving 80 percent of energy and 90 percent of water used in typical showers.
If the thought of recycling your shower water is unsettling, fear not: the e-Shower has a classic function which drains all of the water used and a “refresh cycle,” which filters and purifies the water and reuses it up to seven times. So, you could first scrub yourself using the low-pressure classic feature and then use the refresh cycle for the remainder of your time to relax and revel in a luxurious high-pressure shower.
Related: “Power showers” are worse for the environment than baths
CEO Rob Chömpff explained how the goal of making homes energy-neutral is possible up until designers hit the roadblock of traditional showers, which can drain 100 liters of water every 10 minutes. “Requiring 10 liters of warm water a minute for a sustained period, the traditional shower demands huge investments in solar panels, electric boilers and the like. It was the linchpin blocking the sustainable energy neutral buildings of the future,” he said.
Hamwells’ e-Shower could well be the final step in making truly energy-neutral homes and hotels a possibility.
+ Hamwells
Via Treehugger
