[Mr Rayon]

hi everybody,

i take really long showers. on average i shower about 1 hour (yes, i'm a water waster and proud of it! ).

my record is 6 hours.

what are the benefits of showering longer? Is it healthier to shower longer?

how long do you shower for?

[Phi for All]

Ten minutes tops, and that includes shaving in the shower.

I can't imagine staying in a shower for an hour or more. Even when I get dirty I just don't get that dirty.

I don't think showering longer is any healthier for you, but it obviously depends on what you're doing in there. If you're just letting the hot water wash over you instead of actively cleaning yourself, how can that be more beneficial? If you're actively cleaning yourself on a regular basis, why would it take so long each day (or even every other day)?

Relaxing in the shower after working out is a bit different, since your muscles love the heat and you're quite a bit sweatier. But if you shower in the morning and just got out of bed, why would you need to relax your muscles in the shower?

[CaptainPanic]

I shower 5-10 minutes. The benefit of showering to quickly is that I can sleep longer.
I do not see a benefit of wasting so much time in the shower... but perhaps it's mentally relaxing.

Depending a little on where you live, you are especially wasting energy (gas or electricity) to heat up the water. A shower is basically a 5 kW to 10 kW heater turned on. So, in terms of energy, a 1-hour shower costs 5 to 10 kWh. 10 kWh is the equivalent of about a liter of gasoline.

In very dry places where water is very costly and it takes more energy to make clean water, the picture looks different.

[Ladeira]

Phi for All, on 30 January 2012 - 02:51 PM, said:

I can't imagine staying in a shower for an hour or more. Even when I get dirty I just don't get that dirty.

Hey guys, seize the water and energy, they're all saying!

Well, I stay in the shower for about 20 minutes... this is just because I live in a very hot country.

This post has been edited by Ladeira: 30 January 2012 - 03:07 PM

[Phi for All]

I love to take a steam and sit in it for a good half hour, then have a quick shower. The heat feels better to me than the water of a shower. I can spend some quality time wrapped in a steam bath.

I'd have a steam shower in my home if it weren't for the horrible maintenance bills. Steam is very hard on a system. A lot of the time I go to the gym the steam room is being repaired.

[Appolinaria]

I shower for about 15 minutes, twice a day. I don't think this is healthiest because your body releases oils that are beneficial to hair and skin. Also, not sure if it's entirely natural to be exposed to such heat so often.

On top of the time you spend taking a shower, you should also consider how frequently you do and at what temperature.

Don't over clean yourself. It's important to be hygienic, but your body will take care of itself. A balance is always best.

[Mr Rayon]

Appolinaria, on 30 January 2012 - 09:50 PM, said:

I shower for about 15 minutes, twice a day. I don't think this is healthiest because your body releases oils that are beneficial to hair and skin. Also, not sure if it's entirely natural to be exposed to such heat so often.

Ok, I've heard about this. Do you know where I can find out more information about these oils that are beneficial to hair and skin?
I'm looking for a reason to have shorter showers.

[Appolinaria]

Mr Rayon, on 31 January 2012 - 02:14 AM, said:

Ok, I've heard about this. Do you know where I can find out more information about these oils that are beneficial to hair and skin?
I'm looking for a reason to have shorter showers.

http://en.wikipedia...._gland#Function

Also, a hot shower for an hour would probably raise your body temperature a significant amount and I'm sure that has some negative side affects...

[Mr Rayon]

Appolinaria, on 31 January 2012 - 02:52 AM, said:

http://en.wikipedia...._gland#Function

Also, a hot shower for an hour would probably raise your body temperature a significant amount and I'm sure that has some negative side affects...

hey, is it true that people who take longer showers tend to have more wrinkles when they get older in comparison to people who take shorter showers?

[Phi for All]

Mr Rayon, on 31 January 2012 - 01:29 PM, said:

hey, is it true that people who take longer showers tend to have more wrinkles when they get older in comparison to people who take shorter showers?

You mean like too long under hot sprays of water degrades the collagen in the skin and causes wrinkles? I've always heard that warm water was better to wash your face than hot water because heat along with the water leads to collagen degradation which can lead to wrinkling. This is anecdotal though; I'll see if there have been any studies on excessive immersion and wrinkling.

[iNow]

Mr Rayon, on 30 January 2012 - 02:36 PM, said:

how long do you shower for?

It depends on who's in there with me.

[hypervalent_iodine]

Being a water waster is nothing to be proud of when you live in Australia (as you do, IIRC), where water conservation happens to be extremely important. Perhaps not as much as it was a few years ago, but nevertheless, using what works out to be approximately 3 times the recommended daily limit for one person in one day (in QLD, at least) in a single shower is really and truly nothing you should be boasting about.

[Appolinaria]

iNow, on 31 January 2012 - 03:23 PM, said:

It depends on who's in there with me.

Hey, you're just being environmentally friendly.

[ewmon]

Five minutes because excessive washing somehow causes me itching/pimples, and showering for hours sends lots of expensive hot water down the drain. Why not soak in a tub of hot water?

[Phi for All]

I always wanted a shower nozzle that would switch back and forth just from normal spray to a fine mist, so you could stay wet and warm but save water with the mist whilst shaving or soaping up, then rinse with the normal spray. I keep thinking this such a simple product that someone must be making them. All the changeable shower heads seem to want to give you at least five settings you never use. They seem to be the same five settings you never use on the sprayer attachment for your garden hose.

[Xittenn]

I usually spend ten to fifteen minutes a day in the shower. I think the right product choices are what change the personal benefits/costs of the shower. Using cheap shampoo leaves wax in your hair and follicles, and this can affect a number of properties that some feel are important. Also, cheap soap can be very drying, and can sometimes irritate dermal issues like eczema. I think using a body wash that helps moisturize the skin is important to consider if you wish to maintain a healthy appearance for as long as possible.

Addressing the heat of a shower, I've fainted a few times from the heat of a bath, and often I become nauseous. I've learned to take warm baths as opposed to hot, and I wouldn't be surprised if routinely exposing oneself to overly hot showers presented negative effects.

[Appolinaria]

Phi for All, on 31 January 2012 - 03:53 PM, said:

I always wanted a shower nozzle that would switch back and forth just from normal spray to a fine mist, so you could stay wet and warm but save water with the mist whilst shaving or soaping up, then rinse with the normal spray. I keep thinking this such a simple product that someone must be making them. All the changeable shower heads seem to want to give you at least five settings you never use. They seem to be the same five settings you never use on the sprayer attachment for your garden hose.

In order to have mist, wouldn't you also need to decrease the water pressure? I have no idea how plumbing works.

[Xittenn]

Appolinaria, on 31 January 2012 - 04:46 PM, said:

In order to have mist, wouldn't you also need to decrease the water pressure? I have no idea how plumbing works.

It's like a bottle of Windex, one setting bottle necks the pressure and atomizes the stream into a fine spray.

[Mr Rayon]

hypervalent_iodine, on 31 January 2012 - 03:24 PM, said:

Being a water waster is nothing to be proud of when you live in Australia (as you do, IIRC), where water conservation happens to be extremely important. Perhaps not as much as it was a few years ago, but nevertheless, using what works out to be approximately 3 times the recommended daily limit for one person in one day (in QLD, at least) in a single shower is really and truly nothing you should be boasting about.

Do you think it's something I could confess at church as one of my sinning problems?
I don't want to seem too evil but I really don't care about wasting water or what happens to the environment.

[Appolinaria]

Xittenn, on 31 January 2012 - 04:53 PM, said:

It's like a bottle of Windex, one setting bottle necks the pressure and atomizes the stream into a fine spray.

Ah.

Would a nozzle alone be able to do that? I thought shower heads are more cosmetic, they just change the way the water is distributed but don't actually change the pressure or anything.