Save water and save money. I’ve seen people showering, applying their soap, body wash, or shower gel while the water is running and rinsing the product off their skin and down the drain as soon as they start to use it. Or they leave the water running while they shampoo or shave. The better way is to
- Get wet,
- Turn the water off using a shower shutoff valve (even when I using a shutoff valve, I still turn the hot water completely off),
- Apply your favorite shower product, lather and scrub (a Salux washcloth works well),
- Give the lather time to work,
- Shampoo or shave,
- Turn the water on, and
- Rinse.
The problem is that it’s a bother to turn the water off the usual way, especially once you have the hot-and-cold mix adjusted the way you like it. Solution: Get a shower shutoff valve. It installs above the showerhead (or handheld shower connection) and gives you another way to turn off the shower. Turn off the valve, and the faucet handles stay on (keeping the water temperature as you like it), as the shower flow is reduced to a drip. Lather, scrub, shave, let the soap do its work, take your time, and then — after you’ve saved a few gallons of water — rinse as normal.
Save even more: take cold showers.
Advice for those who have never taken a shower in an RV.