Did you know that if you take 30 seconds off your shower, you can save a whole gallon of water? World Water Day is this Friday, March 22 and I challenge you to shorten your shower by setting a timer or getting a Hydrao SmartShower like the ones Hostelling International USA (HI USA) is installing in hostels around the country.
Saving water has always been key in HI USA’s sustainability efforts and since water scarcity is an issue facing over half the US, this ingenious shower head technology is an ingenious way of encouraging hostel guests to save a million gallons of water as part of their Million Gallon Challenge.
Starting this Friday, March 22 — World Water Day — HI USA is counting gallons of water saved through a Hydrao SmartShower which changes color based on time spent in the shower. HI USA’s behind-the-scenes scientists measured the length of the average shower taken at a their hostels, and the SmartShower is be programmed to turn red 30 seconds before that time.
The showerhead’s LED light will start out blue, turn to green, then to orange, and finally red, which is when guests can choose to get out. Thirty seconds’ worth of water in the shower adds up to a whole gallon, so when hostel guest follow the color cues and get out in time, they’ll be contributing to goal of saving a million gallons of water. This effort demonstrates that ever single person and every single shower counts towards water conservation efforts!
The Million Gallon Challenge begins with 3 HI USA hostels including HI New Orleans Hostel, HI San Francisco City Center and HI Santa Monica hostel. The rest of the HI USA network will have SmartShower technology running by mid-summer 2019.
Interested in contributing to the million gallons of water saved? Here’s how to get involved:
- Book a stay and try one of the new SmartShowers
- Between travel plans? Share your water saving tips with the HI USA community of travelers using #milliongallonchallenge on your social channels
- Try taking shorter showers wherever you are
- Keep checking the HI USA Million Gallon Challenge page to stay updated on their progress towards saving a million gallons of water, 30 seconds at a time. You can also look for updates on HI USA’s Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
No compensation was received for this post. Some images courtesy of HI USA.
