by Maggie Mae

Created on: September 12, 2008   Last Updated: September 17, 2008

The morning shower is the way I wake up in the morning. Most of us turn the water on to warm up while we do other things. That way we feel the shower is ready for us and so we save time. True. It does save time, but we have to watch the cost both to our pockets and to the planet. I know that I am guilty of this, but I have started changing my routine. Here are simple ways to save.

First, if your shower takes a long time to warm up, find out why. Is your hot water heater working properly? Is there a problem with your pipes? Are the pipes old? Are the pipes connected correctly? (Here is a funny story: We built a new house. I tried to turn the hot water on in the spare bathroom. It never got hot even though I ran it for 15 minutes. Finally, I turned on the cold. To my surprise, the water got hot when I turned the cold on. Here my plumber connected the pipes backwards.)
Second, if you still feel the need to save time by heating up the shower before you get in, then do something practical with the water. Brush your teeth, rinse out delicates, fill up a watering can to water the flowers or plants, or even fill up a container to use for cleaning the floors or rinsing out the tub or shower after you clean them. Waste not, want not.
Third, after you have the water to the desired temperature, get in and wet your hair first. Then turn the water off or slow it down. Shampoo your hair. Then turn the water back on or faster if need be to rinse the shampoo out of your hair. Next, make sure you are wet enough to lather soap up all over your body. Turn the water off. Put conditioner in your hair if you want. Then wash your body. Finally, turn the water on again to rinse off your body and hair.
Some of you may not wish to shut the water on and off. There is another alternative. You could use a high-efficiency showerhead, so you save money on the water and the cost to heat it.
Taking a green shower should not only include the act of a person getting clean, but of a person cleaning the shower. If you visit www.geocities.com/heartland/prairie/8088/clngrn.html , this site will tell you how to use common household ingredients for "green" cleaners. This will help the environment by being less harsh and require less rinsing. You won't have to worry about toxins getting into your system.
If you are serious about being green, then use shampoos, conditioners and body soap that are green. We have one planet. We can either go green to keep it green or burn through our resources and let the planet die from our selfishness. What choice will you make?

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