Save water with a Ladybug

Angela Stewart, Energy Auditor

Ever had to wait for the hot water to reach your shower? Us too. This may be the epitome of first world problems. But if you are money wise or eco-conscious, the wait for hot shower water is more than just a minor annoyance in a world full of instant gratifications. We waste a lot of water while waiting for the shower to get warm. You might be wondering if there isn’t some way to fix this inefficiency.

Low and behold, the engineers at Evolve Technologies set out to do just that. They have created a little known device, called a Ladybug, that aims to save water and energy by reducing water usage while you wait for the shower to warm up. The simple and ingenious devices is installed between your shower head and the water pipe. It is able to sense the temperature of the water running through it using Evolve’s ShowerStart technology. When the water gets to 95 degrees fahrenheit or above, the Ladybug reduces the water flow to a trickle. When you’re ready to step into the shower, simply pull on the cord and the hot water will flow at full stream.

How much of a difference does the Ladybug make? According to eartheasy (an EPA Water Sense Partner and eco-friendly home goods company) ‘Just a small reduction in water usage can lead to large strides in both savings and conservation. Reducing your shower by just 1 minute over a year would save you roughly $75 for the cost of water and heating it.’

As for the amount of water saved, that one minute adds up. Using an efficient flow shower head with a flow-rate of 1.5 Gallons per Minute, you would save over 500 gallons of water per person using the Ladybug, assuming 1 minute of wait per shower. So, if you have a habit of stepping away for more than just a minute, the savings can really stack up.

We are excited to announce that we will be installing the Evolve Ladybug as part of the Quick Home Energy Check-up program in Maryland starting today! We’ll provide instructions on how to use the Ladybug, and would love to hear your feedback as we begin installing the device.