I Hope everyone is having a great weekend!
A few weeks ago Dave over at HighSierra Showerheads asked us to review his new low flow showerhead, the 1.5GPM (gallon per minute) FCS-200. And, as always, we were happy to oblige.
The first thing you recognize about the HighSierra FCS-200 is its design. It isn’t very long and the width of it is no almost no bigger than the shower pipe connecting to it. From first glance, you know SOMETHING is going on with this showerhead. The first thing i thought was that this shower pour was going to be WAY to strong and and sting me. Using what I’ll describe as an eyelet, the flow is compressed and expelled in a somewhat conical pattern. The resulting spray is very comfortable. You’ll notice in the photo above that the droplets are fairly large. This is good because it mean that even thought the water is moving fast, it doesn’t sting. It’s actually very comfortable.
The design of this showerhead led me to an unexpected environmental benefit. Because the FCS-200 is so small, it uses far less material than traditional showerheads, i compared the size of this showerhead to my Bricor in the video. While most people don’t look for this benefit, there is something to say for a company that makes a quality showerhead and uses less material, Bravo to High Sierra.
In addition to the fixed benefit of using less material, the showerhead does only use 1.5GPM of water. This was verified using my beer fermentation bucket and a timer. 
That means that if you use this showerhead you are saving 1 full gallon PER MINUTE over standard showerheads.
As i mentioned the water comes out of a single nozzle. I didn’t have any problem of this due to the stream design. That being said, Mrs. Green Gear prefers showerheads with a bunch of little nozzles. This is a case of to each their own, but I have no problem recommending this showerhead from a luxury standpoint. Another feature of the FCS-200 is an included on off switch. If you like to lather up without running water, simply depress the button and the flow will move to a dribble, when done, press it again and the flow returns.
The MSRP for the FCS-200 is $29.99. The FCS-100 is $26.99. If you don’t count the TERRIBLE delta showerhead we reviewed, that makes this the least expensive low-flow showerhead we’ve reviewed. They will be available from High Sierra at their website.
Below is the video review, where I do a bit more talking on the product and show it in action… and yes, that is me singing “If I were a Boy” by Beyonce when Mrs. Green Gear walks in…
So lets review… The FCS-200 requires less material and energy to manufacturer, it uses less water than standard showerheads, it is quality product with a unique design, and it is favorably priced, and well positioned in the market… Using our product rating criteria, that earns the HighSierra 1.5GPM low flow showerhead 5 out of 5 Gears
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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Mr. Green Gear,
I found your site through your listing at kode-green.com. I like what you are doing here at Green Gear. I was wondering if you have a moment, (i noticed you are going to inauguration) maybe you would like to write a short review of this product for my website. My site is all about green homes with an emphasis on construction. If you are interested, contact me at my email.
Keep up the good work,
Dirk Hooley
We’ve used this since May in one of our baths. I’ve decided it is great for the summer, but don’t wish to use it going into winter because I would have to turn up the water heater. The water cools down before it reaches my body. Also, it’s spray is a bit wide and soaks the shower curtain as much as me, and we have a thin fabric curtain. I would recommend this to replace horizontal focused shower heads in one of those fancy, multi-head shower configurations. Or for a gym/public shower. They would be better than those at our gym for sure!
The spray of the HighSierra is rectangular as opposed to round. I agree that when the orifice opening is set in a horizontal position, the spray can be too wide for showerheads over tubs, especially when the shower arm is high on the wall. My recommendation for bathtubs is to set the orifice opening vertical making the spray narrower. You can adjust the orifice opening by rotating the showerhead threaded nut clockwise 1/4 turn. It is true that the showerhead seems to work best at 35 to 45 psi. At that pressure, the water droplet size is large and heat loss is minimal. To compensate, I have made minor adjustments to the orifice opening and have increased the droplet size at the higher operating pressures as well. As a product designer and manufacturer, I want to know what people think about my work. I appreciate the comments.
I have a nice joke for you) Why did the turtle cross the road? To get to the Shell station!
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