The first review I did on Green Gear was a Delta 1.6GPM showerhead my wife and I bought at home depot. That was our first foray into the world of green products.. Since then I’ve probably reviewed more showerheads than any other product type, but each of them have been around the 1.5GPM flow rate. That is not bad. But I knew I could do better so I went looking for one with a lower flow rate and found the Bricor B100 Ultra Max .55GPM Showerhead.
This is what I consider a “premier” product review. Every post I publish with the word “bricor” gets more hits than most others. Also, there seems to be a lot of buzz around the B100 Ultra Max, but no full reviews. So, I’m hoping that I can help shed light on the quality of this low LOW flow showerhead.
I’ve reviewed a Bricor before, They are very well made showerheads that utilize a lot of different technologies to make a little water feel like a lot. The main technology used is what they call a vacuum flow, which uses air to create a vacuum in the head. This generates a greater amount of velocity, and thus force. It worked really well with 1.5GPM, so i was very anxious to see what only half a gallon per minute felt like…
You know when you’re using the B100 that you have a low flow showerhead.. I mean, how can you not? It uses 20% the water of a regular flow showerhead, and 33% the water of a 1.5GPM. So, don’t think that you’re gonna buy this thing and get an AMAZING spa like massage shower, you’re not. But what you WILL get from the B100 Ultra is a good shower, especially considering the flow rate. I give a lot of credit to Bricor here, it feels like much more than .55GPM.
The head has a rotating handle that adjusts the pressure created. With it you have the option of choosing a firm or gentle shower. It works pretty well and I use both settings each time I shower. The firm is great for getting soap out of hair, while the gentle is good for those mid-shower snoozes. You know what i’m talking about!
The green value here could almost not be higher. The amount of water you are saving here is staggering. If have a 2.5GPM and take eight minute showers you’ve just saved 15 GALLONS of water. That’s three of those big water cooler containers! That’s a serious amount of water savings… Also, You didn’t need to heat it up. So, from a “green” standpoint, the B100 ultra Max .55 is what I consider to be THE green showerhead. If your main goal in showering is saving water, this is the head for you. Basically very committed environmentalists and anyone who owns a boat or RV!
Now, lets talk about price. This showerhead was $75. That is a significant amount of money to spend on something like this. It’s high quality and bricor usually commands a high price point. But lets look at this two ways. If you already buy showerheads at this price or $75 is not a lot of money, this is going to be nothing but savings to you. If you’re like me and usually buy ones around $35, You will still see the additional $40 investment pay off in one year (assuming 8min showers and $.05 cents / cuft of water). I have no problem recommend this showerhead in either scenario.
Two important points of note. If you like warm showers and have turned down your water heater to save money you might need to turn it up for this showerhead. .55GPM is great, but it doesn’t transfer the “heat” as well since there isn’t as much water. Also, make sure you use teflon tape and a good pair of channel lock pliars and screw this thing on there snug.
So there you have it. Almost the lowest of low flow. For anyone who is looking to save a massive amount of water, I couldn’t recommend a better showerhead. (yet!)
Here is the video review
RATING: 3 out of 5 Gears for (a HUGE) Variable Eco Benefit, Value / Price, and Product Design and Quality
Related posts:
{ 1 trackback }
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Question: handheld showers. I have to use fairly stick cleaning product that need direct water sprays to get off. So I always use handhold shower head. (Water-pik type things.) Could this be stuck onto something flexible and turned into a handheld?
If the hand held device you use has standard showerhead fittings, I see no reason why you couldn’t attach this. Check out Bricor’s website (and evolve i believe), I think they have less green handheld options.
where can you buy it? not finding it on Amazon…
Water and Energy Solutions, Inc. carries the full line of Bricor showerheads.