Water-efficient showerheads

01.Introduction

User trial of 15 water-efficient shower heads from $20 to $202

Sixteen trialists each tested all 15 shower heads; they weren’t told the shower heads were water-efficient. For each shower head, the trialists rated:

• Effectiveness at wetting the body and hair.
• Effectiveness at removing soap and shampoo.
• The amount of coverage of water over the body.
• The feel of the spray.
• Ease of adjustment of temperature and spray settings.
• Overall satisfaction.

CHOICE tests are different. We buy the products we test — no freebies from manufacturers. Companies can't buy ads on our site and our work is funded by people like you.

Findings:

• Our trialists were satisfied with most of the shower heads on test, and the top six in particular.
• The most common complaint was weak water pressure, but not all models have this problem.

Brands tested

• Auscan Showerhead – Watersaver
• # Brewers Shower Therapy The Massager on All Directional Arm
• Caroma Multifunction Shower Mystic Fixed Shower
• Delrana Luxury Showers Kestrel Rose on Fixed Arm
• Delrana Luxury Showers Marlin Rose on Fixed Arm
• Dorf Stayfast Universal Shower
• Flexispray Bermuda II Wall Shower Fixed Arm
• Futura SatinJet Wall Shower on Upswept Arm
• Gracott Crys on Arm
• Interbath Classic II Rainmaker Hi-Lo Showerhead
• Interbath Rio Massage Hi-Lo Showerhead
• Irwell Invigra Adjustable Shower
• Methven Olympic 3000 1 Function Hi-Rise
• Novelli Tapware Shower Collection Riviera
• Pacific Aqualine All Directional Shower Set

# According to the manufacturer, this model has been discontinued.

Where's Grohe?

GROHE is a major manufacturer of shower heads and does have wall-mounted water-efficient models in its range. However, the information we received from GROHE at the time of the trial suggested that it only had handheld shower heads available, and we didn’t think it was appropriate to compare a handheld model with the wall-mounted shower heads in the trial. We learnt of its wall models too late to include them.

CHOICE verdict

Overall our trialists were satisfied with most of the shower heads they tested. The top six models did particularly well and only one model scored very poorly.

The most common complaint about the shower heads was that the water pressure was too weak, even among some of the highest-scoring models. “It was less of a shower and more of a light drizzle,” was a trialist’s assessment of one of the shower heads. “Felt like I was standing under a sprinkler,” said another.

But there were some notable exceptions. The DELRANA LUXURY SHOWERS Marlin Rose was praised for its stronger water pressure — and, at $34, it’s also one of the cheaper models in the test. The NOVELLI TAPWARE Riviera also has good water pressure and scored well overall, though just outside the What to buy list.

It’s difficult to tell how well a shower head will work until you use it and there aren’t any particular features you can look for. Most of the models tested have adjustable spray settings but of the four that don’t, three are in the What to buy list.

Instantaneous hot water systems (and some gravity-fed systems) may not have a sufficient flowrate for these shower heads to work properly. Check with the retailer to see if your system is suitable.