Another Hear Vs There Question

[James Jaragosky]

My wife and I stayed at hotels in the U.K., France and the Netherlands. I was amazed at the water volume that came out of the faucets and showerheads; from the exposed supply pipes that I could see, it appeared that they were using approximately .5 copper or steel piping. I have limited knowledge on how much volume that can be moved through a 1/5 in. pipe; I was under the impression that increasing the pressure would not significantly increase volume. The toilets seemed to move significant more volume than the ones we use here as well.

I do know the difference between volume and pressure; my pressure on my shower here in the states is much higher than what I experienced over there, but I have much less volume. I believe that here in the States that standard water pressure on the supply side from the city is 60 lbs. will increasing the pressure increase volume.

[Tom Godley]

We have flow reducers on all the fixtures sold in the USA -- most are static so theoretically higher pressure will increase volume but the difference is not that much.

I believe the max flow kicks in at about 50-60 psi -- but it has been a long time since I have seen a graph -- so my memory may be off.


If you look at the newest valves they have much smaller pathways then before - the whole valve is designed for the reduced flow not just a fitting installed at the outlet.

[Jeff Bratt]

Most showerhead fixtures here (at least in California) have a built-in flow restrictor which limits the volume to around 2.5 gallons per minute. This is esentially a small hole - less than 1/4" diameter. You are correct about pressure, the flow rate will not vary that much over a "normal" range of pipe pressures. The designs of toilet fixtures also have significant internal differences that determine how much water is used.

[Scott Donley]

Most showerhead fixtures here (at least in California) have a built-in flow restrictor which limits the volume to around 2.5 gallons per second. .That is a bunch of water :D

[Jeff Bratt]

That is a bunch of water :D

Oops, that's really gallons per minute...

[Dave Johnson29]

I have limited knowledge on how much volume that can be moved through a 1/5 in. pipe

It is not so much the pipe, it is the bends that eat into the flow rate.

As has been stated, here in the USA all shower heads are designed as water-savers of some kind. Even Legislated in some Codes.

They have reducer disks or smaller delivery opening. Remove the disk or drill out the single delivery hole in the back of the shower head. I have a well and can use as much water as I like. Actually I have two wells. :) Long story.

[John Pratt]

If we really want to have a good discussion about here vs. there;

How about BEER!

That has to be the biggest difference of all.

I lived in Germany for 7 years and I find it hard to even look at American beer.

[John Schreiber]

If you just got back from Europe and your first question is about pipe diameters, . . . ;):D.

Seriously, I don't know the answer to your question, but I hope you had a great time.

[Scott Shepherd]

I lived and worked in England a little around 1992 or so. We were confused and shocked by some of the things like you mention. Main thing was the way water was heated all through Europe. Turns out almost 20 years later, we're finally seeing tankless hot water heaters and front load washers in the USA.

It all made sense when we were there and never could understand why they were so far ahead of us on many of those technology issues.

[Brian Kent]

I lived in Russia for a year. They had central water heating. One giant water heating plant for half a million people. You got scalded in the center of the city (Ulyanovsk) and got no hot water on the outskirts.

And so - the tankless water heater. In our first apartment the old tankless heater would spread gas throughout the kitchen for about 10 seconds, then finally ignite the burners. The explosion felt like a slug to the chest. We got a different apartment.

The water supply pipes were buried in the same trenches as the sewer pipes. So when they broke (often) the sewer and water would mix. They would boil a big pot of water on the stove to kill the germs and then ladle out the top of the water to avoid the silt the next morning. That kills the germs but not the taste. We would go all the way to Moscow just for Britta water filters.

I'm just a happy camper with my USA - California water supply.

[Jeff Bratt]

I'm just a happy camper with my USA - California water supply.

Funny how a little difference in perspective can change one's opinion. So you don't feel the need for imported, designer-labeled bottled water...


How about BEER!

Unless, of course, it's fermented. Fortunately, in the States there is now large assortment of great micro-breweries. Some have even grown to macro-sized. Big improvement - IMHO - since the 80's.