How low can it flow?

Water savings with low-flow shower heads add up when the flow slows to a rate of 1.5 to 2 gallons per minute.

Shower heads that are rated as low-flow allow a maximum flow of 2.5 gallons a minute at line pressure of 80 pounds per square inch (psi), although most people have about 60 psi at home, said Rob Zimmerman, senior staff engineer with Kohler's water conservation initiative.

''You easily can reduce the flow in a shower head to two gallons a minute. But if you go too low, the temperature-compensating valve that mixes hot and cold water won't work,'' he said.

If you have ever been showering when someone flushes a toilet and you get blasted with hot water, that's an example of the temperature compensating valve lacking enough pressure to work properly, he said. Shower heads that use less than one gallon per minute are too low to work properly.

Bruce Adams, conservation manager for the South Florida Water Management District, says the low-flow shower heads produce ``amazing savings.''

Compared with the cost of buying a high-efficiency toilet and having a plumber install it, around $200, a shower head costs only $20 and you can install it yourself. In Miami-Dade, the Water and Sewer Department will give you a low-flow head in exchange for your old one.

Faucet aerators also save water. The maximum flow of water per minute through a bath or kitchen faucet is 2.5 gallons. An aerator can reduce that.

''For a bathroom, a half-gallon per minute is plenty,'' said Zimmerman.

Aerators have their flow rate stamped on the side, and you can unscrew the device from the faucet, take it to a store and match the threads.

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