Water is one of the most coveted commodities on a boat. While you might think that to be a strange statement, boats only have so much water storage capacity; therefore, a leaking faucet is a priority. Finding the leaking faucet led us on a search for a boat shower head and along the way we had to think outside the box.
Shower head for Navy showers, the search is on
We needed a boat shower head that would make it simple to take a Navy shower. If you have never heard of a Navy shower or sea shower let me clue you in; First, turn the water on, wet down, turn the water off, soap up, wash your bits and pieces, turn the water back on and rinse. Wallah…you have completed a shower using 2 gallons or less. While this may sound easy and it is when the water is cold but when you’re lucky to get to enjoy the luxury of a hot shower it can be a daunting task. Getting the water temperature just right takes time. And each time the faucet is turned off and on to readjust the water temperature, all while the water is running, you are wasting water.
We started searching for our sailboat showerhead thinking it would be an easy task; however, this started our path to thinking outside the box. We had to find the right solution to fit our current faucet configuration as well as find a solution that would be a water saver.
Separate shower with tub
Our boat is configured with a separate shower, with a very small tub rather than a wet head which is a room with a toilet and handheld shower nozzle attached to the sink. Therefore, we have a more traditional 3 piece faucet for a tub configuration and not only did we want something we could use on our existing setup, but we also wanted a shower head we could start and stop the flow without turning the faucet on and off continually. This required a little more thinking outside the box.
Boat Shower Heads
We search existing marine wet head faucets for our boat shower head but these can be pricey and they also didn’t fit our existing shower head setup. We searched kitchen sink sprayer nozzles but were unable to find one with the correct connection fitting. Finding a shower head to fit was important because we didn’t have to mount new mounting hardware; after all, who wants to drill more holes in their boat. All this required even more thinking outside the box.
The shower head "lightbulb" moment
Running out of options for what we wanted we had almost given up. All of a sudden there was a “lightbulb moment”, that moment you rethink your idea over and over. Could it be we had found the right shower head solution? We were definitely thinking outside the box with our choice.
Our solution was sitting on a shelf at Home Depot, something we would never think of if we hadn’t been thinking outside the box. It was a handheld bidet. The length of the hose is perfect, plus it has a quick shut-off button so we don’t have to turn the faucet valve on and off during those Navy showers, just set the temperature and spray. Plus, the hose fitting and nozzle handle both fit in the preexisting mounts.
Think outside the box
There are always options when it comes to certain repairs on a sailboat in this case it was finding the right solution for a leaking shower head. We took our time, checked out our options, and then we started to think outside the box for a solution. Now our biggest unanswered question is…do we shower in a bidet or is there a bidet in our shower?
I’m loving these posts and following your new adventures!!!
Thank you so much! I really is going to be an adventure.