Water heating is a major part of the average family's heating bill (up to one third I believe).
Cut this off at the knees by crushing your shower time, or do like I do - take cold showers whenever possible.
Most people (OK, all people) in our culture of pampering cringe at the very prospect of a cold shower, but Mustachianism requires throwing out convenience and comfort and dialling up the badassity for big big savings. Cold showers test your Mustachian mettle like no other Gauntlet Throw Down you can think of.
The following is a quick review of my findings after a year of cold showers.
Cold showers are best (and are pretty much mandatory) when the outside temperature is over 40C (100F). Don't even touch that hot tap :o)
In the 30's, go for it cowboy. Ahhh.
In the 20's - use your discretion. After a run or workout and you're still buzzing - do it.
When the temperature outside is less than 20C (70F) the experience is unpleasant. We're entering bad-ass zone. It's definitely a case of harden up, princess.
Less than 10C (50F) - don't do pure cold water, you're endangering your health. Painful, traumatic, and not worth it :o)
Tips:
On a hot day, there is normally about 10 seconds of warm water in the pipe before the cold stuff hits, use this to get under the shower spray and start to soap up.
Don't inch under, that's just torture - Take a series of deep breaths (this helps) then, angle your head under the shower spray so the water hits your hair first, then pivot to do your back, then turn front on. Easy :o)
The hard bit is getting under, after about ten seconds your skin adjusts and it's not nearly so bad.
This is not a thread for pretenders, who's ready to banish their steamy sanctuary for an icy firehose?
Step up hardcore Mustache folks and share your cold shower experiences.