DS spending far too long in the shower every single day

[goaskmum]

With rising living costs I am concerned about the length of time my DS spends in the shower everyday, usually he spends about 15-20 minutes in it which imo is far too long, funny how me and the rest of our household are in and out within 5 minutes!

I have asked DS several times to reduce the time he spends in the shower and he does nothing about it, he shows a complete disregard to the increasing living costs.

This is more a WWYD - I have said to him that if he wants to spend that length of time in the shower he is going to have to contribute to the gas costs every month as I can’t keep up with it all , I am also considering switching off the boiler when the 5 minute mark passes.

I don’t really know how else I can deal with his selfishness!

Ask him for £2 for every shower he has

Maybe you should only let him use the hose in the garden

My 20 year old is about 25 minutes in the shower. It drives me nuts. Mind you, he takes ages to do anything!

Mumsnet, the only place where showering is an Olympic sport

You can get timers that will automatically switch it off. Do that.

Yes he is far too old for this selfishnesss

@Movingsoon21

Gosh this is so depressing. Timed showers? Sounds like prison! Just ask him for a bit more board money.

@Movingsoon21

Have you heard prices are going up at all? Electricity becoming quite expensive? Minor issue with global warming that means we should use less water???

I imagine the OP doesn’t want to add vast amounts to his rent, even if he could afford it, in the hope that he is saving to move out.

I'd say wanking too

Is he selfish with other things? Or just selfish by taking an extra 10 minutes longer in the shower than you do?

Tbf that's how long my showers are. I have a whole routine of shampoo, scalp treatment (eczema), wait, shampoo, hair mask, wait, shave legs etc, wash off mask, condition, wash body. Oil body and rinse.

So it takes a while. A hot shower can be really soothing and de stressing. Totally fair to ask him to contribute if he wants long ones though.

@Cyw2018

The shower is my private relaxing/thinking/meditative space, rather than simply a means to get clean. I would give up many other things way before reducing my daily shower time.

Maybe this is the case for your son, but not the rest of your family. When I was at home my parents would shut the hot water off when they deemed I'd been in the shower for too long (they thought it was a hilarious thing to do), despite there being no financial issues (DF earning 6 figure salary 25 years ago). I found it distressing and cruel, and remember it vividly.

OP are you cutting back on the things that are good for your mental health yet due to rising costs?

This is a pretty dumb post. Are you divorced from reality? No financial issues? WTF about the waste of power, climate emergency, water waste? Ever been to a third world country with no water where kids drink from open contaminated water? You sound super entitled. 'Relaxing meditative space'- Jesus H.

You need to increase his board.

Why isn't he paying money towards the nulls already? He's an adult.

I am also considering switching off the boiler when the 5 minute mark passes.

5 minutes would absolutely not be enough time for me.

Unless he is selfish in other ways then YABVU.

Why not ask him to contribute a bit more money every week now that everything he is using is going up in price.

Have you also restricted his TV usage?

Is it not obvious what he is doing in the shower .

Banging on the door is a bit aggressive. Apply a financial penalty and he will relocate his personal activities.

This is a pretty dumb post. Are you divorced from reality?

That’s very rude.

Many people don’t use dishwashers, tumble dryers, watch much TV, use a car etc but they choose to spend some extra time in the shower which is a lot less damaging to the environment and their electricity bill than many other things.

Yes, must be wanking, couldn't possibly just be enjoying the shower. FFS.

This is a pretty dumb post. Are you divorced from reality? No financial issues? WTF about the waste of power, climate emergency, water waste? Ever been to a third world country with no water where kids drink from open contaminated water? You sound super entitled. 'Relaxing meditative space'- Jesus H

You sound unhinged. What has third world countries got to do with it? Should we all start washing in ponds and rivers??

Some water companies provide shower timers that get you to reduce the length of hour shower by a minute per day.

Start by telling him he needs to reduce the time, give him a shower timer. And that when not directly under the water/using it he needs to turn it off, like when you brush your teeth.

I'd give him a deadline of 1 week to get his showers to within a reasonable time (set by you) and if he doesn't then he covers the cost of them.

I'd also be looking at increasing his board given rising costs anyway.

Honest interest, how much do 4 vs 20 min showers last? He's definitely having his morning wank in there. So is that cheaper than washing the crusty sheets more often?

How does anyone possibly wash their hair (shampoo&condition), shave legs etc and wash themselves in 5 minutes. I have at least a 10 minute daily shower, why don’t you just ask him to pay more towards rising costs?

Had a housemate like that he would wank in the shower

Do showers cost that much? Not being unkind or goady. How much do shower minutes cost?

@redbigbananafeet

Do showers cost that much? Not being unkind or goady. How much do shower minutes cost?

Depends on the shower. Back in the 90s when we were all told to shower instead of baths, very few people had power showers. Now most modern expel enough water so that they're pretty expensive.

You cold also looking at an aerator head, @goaskmum, they reduce water pressure but aerate it so you don't notice.

According to this page a 20 minute shower costs about 68p in water and energy. So put his board up by £20 a month and it should be covered.

www.omnicalculator.com/everyday-life/shower-cost

Good grief, my showers can take 30 minutes if a hair wash is involved. But quick body wash and shave is probably 15-20 minutes. But I own my house and pay my bills so I guess it’s okay to linger.