A steady stream of complaints from Lagunita and Roble residents led Student Housing to install showerheads with a higher flow rate in the two West Campus dorms yesterday.

“In response to some students’ concerns about the new showerheads, we immediately began investigating the water flow of showerheads across campus and determined that the flow rate was substantially lower in Lagunita and Roble,” said Chief Housing Officer Rodger Whitney in an email to The Daily.

The two West Campus dorms have a lower water pressure than other dorms on campus, which decreases the flow rate of the showers. According to Sustainability and Utilities Coordinator Nik Kaestner, the showerheads installed over winter break had only a 1.0 gallon per minute flow rate in Lagunita and Roble. The latest set of showerheads will have a 1.3 gallon per minute flow rate, which will match the flow rate in other dorms.

“In order to respond to the water pressure problem in these two specific houses and provide a consistent shower experience across campus, we immediately called the manufacturer, Bricor, and requested back-up units to address this problem,” Whitney said.

“We will be monitoring their results carefully,” he added, in reference to the new showerheads that were installed yesterday.

While Student Housing was willing to install a new set of showerheads in Lagunita and Roble, it remains opposed to a campus-wide return to the old showerheads.

“In order to maintain the water savings we expect as a result of the retrofit — and still respond to student concerns about water pressure issues unique to Roble and Lagunita — we are not returning the original showerheads to Lagunita and Roble,” Kaestner said. “The new ones hopefully should address student concerns and still reduce water consumption at the same time.”

Student Housing is now convinced that the tide of campus opinion is turning, and that as residents become more aware of the program and its environmental benefits, they are increasingly coming to accept the new showerheads.

“Casa Zapata [residents] emailed us their unanimous support after the Green Living Coordinator in that dorm explained the background and water savings potential of the retrofit,” Kaestner said.

Kaestner also pointed to the Winter 2008 Student Housing Survey as evidence of growing approval of the showerheads.

“Our initial results from our current Housing survey reveal that students overall are very supportive of sustainability initiatives like this one and are willing to work with us as long as the impacts are well-explained, reasonable and we address concerns as they arise,” he said.

Housing staff is hopeful that once the newest showerheads are installed in Lagunita and Roble, the stream of complaints will slow down to a trickle and showerheads will no longer be a hot topic of discussion on campus.

“I am optimistic this switch should address the most serious concerns about the showerheads,” Whitney said, “and reaffirm that Student Housing is more than happy to work with students to continue to address lingering issues on this initiative and further promote sustainability in a responsible way.”