Reference - Scandic hotel Oulu City

Hotels are seeking energy efficiency by reducing water consumption. The Scandic hotel in Oulu ended up choosing showers with the best washing power and did not compromise on customer comfort.

When comparing the years 2022 and 2024, a major change was seen in water consumption:

27 liters / night / room

The hotel's total water consumption dropped by 19%.

How do I calculate the hotel savings when I switch to water-saving showers?

In everyday hotel life, it’s easy to think that the biggest savings come from big things: energy-efficient windows, smart lighting, or solar panels on the roof. But did you know that real euros often go down the drain? Yes, quite literally.

The shower is one of the most used amenities in a hotel – every guest uses it once or more during the day. If a hotel has 100 rooms, the daily water consumption can be quite a tsunami. And when it comes to hot water, it’s not just the price of the water that matters, but also the energy used to heat it.

This blog will go over how to calculate the savings a hotel can make by replacing traditional showers with water-saving models. I promise the formula isn't rocket science – it's more like bathroom math that you can do while showering (as long as you don't take too long).

Step 1: Find out the price of water and energy

Before we calculate the savings, there are two things you need to know:

1. Water price – In Finland, the price of water varies by municipality, but is usually around a few euros per cubic meter.
2. Energy price – because most of the costs arise from water heating. Take Oulu for example, where the price of district heating is around €75/MWh.
   

Once we know these numbers, we can start thinking about what changing your shower really means for your wallet.

Step 2: How much water does one shower save?

A traditional shower head can easily use 12-15 liters of water per minute . A water-saving shower, on the other hand, uses only 6-8 liters per minute – and yes, the water spray still feels soft and comfortable.

If the average shower in a hotel lasts 8 minutes, one guest can easily save 50 liters of water with one shower . With 100 rooms and a 70% occupancy rate, the potential savings is thousands of liters of water every single day.

Step 3: Convert energy into savings in euros

Let's calculate an example:

• Energy saved per day in the hotel = 313.5 kWh
• Let's convert this to megawatt hours: 0.3135 MWh
• Multiply by the price of district heating (75 €/MWh) = 23.51 € per day
  

Sounds like a small amount? Wait a minute…

Step 4: Annual savings are impressive

The hotel is open year-round, so savings accrue:

€23.51/day × 365 days ≈ €8,579.15 per year

Now I'm starting to smile. And that's just the energy savings. When you add in the water price savings, the sum increases even more.

Why is this good for the hotel?

1. Clear savings: Replacing a shower often pays for itself in less than a year.
2. Satisfied customers: Modern showers do not compromise on comfort. The customer notices a refreshing shower, but does not know that it is also ecological.
3. Responsibility: More and more hotel customers value environmentally friendly solutions. When you can say that your hotel saves tens of thousands of liters of water per year, it is a brand advantage.
4. Maintenance-free: New showers last a long time and require less maintenance.
   

Water-saving showers – a quick win for the hotel

Energy-saving investments often take years to pay for themselves. But with water-saving showers, it's a quick win. With one investment:

• you reduce costs
• improve customer experience
• you strengthen the hotel's environmental reputation
  

And best of all, you can calculate exactly how much money will be left in your pocket each month.

Calculate your savings while wearing a bathrobe

Imagine a hotel management meeting: everyone sitting in a conference room wearing bathrobes, calculating how many euros are flowing down the drain and how many are being retained in the cash register thanks to the new shower. That's a financial meeting that will be remembered!

Summary: How to calculate hotel savings by changing showers

1. Find out the prices of water and energy (e.g. district heating in Oulu 75 €/MWh).
2. Calculate how much water and energy is saved per day per room.
3. Multiply the savings by the number of rooms and occupancy rate.
4. Convert the result to euros.
5. Multiply the daily savings by the number of days in the year.
   

👉 Result: The hotel can save over €8,500 per year on energy alone – and even more when the cost of water is included.