Reducing Bath Fill Noise

Like David D. Friedman I take long baths and read, after my wife goes to bed. I need quiet time before bed in order to sleep, and a long hot bath with a non-threatening book works well for this (calculus is the best soporific!). Yes, it costs water and energy, but I live in Oregon, with more water and energy than most places.

But the noise of the occasional hot water refill interferes with her sleep.

A trick that reduces the noise:

Wrap the end of the faucet in a washcloth, so that a "pipe" of washcloth hangs down into the water. Secure with rubber bands.

The washcloth pipe does slow fill rate a bit, but it also eliminates most of the noise. It does this five ways:

• 1 The washcloth slows down the falling water.
• 2 The falling water no longer hammers the tubwater surface.
• 3 The point of impact is muffled.
• 4 The cavitation and noise of the falling water goes away.
• 5 The resonance of the faucet itself is dampened.

Fortunately, our house has reasonably well-secured pipes, but this might also help with "water hammer" in the pipes of older houses.

Yes, this uses up washcloths (you want to change them or they will mildew). But if yesterday's scrub washcloth becomes today's sound reduction washcloth, then tomorrow's hang-out-to-dry before laundering washcloth, you've merely added one "wet day" on the way to the laundry hamper. I usually dry them for two days so they are bone dry before they go in the hamper, and have a repurposed towel rack under a cabinet for the purpose.

Optimization might include some kind of outdoor sunshine drying fixture for the summer, and an indoor humidifier drying fixture for the winter, but I've got other things to do!