By Blake Hemmel

Today, over one billion people are living in areas dealing with water stress, and by the year 2020, an estimated three billion people will be in these areas. Much of our water is wasted through our faucets when we wash our hands, because with your average faucet, most of the water bounces off your hands or passes by them altogether. 

A Swedish clean tech startup called Altered has created a solution: the Altered:Nozzle. By atomizing the water coming through any faucet, the Altered:Nozzle uses 98 percent less water, while still retaining functionality. 

How does it work?

The nozzle uses atomization, which is the process of breaking up water into a heavy mist, increasing the surface area of the water leaving the faucet. This makes washing your hands, dishes, and vegetables much more efficient. 

“With our mist, you’re getting contact with a much greater percentage of the water, almost all of it. That’s why you can wash your hands and do your dishes with just a fraction of the water coming out of your tap,” said Professor Kaj Mickos, head of innovation for Altered.

If a mist isn’t sufficient, and a different circumstance requires a larger flow of water, the Altered:Nozzle can be switched to a more regular saving mode. The flow is more like a regular faucet, but still saves 75 percent compared to the original tap. This is meant for filling glasses, pots or pans. 

The Altered:Nozzle fits easily into an existing tap, takes only 30 seconds to install, and comes made from lead-free eco brass. It comes in the five different colors.

“Approximately 18 percent of the water used in our homes is water running through our taps. That’s about 32 gallons of water per household per day. If we do the math and look at some of the most water-stressed cities in the world, that’s about 220 million gallons of water running through the taps in Tokyo, 240 million in Shanghai, 40 million gallons in Los Angeles, and 50 million in Rio de Janiero, every day, and most of it is down the drain,” said Johan Nihlén, CEO of Altered in a Kickstarter video.

“This is our small contribution to this huge issue,” he continued.

Now with over 4,000 backers on Kickstarter, the Altered Company has raised more than $300,000 for the startup.

Check out their Kickstarter video to learn more:

To find out more, visit: alteredcompany.com.