Erm, somehow my houzz name appears to have become "nopublicdisplay nopublicdisplay." Sorry about that!

can you legally install one above 2.0 in your own bathroom? lol. yes, if the bathroom police won't knock on your door.

do you have a friend out of state? ship it to them. I'll let you figure out the rest.

(ya know, I had an hour long convo w/my water company guy. He was informing me of the water restrictions the state has but also advised me that they themselves have to throw out so much water during the summer in order to keep the tanks clean. so I hardly think having a shower head that uses an extra gallon of water is going to make a diff)

PS,,I have family that lives in AZ. i'm in Cal and wanted something stronger.

Thanks Bruce & Beth! Very helpful. The issue here is that we're doing a complete remodel with the plumbing for the shower moved to a different wall, so there will be multiple inspections, and the shower head & handheld will have to pass. Bruce, did you have to go through an inspection with your non-compliant shower head, and if so, did you get hassled? (I still don't understand why, if 2.0 is legal to install until summer 2018, 2.0 can't be shipped here until then.)

good point about the new law into 2018. doesn't make sense. of course, this is Cal, rarely do people in charge here make sense.

Why don't you just order the valve you need for the plumbing inspection. the valve can go with either 1.8 or the 2.5 rain head. inspector doesn't care what rain head you choose (or he shouldn't. there is no 'water police').

this is all you should need for your inspection to pass. that valve I have is for the Brizo line. I got the valve here in Cal. my family member got the rain head,,,,that I used later after tiling was done.

No inspection. Buy real showerhead while you can find one & a cheap trickle flow for inspection. After final, replace w/ actual showerhead. Takes less than 5 mins. Just need proper wrench & Teflon tape.

The more I think about it, the more I think since it is legal to sell actual showerhead as long as local dealer had it in stock before regulation took effect, it should be able to be installed w/o hassle from inspector. Maybe dealer could give you paper to show it was in stock beforehand.

Delta 75152

Sorry hit button to quick Delta 75152 under $20 at Amazon and I think it is 2.5 and ships to CA. This is hands down one of the best shower heads. Funny I have one of their $200 supposed same technology and the difference is night and day that little $20 really puts out some pressure. It makes a whirring noise when running which I guess is where the pressure comes from?

In some CA area an inspector can actually check your other faucets. Now you know why people don't get permits. It is a shame they deter doing things properly by hanging a huge bill over homeowners heads.

Again, thank you all! Very helpful! I'm feeling a lot more optimistic about the possibility of having a shower head with something resembling water pressure!

The last inspection I was present for in Los Angeles the inspector seemed more concerned that the plumbing runs would supply enough volume for the fixtures than what the fixtures were rated for.

The "point" seems to be missing here...

@rouxb: understatement.

After I made posts above, I bought CA-compliant low-flow Delta showerhead, the one they advertise that angles up (I’m tall & std. showerhead req’d stooping to wash hair). The Delta has two screens inside. Closest to the outlet pores is a mesh screen. If you remove it, about 1/2“ below is the plastic flow restrictor. It fits tightly. I couldn’t get it out. You need a hooked small diameter tool to pull it out. I didn’t have one, so after putzing w/ it for a couple minutes, decided to leave it in. CAVEAT: Delta instructions say if you remove it, the warranty is void. With the nominal cost of showerhead, I considered that inconsequential risk.