This is the first in an occasional series about how companies and emerging technologies are reacting to California’s drought.

A companion could be joining you in the shower in the near future – and her name is Eva.

A Santa Ana-based company is giving life to Eva, the first-of-its-kind smart shower that adjusts to its user’s every move during regular ablutions, altering the flow of water when a bather shaves, lathers up or rinses off.

The device is the brainchild of 27-year-old Torrey Tayenaka, a serial entrepreneur who has run his own business since the age of 15, when he started shooting clips for his mother’s real estate business. Tayenaka is now the CEO and co-founder of a video marketing production studio, Spark House, an evolution of his earlier business, and has tried his hand at creating a new clothing line and a better Yelp-like service.

His latest creation is a sleek and sophisticated box that connects to a shower head and uses sensors to detect how close a user is to the water source.

Although she’s only a prototype, Eva received $56,000 from Indiegogo backers and will be available as a product by December.

The device will work with a complementary mobile app, where a user can set time goals for how long his morning routine should take. Exceed the goal and Eva will issue a subtle warning – a soft beep or an illuminated LED flash.

Eva’s creators are toying with the idea of adding a voice-recording option. Imagine parents nudging their teenagers, who too often linger in the shower, to move it along.

The Eva Smart Shower is one emerging technology to address shifts in cultural attitudes about conservation, now more acutely felt as California’s worst drought in recorded history drags into its fourth year. Such crises are often a source of inspiration for imaginative tinkerers, said Gene Alexander, the director of technology entrepreneurship at Chapman University’s Leatherby Center Student Incubator and the director of the university’s Launch Labs.

“In general, we definitely see that these social or demographic trends drive innovation,” Alexander said. “A lot of people read the news and think how terrible things are. A real entrepreneur looks past the surface issues and tries to see what the underlying problem is and what the solution is.”

FINDING A BUYER

So far, the yet-to-be-built shower accessory has made a splash with young men – technology-savvy consumers who live in single-family homes, according to data from the company.

Of the 500 people who preordered an Eva unit at $89-$99, 78 percent of questionnaire respondents were men. The company also found that conservation, more than lowering a water bill, was the driving force behind their purchase.

Eva also is making an impression with people in countries like Brazil and Australia, where droughts have depleted reservoirs to historic lows and tougher water regulations are in place.

Eva’s creators estimate each shower taken with the device would reduce water use by 9.5 gallons, which could translate to 3 billion gallons saved every day if everyone in the U.S. showered with Eva (presuming everyone showers daily).

In countries like Australia, houses have been overhauled to repurpose gray water, and biodegradable soaps are de rigueur. But Tayenaka wants to make Eva a simple product that is easy to install and use, a first step before people retrofit their bathrooms.

“One thing we want is to be as soft in entry as possible,” Tayenaka said. “This thing can be installed by anyone that can screw on a showerhead. It doesn’t require a plumber. It doesn’t require you to cut into the wall.”

EARLY EVA

The smart shower isn’t inventing a radically new technology. Instead, it combines existing tech into a new product by squeezing a Bluetooth device, batteries, thermometer, water valve and sensor into one sleek, compact box.

The company plans to debut the prototype at the Coneybeare Cleantech Leaders Conference on May 14 in Irvine, with a product debut slated for December. The device will be compatible with 90 percent of showerheads on the market, Tayenaka said.

“The reason why we were confident going into this project is when you look at the actual product itself, at least when I pitched it, there’s nothing new inside,” Tayenaka said. “All it is is putting all those components together.”

Eva isn’t meant to nag or pester and shouldn’t detract from the enjoyability of a hot shower, he said. Instead, it aims to promote conservation, making it a game and awarding bragging rights for users who conserve and share their short shower times on social media platforms.

Dalip Jaggi, who is heading up Eva Smart Shower’s digital presence and app creation, said Eva is about fostering a new conservation mindset.

“If you would adopt Eva in your house, sure you’re going to save water, but in the grand scheme of things it’s not going to save the world, or the drought or anything like that,” Jaggi said.

“What Eva’s about is kind of the attitude that it brings within. I think that fundamental level of saving water – starting at the shower – can make people have that attitude the rest of the day to just save water overall, to be thinking in that way.”

Is your Orange County business finding or inventing solutions to the drought? Contact the reporter at 714-796-2286 or lwilliams@ocregister.com.

Contact the writer: lwilliams@ocregister.com