Do Showers or Baths Waste More Water?

Some people enjoy a nice, long, relaxing bath at the end of a work day. Other people prefer the convenience of a quick shower. However, with the rising cost of living, homeowners are now considering all aspects of wastage and how they can reduce waste in the home and save as much money as possible. This includes water wastage. 

With this in mind, it’s worth considering which wastes more water – the bath or the shower. We’ll take a closer look into how much water a bath and a shower uses and what factors can affect the amount of water that is used. 

Do Showers or Baths Use More Water?

Many people believe that showers use more water than baths due to the constant flow of water. However, others believe that a bath uses more water as a takes a lot of water to fill up the tub. 

There are several things that can affect how much water is used in both cases. The size of your bathtub and the depth that you like to enjoy your bath can affect the amount of water that is used in the bath. The length of time that you shower and the flow rate of your showerhead can affect the overall amount of water that is used in the shower. 

Generally, it is thought that a 10-minute shower will use less water than a bath. A standard shower tends to use around 2.5 gallons of water per minute. An average-sized bathtub will require around 30 – 40 gallons of water. 

In general, if you shower for 10 minutes or less, you’re likely to use less water than a bath. However, if you’re showering for longer than 10 minutes, you run the risk of using more water than the bath. 

So, when it comes to the question of which wastes more water, it really depends on how you use them. If you want a more accurate estimation of which uses the most water in your home, it may be worth speaking to a local plumber. A plumber may look at your bath and shower to determine how much water is being used in each. They may also be able to provide you with some tips on how to reduce your water use in both cases. 

How to Save Water

There are many ways in which you can save on the amount of water that you’re using. Below, we’ll go over some tips on how to reduce the amount of water that you’re using when showering and bathing. 

Don’t Fill Up the Bathtub

As tempting as it is to completely submerge yourself in the bath water, you’ll be surprised at how much water you can save each year by reducing the amount of water that you put in the bath. If you’re someone who usually fills the bath to the brim, consider half filling it. Doing this will allow you to reduce your bath water usage by half, ultimately having your bath water bills. If halving the bathwater seems a little too much for you, consider reducing the bath water by a quarter. Any small amount will help. 

Choose an Economical Shower Head

A plumber will be able to help you with some advice on the best shower head for your needs. A shower head with a slower flow rate will use less water. You can also control the amount of water that exits the showerhead at once. The less water that you have coming out of your shower at one time, the less water you will use overall. 

Time Your Showers

It’s best to try to keep your shower times to 10 minutes or less. To help you stick to this, consider setting a timer or an alarm when you hop in the shower so you know when your time is up. Alternatively, queue up some tunes and keep track of how many songs have played since you’ve been in the shower. Generally speaking, you should have time for around three average-length songs. 

Share Baths

Some people don’t like the idea of sharing baths. However, you can save a lot of water and a lot of money by sharing the bath water with other people in your household. You don’t have to do this every day. However, if you can share baths sometimes, you’ll notice a big difference in the amount of water that you’re using. 

Reduce the Number of Baths and Showers

If you want to reduce the amount of water usage in your home, consider reducing the number of times you have a shower or bath. It may be worth showering and bathing every two days rather than every day. This can halve the amount of water that you’re using for washing, resulting in some significant savings.