I’ve been doing this for about four years, but only recently measured it properly.

The concept is simple: instead of leaving the shower running, I put the shower head in a 10-litre bucket, fill it to a comfortable temperature (including the warm-up water), then turn the shower off. I use a 1-litre jug to pour the water over myself in stages.

My routine:

1 – I use a little water to dampen my hair.

2 – I shampoo, then use about 1 litre to rinse.

3 – Conditioner goes in.

4 – While that sits, I soap the rest of me.

5 – I use the remaining water for a thorough rinse from the top down.

That’s it: a 10-litre bucket bath, with most of the water saved for the final rinse.

What did I save?

I recently tested the flow rate of my eco shower head at around 9.7 L per minute.

My previous typical shower was about five minutes, or around 48.5 litres. The bucket bath uses 10 litres.

That saves about 38.5 litres each time — roughly 79%.

It quickly scales.…