SALT LAKE CITY — With Utah in the grips of a record-breaking drought, every drop of water counts.

A nice, warm bath might seem like a soothing way to end a hard day with a little salt, a little oil, maybe some bubbles and candles — and if you’re lucky, a ducky.

But just how much water does bathing really use?

The KSL Investigators hit a couple of hardware stores and found that most tubs for sale boast a 42-gallon capacity. And according to watercalculator.org, the average bath uses between 35 and 50 gallons of water.

Every Drop Counts: The Water Saving Benefits Of Low-Flow Shower Heads 

Compare that to taking a shower. According to the Centers for Disease Control, the average shower is eight minutes long. Most showerheads that KSL found boasted an output of 2.5 gallons per minute, so the average shower sends about 20 gallons of water down the drain.

It costs 20 gallons of water to shower versus 35 to 50 to bathe. Put it another way: you’ll save between 15 and 30 gallons every time you opt for a shower over a bath.

That’s not nothing — if you can live without the bubbles and the ducky.

On Monday, KSL TV demonstrated that installing a low-flow showerhead saves about six gallons per shower.

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If you have an idea for small ways we can save water, and you’d like KSL-TV to take an investigative look to see just how much we would save, let us know about it. (385) 707-6153 or you can email Matt@ksl.com