Sharing bath water

Grim IMO. And vile. 😆

wtf?? How is this even a question in this day and age, it’s revolting!! Sharing dead skin cells, fecal matter, pubes, hairs, with someone?? Fuck me how do you even need to ask? 🤮

It was normal when I grew up. Lots of mates had to share bath water, dh too, my mum would go in first and then make someone else use the water so as not to waste it, it would take ages to refill the hot water tank and because adults were more important, I was never allowed to have my own fresh bathwater, sometimes it would be Mam, then stepdad and then me and I’d be punished if I complained or said I felt dirty. Before I was old enough to wash myself I had to share water with my brother and I hated that too.

Even though I don’t think others are grim for doing it, I just can’t get in someone else’s bathwater, the memories of having to fish out my mum or stepdads pubes and skim off their soap scum still makes me feel like puking.

I'd have to have a shower afterwards if I did that- would feel dirty!

Do you take it in turns to have the first bath?!

My mum would have grown up in a household where a bath was a metal one filled up with water heated on the stove (she remembered moving to a house with a proper bath and indoor toilet in her childhood) Our childhood home (1980s) had hot water from an immersion heater, so you could 'run out' of hot water, and I remember there was a lot of stress about 'putting the immersion on', I assume it was expensive, or felt expensive (single parent low income household)

Not worrying about hot water or heating is definitely a luxury I appreciate as an adult and don't take for granted.

Reminds me of Neil from The Young Ones taking a bath.

https://youtube.com/shorts/QmQkeNguULA?si=GoGABPIDxE5eg4TY

Im having a bath now, DH often asks me to save the water. (I dont if ive washed my hair)
I like boiling hot baths, DH likes luke warm baths so it works for us, I know MN have a contingent who thinks baths are grim/gross/vile though

This must be a cultural thing. I’m from Canada and have never heard, except maybe 50 years ago, of people sharing bath water.
Maybe it’s because where I live we have personal wells and you can’t run out of water? Even when I lived in the city and paid for water this would never cross my mind to do. Is it the heating cost? I really can’t understand why anyone would do this and find it pretty gross (and I love baths! Just with clean water!)

Urgh, not for me thanks,
I love a long soak in the bath and then get out for a shower to rinse off,
Fortunately I’m the only one in my house who likes a bath, everyone else just showers so not something we are likely to even ponder.
My mum has a bath, shaves her legs and then my stepdad gets in; just thinking about it makes my stomach churn!

This is one of those things I could never be objective about as an adult after being expected to share the bathwater after my mum and then after my brother. My mum used to smoke in the bath too 😖
I'd rather go without dinner than have to make savings on bathwater!

We bathe and shower a lot and I will happily get in the bath after DH, or he will get in after me. DDs have the water excruciatingly hot. They use shower gel, so there's no grey soapiness and they've usually nicked my expensive bath oils. There's no way all that hot water and product is going down the drain after only one use.

Its not at all grim! Its not like someone's shat in the bath before you! Yes I pop in the bath for 5 mins and DS has it after. First user doesn't wash hair, shave etc. Its totally fine and an efficient use of water.

Better. I like ‘grotty’ best I think! Or ‘rank’! Though I do share bath water with my husband so I think it’s neither!

Grim.

I often get in after one of my kids if the water’s still warm. I don’t put my head in though, more of a Sitz bath to freshen up in the evening. I don’t get why so many people are repulsed by it.

Grim. It’s how it was when I was growing up though.

Same here. I only shower, in any case.

I go in after partner. He showers every morning anyway so is never that unclean. With the cost of water, gas etc there's no way we'd have one each.

Can't even think about this topic without being reminded of the Young Ones' rather too eco-friendly approach to sharing bathwater: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/QmQkeNguULA

Tinky minky?

We were made to share bath water growing up. It was awful, especially if you were the third or fourth person in it.

I usually have showers most of the time, and would encourage my children to do the same, once they were old enough- and capable- of using it on their own.

My husband gets into my bath after me pretty much every evening. I run a very deep, very hot bath - seems wasteful to let it out and it’s not like I’m dirty, I’ll already have had at least one shower in the day.

Gosh you must have a monstrous water bill!

We had to do this as kids in the 60s…I hated it then, and would find it utterly grim now, as an adult 🤢

Saying that…it must be over 20 years since I had a bath, so it isn’t something that would likely happen (thank fuck!)