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We do love our leisurely showers. But some entrepreneurs aim to cut water consumption while saving the experience. Enter the Quench from Australia's HydroCo. Its first cycle is a normal shower for sudsing, shampooing and rinsing that lasts two minutes. Then it starts recycling the hot, suds-free water, saving about 30 gallons for a seven-minute shower. With U.S. water averaging under $2 per 1,000 gallons, it will still take time to cover the price tag, which tops $4,000.

Other devices aren't so kind. The Eco-Drop Shower, from Italy's Tommaso Colia, consists of floor mats with concentric circles that look like ripples in a rain puddle. The circles pulsate to become uncomfortable for a person showering too long. Another prototype, from a Belgian design student, is a see-through bathtub marked like a measuring cup; the levels tell you how much drinking water you're wasting. A full tub equals 100 bottles. The question is whether the guilt defeats the stress reducing benefits of bathing in the first place.