# Do you drink tap water? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 9, 2002, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-drink-tap-water/141448 "2002-12-09T04:58:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![porcupine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ac91a4/32.png) [@porcupine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/porcupine)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-drink-tap-water/141448/41 "2002-12-09T18:21:15Z")
Chicago has pretty good water, but I use a Brita filter pitcher anyway. ---
**Author:** ![lurkernomore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@lurkernomore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lurkernomore)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-drink-tap-water/141448/42 "2002-12-09T19:48:55Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Eve \* > \*\*I have a freidn who tests water purity for a living, and she tells me that: > > • depending on where you live, the tap water is probably OK; in the NY area, it’s above-average. > \*\* Too broad a statement IMO. Too many water suppliers, using wells in the city (Jamica Water), upstate reservoir system (most of NYC) and aquifers (most LI). NYC water is very good. The burbs are usually worse. \*\* > [@](#): > > • those water filters you hook over your faucet are usless. “The only kind of water filter that actually works would be the size of a Volkswagen,” she says. > > \*\* ``` Doesn't that matter what you have in an exchange column? The apparatus we had in the chem research lab I could've carried myself. Now if you use paper or sand filters, maybe. ``` FTR - I have no problem with city water. I drank tap at my parents house growing up. Drink from cooler at work because it is closer than the fountain. I moved to burbs, tried that water. I have Great Bear and a cooler now. Also have more noticeable mineral deposits in toilet, etc. than my parents house. ---
**Author:** ![easy\_e](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/eb8c5e/32.png) [@easy\_e](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/easy_e)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-drink-tap-water/141448/43 "2002-12-09T20:13:54Z")
I drink tap water, whether it comes from a well of from a municipal water supply. I really am not very picky, and sometimes I like that bit of metallic taste. However, if I live with someone w/ a Brita pitcher, I drink out of that, but only because it’s a pitcher of cold water (I like to drink my water cold). ---
**Author:** ![metroshane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/aeb1de/32.png) [@metroshane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/metroshane)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-drink-tap-water/141448/44 "2002-12-09T20:42:45Z")
How much was it? Well, it was just over $4K…but we have 5 years to pay for it. So it comes out to about $72 a month. Before you flip out, do the math like we did and it really pays for itself. These are the benefits we assigned value to and in actuality we come out a head about $1.75 month. A lot of people come close to $72 a month in bottled water. -91% Less cleaning supplies…and this includes laundry, dish, body/bath, fabric softener (don’t need it), dish dry products, many more. -less lotions (almost 100% less, don’t need it with soft water) -less energy (soft water heats slightly more efficiently than hard) You don’t realize how much extra you spend to make up for hard water…and this doesn’t even address the benefits of non-clorinated water. Now add in the other benefits which we didn’t include in the cost savings… -longer pipe life, including internal and external plumbing, hot water heater, dish washer, coffee maker, etc -longer clothing life It sounds like a scam but we did the math over and over. At first the unit was almost 5K…but since it’s just me and my wife using these products (therefore not as much of a savings proportion) he lowered the price of the unit so it would come out just below even. I know I sound like a salesman, but if you’re going to give the $72 bucks to someone it might as well be the water guy than the other folks. And soft water just feels a lot better. ---
**Author:** ![yosemite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/3ab097/32.png) [@yosemite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yosemite)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-drink-tap-water/141448/45 "2002-12-09T21:09:56Z")
metroshane: sounds interesting. I’ve used a few semi “expensive” water filters (several hundred bucks) and they do _something_, that’s for sure. Because when I drink the tap water in Hooterville (and not just in one location, but at home, at work, etc) I break out. I kept on hoping that it was a fluke, or something that would pass, but nope. Give me a week with Hooterville tap water, I have a reaction. The water filters or bottled water take that away. They are doing _something._ ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-drink-tap-water/141448/46 "2002-12-09T21:22:24Z")
Did you borrow money to pay for it? Just curious. ---
**Author:** ![Celyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9dc877/32.png) [@Celyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Celyn)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-drink-tap-water/141448/47 "2002-12-09T21:29:03Z")
The tap water here in Glasgow seems fine. This is just as well, as I don’t fancy carrying gallonloads of water from the shops. I did not like the tap water in London, though it may have changed. ---
**Author:** ![metroshane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/aeb1de/32.png) [@metroshane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/metroshane)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-drink-tap-water/141448/48 "2002-12-09T21:29:39Z")
\>\>\>Did you borrow money to pay for it? Just curious. Yes, and the interest is included in the $72/month. ---
**Author:** ![Ol\_Gaffer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Ol\_Gaffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ol_Gaffer)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-drink-tap-water/141448/49 "2002-12-09T21:31:54Z")
Nothing but tap water for the Gaffers, but we’re on our own well and not on a city/county system. ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2002, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-drink-tap-water/141448/50 "2002-12-09T22:58:11Z")
Tap water, always. I wouldn’t buy bottled water unless tap water tasted really foul all the time or I knew for a fact that there was something unhealthy about it. Chicago’s water is okay. Every few years we have a summer that has fewer clouds and less rain than usual, and the extra sun leads to more algae around the water intakes in Lake Michigan. This makes the water taste skunky. I found out that if you let the water run for a bit, you get almost normal-tasting water. ---
**Author:** ![Flowerchild](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/858c86/32.png) [@Flowerchild](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flowerchild)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2002, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-drink-tap-water/141448/51 "2002-12-10T00:02:39Z")
One place that I think has heavily chlorinated tap water is Philly, that is the only place that I buy bottled water. The water Jax. was actuallu quite good ---
**Author:** ![Deadly\_Nightlight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Deadly\_Nightlight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Deadly_Nightlight)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2002, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-drink-tap-water/141448/52 "2002-12-10T01:11:38Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Judith Prietht \* > \*\*Agreed. Even if it’s freezing I still need a glass of ice-cold water to truly satisfy. I usually drink out of the bathroom tap, however; it’s colder than the kitchen water and tastes better, for some reason. Now _that_ kind of freaks people out. \*\* I do this all the time and for the same reason! bnathroom water is colder and yummier 😃 well as long as its out of the sink that is… ---
**Author:** ![Flowerchild](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/858c86/32.png) [@Flowerchild](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flowerchild)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2002, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-drink-tap-water/141448/53 "2002-12-10T02:28:57Z")
I too drink out of the bathroom sink, it is colder. ---
**Author:** ![NinetyWt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/cc9497/32.png) [@NinetyWt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NinetyWt)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2002, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-drink-tap-water/141448/54 "2002-12-10T03:05:40Z")
Tap water. and LOTS of it. 🙂 Our water here is really good. Although it’s not _quite_ as good as the water from home. I have noticed a disturbing trend of more and more suburbanites shunning the tap water. When I’m at Bunco and pour myself a glass from the tap instead of getting the bottled water the other girls arch their eyebrows at me. ---
**Author:** ![mnemosyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c4cdca/32.png) [@mnemosyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mnemosyne)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2002, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-drink-tap-water/141448/55 "2002-12-10T03:41:53Z")
I drink tap water when I’m at home (Quebec), but I find that Ontarian tap water tastes like pool water. Bleh! Hamilton in particular is pretty disgusting. We have a Brita filter, and it works great. ---
**Author:** ![tygre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c4cdca/32.png) [@tygre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tygre)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2002, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-drink-tap-water/141448/56 "2002-12-10T03:55:11Z")
I drink tap water – our water here is great, but like many of the other posters in this thread, my yuppie friends shun tap water and either buy bottled water or use filtering attachments/pitchers. Doesn’t bother me. I drink at least 2 quarts a day and if I was buying bottled water, it’d run up a heck of a bill! ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2002, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-drink-tap-water/141448/57 "2002-12-10T12:12:07Z")
If I pour a glass of tap water and drink it right down, it passable. If I let it sit for 5 minutes, it develops a downright nasty after-taste. This causes me to distrust it. I fill up 5 gallon water bottles for drinking water. Around here, it’s 20 cents a gallon for heavily filtered, good tasting water. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2002, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-drink-tap-water/141448/58 "2002-12-10T15:36:53Z")
I brush my teeth with tap water so Iguess it pretty much gets into the gums & such. I hope it’s got a nice quality report. Actually, our local water comp has to test their water & let us know how it is. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2002, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-drink-tap-water/141448/59 "2002-12-10T16:03:18Z")
Good point, Handy. What do you bottled water guys brush your teeth with? Do you have an icemaker? ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2002, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-drink-tap-water/141448/60 "2002-12-10T16:10:45Z")
Lived in and near Chicago most of my life. personally, can’t imagine what complaints anyone would have with Chicago tap water. What taste? And comes out cold - especially if you let it run a bit. Buying bottled water in Chi strikes me as God’s way of telling you you’ve got too much money! But what would I know? I don’t buy $2 cups of joe at Starbucks either. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-drink-tap-water/141448.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-drink-tap-water/141448.md?page=4)