Tap Water v. Bottled Water

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i drink bottled water because it tastes better btw.

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haha. Well, good for you anyway. Save yourself some money and what not with a home RO system.

Thanks for the link. I'll check this out. Regardless of the validity of these points, the importance of water to our body and health (not just water, high quality water) is unquestionable.

[Number27]

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-38689228117046242&q=[censored]+Water

Some of it must be taken with a grain of salt; but an interesting view nonetheless.

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Nice post John. One point I'll add to your Distilliation > RO is that not all RO systems are created equally. The same goes with the waste water. There are systems that have only a 1:1 waste ratio. Also, another concern is that RO systems store their water in a plastic bladder in a holding tank. I like the idea that many manufacters have of putting a 0.5 micron carbon block filter after the holding tank as the water goes to the faucet.

[hmkpoker]

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A lot of bottled water is simply purified (R/O, distilled, etc) tap water.

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Some is, some isn't.

While I'm not a big bottled water drinker, I've done litmus tests on my tap vs. poland spring water, and there was a definate difference in the pH.

[CORed]

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An interesting question arose from a post in Politics even though what started as a joke, quickly degenerated into an AC cluster [censored].

The issue is -- Considering environmental impact, health and well-being, cost and enjoyment, what is better: tap water (filtered if you like) or bottled water, such as Poland Springs, Evian, etc.

Pros and Cons

Bottled water wastes an incredible amount of resources in its packaging.

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Some truth to this.
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Bottled water's packaging is harmful to the environment, as non-recylced plastics take very long to degrade.


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So recycle the bottles. Most recyclers take PET bottles.
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Bottled water takes a resource that is for everyone and turns it into a commodity that not everyone can afford.


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So what? If you can't afford bottled, use tap.
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Bottled water is expensive. Why buy the cow when you can get the milk for free?


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Agreed.
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Most tap water has less bacteria and other contaminates.


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Evidence?
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Bottled water tastes better (to those who buy it presumably).


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Not that I've noticed.
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You look cooler in a restaurant drinking bottled water as opposed to tap.


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Yeah, right.
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Bottled water is often more convenient (for carrying around, etc.).


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Buy 1 bottle of water, refill with tap water as needed.
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The difference in cost, for a single person, maybe a couple of hundred a year, is minimal.


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But still not worth it, IMO.
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My building may have rusty pipes or other contaminates.


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A little rust won't hurt you. Lead, OTOH ...
A filter will take care of rust. I'm not sure about lead.
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The debate made me seriously question for the first time my purchasing of bottled water. (I live in NYC, btw).

Any insights from the Lounge?

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The tap water where I live (Denver) is good enough that I hardly ever buy bottled. It can get a little chlorine taste sometimes, but that really doesn't bother me much. If I lived somewhere where the city water tasted bad, I might buy bottled or filter it. If I want really good tasting water, I go high in the mountains and find some coming right out of a spring or a snowfield.

[QTip]

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A lot of bottled water is simply purified (R/O, distilled, etc) tap water.

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Some is, some isn't.

While I'm not a big bottled water drinker, I've done litmus tests on my tap vs. poland spring water, and there was a definate difference in the pH.

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H2o that is free of contaminants (as in anything that is not h20) always has a pH lower than 7

[PokerAce]

These days I drink nothing but water. In fact, the last time I had anything non-water to drink was almost a month ago. That's besides the point. I always drink bottled water. To me, there is a definite quality difference between bottled water and tap water. Even with a Pur water filter, my tap water doesn't taste nearly as good as bottled water.

The best bottled water I've tasted is the Fiji water. It's expensive, but wow is it ever good.

[nikeelevet]

if you guys ever get bored of always water, green tea is pretty good too

[bosoxfan]

My tap water smells like chlorine so I drink bottled water.

[Suigin406]

just get a brita so u can filter ur tap water...that way it's almost as good as bottled water at a fraction of the price...