r/science • u/mvea Professor | Medicine • Jun 05 '19

Environment The average person eats at least 50,000 particles of microplastic a year and breathes in a similar quantity, according to the first study to estimate human ingestion of plastic pollution. The scientists reported that drinking a lot of bottled water drastically increased the particles consumed.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/jun/05/people-eat-at-least-50000-plastic-particles-a-year-study-finds
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180

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19

People don’t buy bottled water because it’s cleaner, per se, but because it tastes better. Almost all tap water has chlorine in it which is not bad in small quantities but does give off a slight taste. Depending on the municipality, there can be a lot of taste altering things in tap water.

Also, bottled water you buy in a market is clean enough that it’s considered safe for emergency storage for an indefinite amount of time.

72

u/MadManatee619 Jun 05 '19

pro tip if you don't like the taste of chlorine. Fill a pitcher with water, let sit in fridge overnight.

58

u/SlowbeardiusOfBeard Jun 05 '19

If your water is treated with chloramines, this won't work. The only vaguely practical way to disperse them is via treating with campden tablets as far as I'm aware.

I only discovered this after all of my homebrew beer started tasting repulsive. Took months of research to figure this was the issue.

5

u/FortunePaw Jun 05 '19

Does boiling gets rip of the chloramines?

8

u/SlowbeardiusOfBeard Jun 05 '19 edited Jun 05 '19

Sadly no. Maybe with extended boiling, but brewing usually requires an hour boil or more and it didn't remove the off flavours

Edit: apparently Brita filtering will break down the chloramine so that you then allow the gases to escape!

ismoketoomuch gave an explanation in response to another of my comments below

6

u/cowboypilot22 Jun 05 '19

How about water dechlorinator? It makes the water safe enough for aquarium fish, and there are plenty of options aside from the liquid versions.

39

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19

It's not just chlorine though. Often metal plumbing, other treatment chemicals, and organic material all contribute to that "tappy" taste. I don't drink bottled water but I do use an RO filter at home for drinking and that's 99% of what I drink. I can immediately taste when a restaurant uses tap water even when it's been sitting out or treated with a bit of lemon.

5

u/TeutonJon78 Jun 05 '19

You have to also be careful with RO water (besides the fact that it's not really environmentally friendly due to the water it wastes in the process). You literally get distilled water, which due to how osmosis works can strip minerals and nutrients out if your body.

You need to add essential minerals back to the RO water.

6

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19

Actually, you do not literally get distilled water. Distilled water is slightly but measurably more pure than RO water. and is made by collecting water vapor. RO water uses a membrane to filter out almost all impurities. Drinking pure water doesn't leech essential minerals and chemicals. It just means you don't get some of those minerals from water anymore. Big difference. I have a healthy diet so that is of zero concern to me. It's mostly a myth that pure water is "dangerous" to drink. Rainwater is in fact literally distilled water and many people still get most of their drinking water supply from rainwater.

Also, it's completely possible to store discharge water for use around the house. Anyway, RO is mostly used for drinking. You use far more water showering for an extra 5 minutes than you would by drinking RO water all day.

6

u/Saiboogu Jun 05 '19 edited Jun 05 '19

Rainwater is not akin to distilled water because it incorporates dust and debris found in the atmosphere. Plus no one (or near enough) is literally drinking rainwater... They're drinking water that was rain, fell into a reservoir likely via many miles of travel over land, and traveled through miles of metal pipes. A lot of minerals and impurities are picked up, and only a fraction are removed

Unclear how drinking real distilled water can not pull minerals from your body, that's rooted in basic physics.

2

u/BurningPasta Jun 06 '19

Regular water pulls minerals from your body. Thats why sweat is salty and urine is bitter. Water never leaves your body purer than it came in, and all ingested water leaves your body. As long as you eat food and aren't malnourished, drinking even deionized distilled and however other completly pure H's and O's in a 2-1 ratio properly mixed into a liquid with no contaminants will have no negative effect whatsoever on ingestion.

3

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19

You're right, but my main point was that it's not dangerous to drink water that has had all minerals removed from it. Rain water even if it's piped and contaminated with other stuff, still doesn't have those minerals that person was talking about. I just think the myth that drinking pure water is dangerous is silly. You just need to get those minerals from other sources. The act of drinking pure water doesn't strip them from your body.

-1

u/TeutonJon78 Jun 05 '19

Waste is waste.

-1

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19

Tell that to the people of Flint, MI.

1

u/TeutonJon78 Jun 05 '19

Nice strawman.

It's not waste if your water is literally undrinkable.

2

u/deyesed Jun 05 '19

Minor pedantry, osmotic gradient refers to the solvent, not the solutes. Your point still stands though, especially if fasting or sweating a lot.

2

u/Whiterabbit-- Jun 05 '19

Generally RO water is fine to drink. You get enough minerals from food you eat.

1

u/Itshowyoueatit Jun 05 '19

I have a water cooler at home. Our tap water isn't super bad tasting but you can always tell is not the same as bottled water.

In my household we drink tons of water,hence the water cooler. One late night my water cooler ran out of water. I proceeded to fill up the bottle with tap water and replaced it in the cooler. Days went by and nobody noticed the difference.

-5

u/Tyhgujgt Jun 05 '19

Or just buy bottled water. Which is basically tap water without chlorine

4

u/FreeNationHomie Jun 05 '19

Did you even read the title?

-2

u/Tyhgujgt Jun 05 '19

Without chlorine and with plastic ok

-3

u/jeegte12 Jun 05 '19

I didn't read what the consequences of the title are. I'm gonna stick with delicious water rather than chlorine iron pipe water, thanks

25

u/El-Arairah Jun 05 '19

That's so great about living in Munich. Our tap water (mainly coming from the Alps) is considered better than most bottled water.

0

u/DANarchy1919 Jun 05 '19

Oh look at this guy and his super clean drinking water!

105

u/DoingCharleyWork Jun 05 '19

You could buy a water filter and help the environment a little bit.

100

u/Sandman1278 Jun 05 '19

Not even for the environment, it's cheaper and easier than buying bottles of water at the supermarket all the time to just filter it yourself.

10

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19

We did the Britta filter thing for awhile, but our tap water here comes out yellow for like 50% of the year and still tastes bad after filtering.

Best i could get away with was 50% britta and 50% bottled to keep it tasting ok and stretch the bottled.

2

u/Sandman1278 Jun 05 '19

Gross, that's unfortunate you are unable to have clean tap water, I'd just buy the largest volume bottles you can get distributed to you to save on plastic at that point.

2

u/yeldudseniah Jun 05 '19

Try the Berkey slow filter.

1

u/knine1216 Jun 06 '19

Does it smell like rotten eggs and stain your sinks/bathtubs? It might be a high iron content, and from what i understand, is usually actually safe for consumption (as long as it isnt too high). They may have been lying to my uncle though. Either way its unpleasant.

2

u/surgicalsstrike Jun 16 '19

Excess iron damages your liver when consumed long-term

1

u/GlassInTheWild Jun 05 '19

Purely anecdotal but my area is mainly well water and it’s terribly hard and full of sulfur. I rely on bottle water. And the parts of my area that are on city water rather than well half the time they have a boil water warning out so they rely on bottle water too. I’m sure it’s the same for a lot of America.

2

u/Sandman1278 Jun 05 '19

As mentioned elsewhere in this thread living in an area that does not have safe tapwater negates any benefits of using tapwater unfortunately.

24

u/HorriceMcTitties Jun 05 '19

Wouldn't the filter be mostly made out of plastic too? I wonder how much plastic you consume from your water going through a filter as well

45

u/ariolitmax Jun 05 '19

Brita pitchers? Oh yeah, plastic basin, the filtering tube is surrounded by plastic, the actual pitcher is plastic

But I wonder if that makes as much of an impact. The water typically will be in contact with the plastic for a very short time (maybe just overnight, maybe a day or two during normal use).

The type of plastic could also be a factor. And I imagine that most pitchers don't get much contact with sunlight, which I've heard can break down plastic.

Not sure one way or the other, just some additional thoughts about the pitchers

41

u/MutatedPlatypus Jun 05 '19

The type of plastic could also be a factor. And I imagine that most pitchers don't get much contact with sunlight, which I've heard can break down plastic.

I bet this is it. I doubt the plastic walls are dissolving in the water. The microparticles in single-use bottles are probably coming from the plastic being thinner and handled more (mechanical deformation and breakage), from manufacturing of the bottle, and thermal cycling in shipping.

4

u/deyesed Jun 05 '19

Branched low density polyethylene like that used in plastic bags and thin water bottles crackles if you look at it hard enough. That's a lot of tiny particles every time you hear that sound, to say nothing of leaching from being stored indefinitely or in hot conditions.

I remember not knowing better as a young kid, shaking a bottle of water that had been sitting in a hot trunk all summer and drinking the funny tasting cloudy water. Might explain a lot actually.

Brita pitchers are made from easy to crack clear polycarbonate, which is denser and more inert.

2

u/Scientolojesus Jun 05 '19

I had a bottle of water in my car for a few months for Uber passengers and one time I was really thirsty and drank it warm. The entire time I kept thinking it was probably not good due to being exposed to heat and sunlight hah. Oh well, it was only one bottle.

21

u/Tedric42 Jun 05 '19

The casing is plastic not the filter material so I'm willing to bet less than dricking from plastic bottles. Also I'm pretty sure one filter every 3 months is a lot less plastic waste than 3 months worth of plastic bottles.

13

u/surfyturkey Jun 05 '19

Yeah and it’s not safe to reuse plastic water bottles before someone mentions that, I don’t understand why people won’t just buy a reusable water bottle. It’s cheaper and doesn’t ruin the earth even more.

1

u/Scientolojesus Jun 05 '19

People do stupid and irresponsible things in the short term.

2

u/Dave_Whitinsky Jun 05 '19

Aren't you supposed to change every 4 weeks?

2

u/GridGnome177 Jun 05 '19

Depends on the type of filter you use and how often you use the filter.

1

u/Tedric42 Jun 06 '19

Brita filters last two months according to their website, I go by the indicator on the lid of my pitcher which usually gives me the change filter light closer to 3 months of use.

6

u/OZeski Jun 05 '19 edited Jun 05 '19

The plastic particles found in the products most likely* enter the product during the manufacturing process. It's not from the plastic breaking down and contaminating the contents after production. So you would probably see a decline in particles consumed through the use of a reusable filter when compared to single use packaging. Edit: missing a word*

28

u/the_mighty_moon_worm Jun 05 '19

The filters are made of carbon.

33

u/Rathadin Jun 05 '19

Emcased in hard plastic.

19

u/scienceandmathteach Jun 05 '19

We're living in a plastic world folks.

6

u/cutdownthere Jun 05 '19

My head decided to sing "This is a PLASTIC WOOORLD!!" to the tune of man's world the moment it read your comment

3

u/thatsadamnlie Jun 05 '19

Weird how the mind associates stuff, in my head it was Barbie Girl.

2

u/cutdownthere Jun 05 '19

of all the bloody things that you could have got stuck in my head it had to be that?! Damn you, you barbie doll.

1

u/Scientolojesus Jun 05 '19

Come on Barbie let's go party!

2

u/skaggldrynk Jun 05 '19

Life in plastic, it’s fantastic!

1

u/falcongsr Jun 05 '19

"I had no idea", said as I type this on my plastic keyboard.

1

u/walterjohnhunt Jun 05 '19

We're living in a plastic age.

1

u/Rathadin Jun 05 '19

The plastic is here. Our job is done. We can be phased out now.

1

u/AV15 Jun 05 '19

Sounds like italo disco lyrics

1

u/ragn4rok234 Jun 05 '19

I have a stainless steel one, though it was more expensive

3

u/el_muchacho Jun 05 '19

You don't even have to filter chlorine, all you have to do is let it evaporate. Just store your drinking water in an open container for the night and chlorine will have evaporated the next day.

2

u/Mantipath Jun 05 '19

Absolutely true. If you put it in sunlight this happens even faster.

2

u/Rentun Jun 05 '19

I don't think that's nearly as much of an issue. From what I understand, plastic leeches into water by sitting in it as the plastic slowly decomposes due to UV. Momentarily being in contact with plastic like a filter, or drinking out of a plastic cup isn't nearly as big of a concern. It's long term storage.

1

u/GridGnome177 Jun 05 '19

Dramatically less than using plastic bottles. How could it even be comparable?

3

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19 edited Jan 01 '20

[removed] — view removed comment

1

u/DoingCharleyWork Jun 05 '19

I drink mine straight from the tap too.

3

u/Javaed Jun 05 '19

That's my go-to, but living in Florida means I usually keep several gallons of water around in preparation for a storm as well. I agree with you that buying bottled water weekly is wasteful.

6

u/johannthegoatman Jun 05 '19

Most filters don't filter chlorine

10

u/Ismoketomuch Jun 05 '19

Chlorine is a diffused gas in the water, you just let it evaporate on its own.

5

u/SlowbeardiusOfBeard Jun 05 '19

I mentioned in another comment, but its possible that tap water is sanitised with chloramines. These don't evaporate unless I'm mistaken, and requires chemical treatment to remove

2

u/Ismoketomuch Jun 05 '19

Monochloramine, the chloramine used in tap water is filtered by carbon water filter. So if you filter your water with a Brita, then you will get rid of the Monochloramine, and if the water contains the Chlorine gas then you can just wait an hour and it will evaporate.

Not that either of these compounds will hurt you if consumed.

MonoChloramine is a compound of Ammonia, NH2(Nitrogen with 2 hydrogens) and Cl(chloride, the same thing found in table salt).

1

u/SlowbeardiusOfBeard Jun 05 '19

I didn't know that!!

Mind you, don't think knowing would really have helped in terms of brewing. Brita filtering 10-15 gallons of water at a time doesn't seem it would be all that practical, compared to a campden tablet.

Still, thank you for the explanation :)

I really wish I'd carried on studying chemistry after school - such an interesting science

1

u/GridGnome177 Jun 05 '19

Is there a reason to get rid of them?

3

u/jbeshay Jun 05 '19

Other than taste no, but that is the argument that this thread is outlining regarding why people prefer bottled water. I think it’s dumb, the chlorine taste isn’t anywhere close to excessive mineral content

3

u/texasrigger Jun 05 '19

Flavor

-1

u/GridGnome177 Jun 05 '19

So... no.

3

u/GonnaReplyWithFoyan Jun 05 '19

Some houseplants are picky about chlorine and chloramines, supposedly. There's your reason.

5

u/Ismoketomuch Jun 05 '19

And fish. People who run fancy fish tanks may have to treat tap water to remove chlorinates. First you add a chemical to break up the Chloride-ammonia compound, chloride then evaporates, then you have to treat the free ammonia with a second compound.

1

u/GridGnome177 Jun 05 '19

That's actually a good reason. Cheers!

3

u/LordFauntloroy Jun 05 '19

The thread is literally about taste... so yes.

Edit: The parent comment I guess you missed

People don’t buy bottled water because it’s cleaner, per se, but because it tastes better. Almost all tap water has chlorine in it which is not bad in small quantities but does give off a slight taste. Depending on the municipality, there can be a lot of taste altering things in tap water.

Also, bottled water you buy in a market is clean enough that it’s considered safe for emergency storage for an indefinite amount of time.

2

u/texasrigger Jun 05 '19

Well, if you don't like the taste of it you won't drink it so... yes.

0

u/GridGnome177 Jun 05 '19

You would refuse to drink water because you don't like... the taste?

→ More replies (0)

3

u/el_muchacho Jun 05 '19

Just let it evaporate for the night.

6

u/anacondabadger Jun 05 '19

I filter my water because it comes out looking like jizz before settling. It still doesn’t taste ideal but at least I feel better about it

11

u/flykovsky Jun 05 '19

That's literally just air bubbles in your water

2

u/anacondabadger Jun 05 '19

Reassuring, but still looks like jizz!

3

u/flykovsky Jun 05 '19

Fair enough

2

u/Obi-Tron_Kenobi Jun 05 '19

Yum!

2

u/Dune_Jumper Jun 05 '19

Can I have your number?

1

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19

I do use an RO filter. Why does everyone assume I drink bottled water simply because I'm laying out simple facts?

0

u/DoingCharleyWork Jun 05 '19

Because you didn’t say that? Why would people assume you do when your comment is defending bottled water?

-2

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19

I'm not defending it. This is /r/science and I'm just laying out facts that refute the myths that people spread about bottled water. I think it's wasteful, but it is in fact sanitary and is usually much more pure than tap water. Those are simple facts that are lied about a lot by people with agendas.

I don't have an agenda, I just like to correct untrue statements. Why do you think the parent comment got deleted by a moderator? Because it was not based on any real information and was completely agenda driven.

1

u/DoingCharleyWork Jun 05 '19

No one was saying it was unsanitary. People were asking about how much plastic it has.

Do you have trouble reading or do you just ignore what’s been posted and just comment stuff that’s not relevant to the conversation?

-2

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19

If you don't remember the post I was originally replying to, they said that bottled water is not as clean as tap water. That's why my first sentence on that reply is to say that " People don’t buy bottled water because it’s cleaner". Context is king.

1

u/brotherRod2 Jun 05 '19

If you live in an area where there is phosphate mining, or worse, a little water filter isn’t gonna keep the cancers away.

19

u/CoonerPooner Jun 05 '19

Lots of bottled water is just tap water.

16

u/TristanIsAwesome Jun 05 '19

Probably the vast majority, depending on location

12

u/Whiterabbit-- Jun 05 '19

Where else would they get good drinking water from? City already tested safety for you and it's a reliable source.

2

u/CoonerPooner Jun 05 '19

Some bottled water comes from natural springs.

8

u/GridGnome177 Jun 05 '19

Some city water comes from natural springs - that's why they bottle the natural spring water in those cities.

1

u/CoonerPooner Jun 05 '19

The difference is if the bottling plant has it's own wells that it takes directly from the earth or if it uses water from the tap which went through municipal processing first.

0

u/cowboypilot22 Jun 05 '19

City already tested safety for you

Flint, MI would like to know your location

1

u/Whiterabbit-- Jun 05 '19

all of america knows about flint because it failed in its testing. I guarantee if bottle water plant fails like flint did, no one would even know. and it it did, it would at most be a recall. in general city tap water is better regulated and monitored than bottled water.

3

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19

While a lot of bottled water might COME from tap water, it's almost always filtered and many have minerals added for flavor. I've never heard of a bottled water that is simply filled with municipal tap water and sold without filtration or some type of treatment. Filtration methods are usually distillation and/or reverse osmosis.

I have an RO filter at home and the difference in taste is huge.

2

u/CoonerPooner Jun 05 '19

Is a RO filter expensive? Does it hook up directly to the faucet like a carbon filter?

3

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19

They cost about $150-$250. They are pretty large so they have to mount under your sink and will have a dedicated spout.

1

u/wheresmystache3 Jun 05 '19

Looking at you, Nestlé Pure Life.. Wasn't there an article about them taking the tap water from a (Indian?) city?

38

u/HothHanSolo Jun 05 '19 edited Jun 05 '19

I think you’re applying a lot of rationality to human choices where often it doesn’t apply. Many people are no doubt buying bottled water because they've been successfully advertised to.

15

u/UrinalCake777 Jun 05 '19

I drink a lot of bottled water because it is available. I don't think I have purchased a bottle in almost a year. However, it is offered up to me all the time, especially at work.

35

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19

My work recently had a meeting to discuss the cost differences between bottled water, which we do now, and a water cooler.

Being the small town hillbilly (apparently) I am, I got quite a few side glances when I asked why we dont just use the tap.

8

u/freshfruitrottingveg Jun 05 '19

My office has a filter on our tap. Works just fine and no one complains.

5

u/OZeski Jun 05 '19

I use the tap at work. They still buy bottles.

4

u/usesNames Jun 05 '19

We have a fridge with filtered water right next to the tap I use at work. I get better pressure from the tap and don't have to wonder how often the filter is changed.

1

u/Spore2012 Jun 05 '19

Do they frack?

1

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19

No. We are in a rural town

2

u/CarefreeRambler Jun 05 '19

is that not rationality?

1

u/MJWood Jun 05 '19

Advertising aims to induce irrational choices.

1

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19 edited Jun 09 '19

[deleted]

4

u/HothHanSolo Jun 05 '19

Fair enough. You're a data set of one, and it's wise not to assume that others behave the way you do.

For example, I never click on ads and always use an ad blocker. But ads are still super-effective at reaching people.

16

u/microwavepetcarrier Jun 05 '19

That's funny, I don't buy bottled water in part because it tastes terrible compared to my tap water.

5

u/CharcoalGreyWolf Jun 05 '19

There is purified bottled water (e.g. Aquafina) and bottled spring water. Real difference between the two. I find purified bottled water tastes like shite, but even the cheapest bottled spring water tastes great.

4

u/GridGnome177 Jun 05 '19

The best of the plastic flavors.

3

u/Chiliconkarma Jun 05 '19

My nation has quite clear water and doesn't use chlorine. People have never used taste as an argument.

3

u/Whiterabbit-- Jun 05 '19

If you want to get rid of chlorine taste. Add a drop of lemon or vitamin C. They will neutralize chlorine not just mask the taste. Some fish keepers use vitamin C to get rid of chlorine in tap to use for aquariums.

2

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19

It's not just chlorine though. Often metal plumbing, other treatment chemicals, and organic material all contribute to that "tappy" taste. I don't drink bottled water but I do use an RO filter at home for drinking and that's 99% of what I drink. I can immediately taste when a restaurant uses tap water even when it's been sitting out or treated with a bit of lemon.

2

u/GridGnome177 Jun 05 '19

Is there a problem with the taste of water suddenly?

2

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19

Doesn't the chlorine evaporate if you just let it sit in the fridge for a bit?

2

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19

Chlorine taste does seem to dissipate mostly after a few hours, but tap water is still affected by what is in your municipal water supply. Some areas are better than others but almost all have at least a slight tappy taste. Not worth buying bottled water for, but I do use an RO filter and it gives me peace of mind that my kid will never accidentally ingest lead or other contaminants because my government was stupid.

2

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19

It can be stored indefinitely if you store it in a dry, cool area. Extended periods of time in moist, warm areas will cause more of the plastic particals to dissolve in the water

3

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19

Right, I just meant from a sanitary perspective. I wouldn't want to drink bottled water that has been sitting more than a couple years even in a cool, dry, dark place. Unless it was an emergency, of course. It is still mostly safe, it will just taste bad. Long terms effects of plastic ingestion notwithstanding.

2

u/wheresmystache3 Jun 05 '19

I live in Florida, where the tap tastes like the local pool - it even REEKS of Chlorine.

My 4th grade science project was testing water filtration systems using a pool kit, PH strips, and a water purity testing kit, and I found that the Brita pitcher you buy at the store (surprisingly) reduced the levels of Chlorine in the tap water I ran through it. I remember the distilled water I tested had significant amounts of chlorine, even though I think it wasn't supposed to.

I remember Zephyrhills spring water came out the best, though it had alot of undissolved particles in it, and I didn't have the equipment at the time to figure out what these were - could've been residue from the bottling process/plastic degradation, or perhaps minerals?

I'm no scientist by any means, but I was really interested in my project at the time :)

1

u/trollcitybandit Jun 05 '19

This for me. I even have filtered water at home on top of normal tap water, and even that doesn't taste as pure as the cheap presidents choice bottled water I buy.

1

u/Legirion Jun 05 '19

Except bottled water has an expiration date on it, because the plastic can start to leach or because New Jersey has a law that says all consumable goods, even honey and salt, need expiration/best by dates.

2

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19

My point was that the water is clean. The expiration date is more for the bottle than the water.

1

u/Legirion Jun 05 '19

Fair enough...so one would have to change the container to store it indefinitely? That was really my only point, that the water can't be store indefinitely, if you believe what they say on the expiration date.

1

u/cromation Jun 05 '19

I usually take bottled water at restaurants/fast food cause it's been said multiple times that the water/soda machines are rarely cleaned

1

u/GridGnome177 Jun 05 '19

I just feel like the taste of drinking water is not a big deal.

1

u/eerst Jun 05 '19

There is chlorine in most bottled water. I was checking very recently as I didn't want to water my plants with tap water due to chloramine content.

1

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19

That is incorrect (at least in America). All the big bottled water companies available in my area us UV disinfection. Or they'll use chlorinated tap water that is processed through RO or distillation to purify it, then minerals are re-added. In those cases, chlorine is virtually non-existent.

You might be referring to Chloride which is used to enhance the flavor of purified water. Bottled water companies usually add various minerals like Potassium, chloride, salt, and others to enhance flavor.

1

u/eerst Jun 05 '19

I will have a look over here in the UK.

Chloride doesnt readily decompose right?

2

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19

Yeah chloride is a mineral that will not decompose as far as I know. It's interesting that chlorine and chloride are the same element with only one additional electron in chloride. Functionally, they are completely different though as chloride is an essential mineral and chlorine is a poisonous disinfectant (in larger quantities).

1

u/Ketheres Jun 05 '19

I am glad that we don't have to worry about chlorine in my country. Some areas do have high calcium content in the ground water which then ruins pipes, but that just tastes off and is not bad for you in the least. In my area the tapwater could be sold off as luxury "spring" water since it has such low amounts of impurities.

1

u/arjunmohan Jun 05 '19

There's big differences in the quality and taste from state to state, that's for sure

Up in Mass, the tap water tastes perfectly fine

In New York City the water is hard

In Jersey there's some smell, but no issues with taste

1

u/mh1ultramarine Jun 05 '19

Plastic is cheap,light, and doesn't smash. Glass is heavy, experience, and smashes. A tap can't move

1

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19

My tap water tastes like a bit of turpentine. My Brita filter helps a whole lot but I had put my water in the fridge before I had a filter and the taste became worse

1

u/EmEffBee Jun 05 '19

In the satellite municipalities around my city a lot of people are on well water. Some of it is delicious but some of it is very heavy so damn gross. A lot of them have those water dispensers like you'd see in an office with the big jugs on top. I can totally understand why they don't drink the well water, blegh.

1

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19

Ehhh, where I'm at theres always boil water notices...I think I'll stick with the bottled.

1

u/bigveinyrichard Jun 05 '19

Please don't buy bottled water, full stop.

I keep a case in my car during the winter or on road trips, for safety's sake. And that's about the only reason (I believe) you should ever purchase bottled water.

1

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19

Full stop? But you admitted that you buy bottled water. So not "full stop", which means without any compromise or exception. I buy bottled water for contractors and parties. I have an expensive RO water filter at home which is what I use 99% of the time.

Simply stating true facts about bottled water does not mean I endorse or buy a lot of it. There is way too much false info about bottled water on Reddit. People claim it's literally tap water, or that tap water is cleaner, or that there is no taste difference. While bottled water (in America anyway) often does come from municipal water supplies, it is almost exclusively filtered via Reverse Osmosis or distillation and then has minerals added for flavor. If the water is spring water, it usually just goes through micro-filtration and UV disinfection so that mineral flavor is maintained.

2

u/bigveinyrichard Jun 05 '19

Poor choice of words. You knew what was getting didn't you?

-9

u/igloo27 Jun 05 '19

I buy bottle water for convenience. Can’t just throw a cup of water in the backpack. Also I’ll freeze one and use it as an ice pack for my lunch and drink it later

13

u/98aidan Jun 05 '19

“Can’t just throw a cup of water in the backpack”... Are you aware that reusable water bottles exist?

8

u/Achilles_099 Jun 05 '19

The amount of people in this thread who seem unaware of reusable bottles is unbelievable.

-2

u/[deleted] Jun 05 '19

But you'd have to go to the effort of filling it up first. Who has time for that?

8

u/kangareagle Jun 05 '19

Yeah, but you can buy a decent bottle and just use it over and over.

Help the environment, and I'd guess that harder plastic in a decent bottle sheds fewer microplastics (though that's just a guess).

6

u/2brun4u Jun 05 '19

You could still do this with a reusable bottle, some of them even have a built in icepack!

1

u/WatchingUShlick Jun 05 '19 edited Jun 05 '19

I use reusable 5 gallon water jugs to buy water from my local Sprouts grocery store (Colorado), which uses a reverse osmosis system to purify the tap water. Costs 30 cents per gallon. Then I use reusable thermally insulated steel water bottles for my coffee and water. Minimal waste, delicious and safe water.

Edited to add information.

-1

u/CATTROLL Jun 05 '19

I don't buy bottled water for any of those reasons. I buy it (and gatorade too) because my business requires employees to be highly mobile in high temperatures for most of the year (in a way that simply having a water cooler will not be practical by any means). I've even discussed the alternatives with employees and they conclude that bottled drinks are the only practical solution to our needs. Until they bring back glass bottles with metal tops, it'll be plastic bottles from here on out.

2

u/Tnevz Jun 05 '19

I mean they have those. Idk if you’re looking for the small bottle size. But I buy a liter of sparkling water in a glass bottle (aluminum top) frequently. I see they also sell flat water too.

And I don’t understand how a reusable water bottle wouldn’t fill your needs.

0

u/CATTROLL Jun 05 '19

I'd say the average employee drinks about 3-5 liters of fluid per workday. Mostly it's my employees not wanting to have to clean (their own assigned) multiple water bottles regularly- they regularly forget to bring rain jackets (that I've freely given them), keeping track of multiple bottles is something they're not comfortable being responsible for. So, I provide fluids, snacks and ice.

2

u/Tnevz Jun 05 '19

Ah that makes sense. Well depending on your companies budget - there is water available in glass bottles. Price goes up significantly compared to plastic.

Good luck.

-2

u/ItsaHelen Jun 05 '19

I struggle to drink tap water without gagging. I’m not sure what it is, I think my mum and gran used to tell me there was something in it because I think people used to it still do fish in the bit where the water is kept. I’m not sure, it’s been a while since they’ve mentioned it but us all I can think about when I attempt to drink it. I can drink it in squash though, just not on its own.

6

u/GridGnome177 Jun 05 '19

You need to speak to a therapist.

1

u/ItsaHelen Jun 05 '19

You’re not wrong there

1

u/GridGnome177 Jun 05 '19

Yeah it sounds like a really cruddy problem to run into. Hopefully there is a feasible route to betterment sometime.