Is bottled water really better than tap water?

[Boxer100]

I drink bottled water from time to time, but is this water really any better than tap water? Some time ago they found out that Dasani from Coca-Cola is not natural spring water at all. Now, they call it purified water with artificially added minerals. Many people told me that tap water is just the same, and that buying bottled water just creates more environmental waste. Then you have those expensive brands, like Evian (spelled naive backwards :rofl1 and Fiji which cost up to $5/bottle. I do not understand who would pay so much money for water, unless it is holy water? Then you have those that claim different brands taste different and this is why they spend the extra bucks. How can purified bottled water taste different unless you add some chemicals or minerals to it? What is you opinion on this and is there a real reason why we need to buy bottled water?

 

[shazbot]

I drink bottled water because the tap water here tastes nasty, not because I think it's any better for me. It's true that some bottled waters taste different than others. Some have a metalic taste, there's one I can't remember the name, but it actually tastes a little like dirt.

 

[Dakotah]

I drink Aquafina (i think i spelt it right) and Publix Spring Water b/c it tastes good and our tap water here is fckin gross.

 

[tessa_s212]

Dustin has sulfur water. I can't drink it. I can drink the water from my mom's.. but it has little white particles that float around in it, which often makes me nauseous. So.. bottled water for me is the way to go.

 

[Boxer100]

What about installing a tap water filter? Does anyone have a tap water filter and is there any difference between filtered tap water and bottled water and can you save any money with it? I'm just curious.

 

[bubbatd]

My well water is full of rust and I have to use rust salt in my softener . Really nasty !! If and when I buy bottled I buy the cheapest gallon " drinking " / " Spring " water . I would never buy those small bottles ! More expensive than gas .

 

[Labyrinth]

I drink bottled water because the tap water here tastes nasty, not because I think it's any better for me. It's true that some bottled waters taste different than others. Some have a metalic taste, there's one I can't remember the name, but it actually tastes a little like dirt.

This is the reason I drink bottled water too. Tap water just leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

 

[Renee750il]

At home I use a filter or water I've gotten at one of the natural springs around here. At work I keep bottled SPRING water. There are several fairly local companies that actually get their water from natural springs here. We're downstream from the Eastman Kodak plant. No one in their right mind drinks the tap water.

 

[MafiaPrincess]

We have decent tap water, but we have inline filtration to the kitchen taps to make sure it's as good as we can get it.

There was an article in the Toronto Star a year or two ago comparing kids teeth around the greater toronto area. They put fluoride in the water. It isn't in bottled water. They found on average kids who were drinking bottled water exclusively had worse dental health.

Brought up some questions as to what was healthier, and if they shoudl be addign other stuff to bottled water.

 

[SizzleDog]

The water at my parents' house is great - so I drink tap water there. In the town where I went to college, the water was amazing - so I drank tap water there too.

But where I live now... the water is bad. REALLY bad. So bad that I can't even brush my teeth with it. We have a PUR water filter thing in our fridge, one of the high capacity ones. I love it, the water tastes perfect from it. We have to refill it a lot though, since as I said - we can't even brush our teeth with the tap water. Heck, the dogs even get filtered water!

 

[Boxer100]

We have decent tap water, but we have inline filtration to the kitchen taps to make sure it's as good as we can get it.

There was an article in the Toronto Star a year or two ago comparing kids teeth around the greater toronto area. They put fluoride in the water. It isn't in bottled water. They found on average kids who were drinking bottled water exclusively had worse dental health.

Brought up some questions as to what was healthier, and if they shoudl be addign other stuff to bottled water.

I also think that filtered tap water is just as good, but I guess we all love the convenience of carrying a bottle of water with us. However, we can reuse a bottle or canister and refill it with filtered tap water, and case solved - no more waste!

 

[ACooper]

I like Dasanti best out of all the bottled waters I've tried. I don't always buy it though because it really isn't cost effective, LOL

I do keep a bottle of water at my desk every day.........right next to my coffee. Honestly, I take in a "fresh" bottle of water on Monday morning, and refill it from the drinking fountain all week long I like the tap at work, and I also like the tap at home.......we have "city" water at both places.

I like having the convenience of a plastic bottle, so we do buy about a case of water per month. But that is shared with 7 people in this house, so I don't think that is too bad.

We recycle here at home, and our company also recycles plastic, paper, and cans so I don't consider it "waste" exactly

 

[PoodleMommy]

I refuse to drink tap water... it is gross.

I also cant stand Dasani... it has a funny taste.

I usually buy Aquafina or Poland Spring... I buy the small bottles for me and the large gallon size for the animals.

Although, I have been known to drink evian or voss or buy the bottles at starbucks, but the money for the starbucks one goes to charity so thats fine.

 

[Paige]

Im a tap water drinker. If it's good enough for the dogs it 's good enough for me.

 

[vanillasugar]

I drank tap water back home (at my parents) no problemo. It tasted GREAT!

Here?? The water tastes like dirt. Literally. Like potting soil. YUCK. I can really only drink tap water if it's ice cold (or filtered).

I drink a lot of bottled water, but it HAS to be spring water. Dasani and Aquafina are both gross IMO.

Edit to add: To me, water shouldn't really taste like anything. If it does, that's when I have a problem. Water is supposed to be neutral

 

[Buddy'sParents]

No, but purified water is.

Okay, went back and re-read all the replies.

What about installing a tap water filter? Does anyone have a tap water filter and is there any difference between filtered tap water and bottled water and can you save any money with it? I'm just curious.

We have a filter, water purifier whatever you want to call it. Having the filter costs WAY LESS than buying bottled water.

Im a tap water drinker. If it's good enough for the dogs it 's good enough for me.

The dogs drink filtered water too. Hehehe...

 

[GipsyQueen]

Our tap water is alright. We filter it when we use the water heater or put in the coffee machine because it leaves white residue. I don't like tap water in general though, because I prefer sparkling water.

 

[96 GTS]

I never drink bottled water, but it's filtered at our new house, otherwise it has a lot of copper in it and doesn't taste the best.

At our old house the water tasted great right out of the faucet, so I drank that all the time.

 

[smkie]

it's not better according to Pen and Teller.

 

[BostonBanker]

The tap water in our town is amazingly good. As in, I have friends from other local towns who used to fill up huge bottles when they were at my house. I drink exclusively tap water at home, and tons of it.

I do buy bottled water when I'm driving, going to horse shows/dog trials, etc. I think Dasani is the nastiest tasting stuff I've had in a while. Poland Spring is by far my favorite, with Vermont Pure in a distant second. If you learn how to read the bottles, you can figure out which are actual spring water, and which are not.