Post: #1

I live in England where everyone (I think) has no problem drinking tap water, I live in a particularly good area for 'soft' water, which means it's not got much metals/minerals in it. No that they're necessarily a bad thing.

Anyway, when I was a kid I was always told when on holiday in France/Italy/Spain etc not to drink their tap water because it would upset my stomach. However as an adult, I've done it and been fine.

Are there any countries where this is an absolute no no, I'm thinking specifically in Europe?

Post: #2

The way I do it is in 1st world countries ill drink it. USA/Canada/UK/Western Europe

3rd world, I will buy bottled water. India/South east Asia.

In western countries I have never been sick from it and ill often drink from the tap water. Im not going to spend $$$ on bottled water as it tends to be more expensive. in India/SEA its dirt cheap to buy bottle/clean water anyway.

For showering/brushing teeth/cleaning pots ill just use whatever water comes out the tap.

Post: #3

Taiwan and Thailand.

In Taiwan, the water used to come out of my tap YELLOW.

I've lost count of the amount of times I've woken up in 30 degree heat, with blood-shot eyes and a POUNDING fucking head, and have crawled to the fridge to find NO WATER.

In Taipei I used to walk down 6 floors worth of stairs, get over to the 7-11, yank a two litre bottle of cold water out of the fridge, and chug the fucking thing whilst tears were coming out of my eyes.

One time I did this whilst a girl was sleeping in my bed (I locked her in my apartment for ten minutes and returned).

I've thrown up from my mouth being too dry

I've tried to drink the dregs of coca-cola bottles like some crazed alcoholic in rehab.

And I've drank a bottle of fucking cider to try quench my thirst.

If you're in those countries, check your fridge before you go out!!!

Post: #4

Water quality in the USA varies from city to city. The tap water in Los Angeles stinks and tastes bad. But in San Francisco tap water is good to go without filtration. The worst water I've ever smelled or tasted was in Weatherford, Texas, just to the west of Dallas. It tasted like industrial runoff. I was served a glass of tap water and couldn't take more than a sip. I then ordered an orange juice and that tasted just as bad as it was apparently just concentrate mixed with municipal water. It didn't cause any stomach problems, it was just disgusting.

Post: #5

Well, don't drink any tap water in Russia. Many locals will claim that it's totally fine and they've been drinking it all their life. But don't...
Sometimes the water looks like a mix of piss and rust flakes.

Post: #6

I've drank tap water in Amman, Beirut, Dubai, Istanbul, Colombo, Baghdad, Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Singapore, Manila, Rio, Belo Horizonte, no bad effects. I used to in Nairobi and Mombasa, but the water went to shit over the years.

I never dared in Bangkok. I think it was the smell of the canals and the Chao Phraya which put me off.

Post: #7

Get tired of buying water. We just boil it and then filter though a Brita type filter.

Post: #8

I carry a portable filter with me and use it everywhere, refilling plastic water bottles.
In 1st world countries, unless the locals warn against their tap water, I'm not concerned to drink some and use it for teeth brushing.
In 2nd and 3rd world countries I generally use filtered/bottled water even for teeth brushing.

There are a few brands of "state of the art" filters. Google them and see where they are being used in 4th world villages and disaster zones to provide safe water.
I currently use a Sawyer brand one which, while quite expensive, is guaranteed to last a long time. (A million litres)

Probably paid for itself in bottled water savings, and convenience, as carrying heavy bottles from the supermarket is a hassle.

Post: #9

I always say I'm not going to drink tap water in other countries but always end up drinking shitloads of tap water. Someone told me the peace corp uses GSE (grapefruit seed extract) and just puts a drop in it to kill the bad stuff.. That stuff deserves its own thread.

Post: #10

I know people who have gotten sick from water and ice in Central America and Mexico. Most 1st world countries are fine.

Post: #11

Teedub,

Do not drink tap water.

Is your well being,
Is your life

Not worth 99 cents???

Post: #12

In Mexico City they boil the tap water twice. When I visited my old girlfriend's family there they had an appliance in the kitchen for this purpose.

Post: #13

Buy bottled water, check the cap, make sure it is original and unbroken.

Had a nail pop out of a faucet in China once. Shit you not.

Post: #14

(01-22-2014 03:33 PM)Sp5 Wrote:  I never dared in Bangkok. I think it was the smell of the canals and the Chao Phraya which put me off.

I drank Bangkok tap water all the time, never had any problems.

(01-22-2014 08:35 PM)Pizdetz Wrote:  Teedub,

Do not drink tap water.

Is your well being,
Is your life

Not worth 99 cents???

Bottled water contains countless plastic chemicals that are known to mess you up. Tap vs. bottled water isn't a cut-and-dry choice, more like picking the lesser of two evils. (Glass bottled water, on the other hand, is ideal.)

Post: #15

(01-22-2014 10:13 PM)Soma Wrote:  

(01-22-2014 03:33 PM)Sp5 Wrote:  I never dared in Bangkok. I think it was the smell of the canals and the Chao Phraya which put me off.

I drank Bangkok tap water all the time, never had any problems.

(01-22-2014 08:35 PM)Pizdetz Wrote:  Teedub,

Do not drink tap water.

Is your well being,
Is your life

Not worth 99 cents???

Bottled water contains countless plastic chemicals that are known to mess you up. Tap vs. bottled water isn't a cut-and-dry choice, more like picking the lesser of two evils. (Glass bottled water, on the other hand, is ideal.)

Yup.
Use the same bottles over and over with your filtered water. The worst of the chemicals will have leached out over time.

I'm not a rabid greenie, but check out how many million tons of plastic water bottles are in landfills around the planet.

You know that most bottled water in the US comes from the municipal water supplies.
God knows where the stuff in 3rd world countries comes from.

Post: #16

(01-22-2014 07:34 PM)CaliforniaSupreme Wrote:  I know people who have gotten sick from water and ice in Central America and Mexico. Most 1st world countries are fine.

You can even get sick from inhaling water vapor while taking a shower, it's basically inevitable in some countries. On the bright side: another excuse to drink more beer.

I heard St. Petersburg tap water isn't healthy, didn't test it out myself though.

Post: #17

(01-22-2014 10:47 PM)Saga Wrote:  

(01-22-2014 07:34 PM)CaliforniaSupreme Wrote:  I know people who have gotten sick from water and ice in Central America and Mexico. Most 1st world countries are fine.

You can even get sick from inhaling water vapor while taking a shower, it's basically inevitable in some countries. On the bright side: another excuse to drink more beer.

I heard St. Petersburg tap water isn't healthy, didn't test it out myself though.

I've drunk tap water in St Petersburg, Moscow, and Kiev.

It isn't healthy, but probably won't make you sick. Those Soviets bung a lot of chlorine in it

Post: #18

(01-22-2014 07:09 AM)Afarang Wrote:  in India/SEA its dirt cheap to buy bottle/clean water anyway.

This is the big thing. In some places it's a frickin 1.5L bottle of water is practically free. At that point, why take the risk?

Post: #19

I have had a terrible terrible experience drinking tap water in Kiev. I drank it in my apartment but then rented an older place where the pipes were probably 60+ years old. I came back from a night of drinking and needed water, so I boiled the water before drinking it. Nothing. I was sick for 5 days straight, I couldn't even get out of bed.

In Russia, especially in Moscow and St. Petersburg I am quite convinced you can drink the water here and have on occasion but I usually just filter it first and its definitely fine. The quality of water in Russia has improved drastically over the last 5 years but still largely remains a factor of the age of the pipes that it flows through.

All of this being said, I have also gotten sick drinking the water in Berlin. If you are staying somewhere for a period of time, I say go for it. If you are just traveling though a place, as someone said paying 99 cents not to have the shits for a week is damn worth it in my opinion.

Post: #20

Isn't that information available on the website of the Foreign Office. I hope that that's the correct name, I used a translator for this word.

Post: #21

In Medellin : Chill out, drink it. Its 3rd world but the water quality is top notch. I cant cite a source right now but the quality is better compared to A LOT of rich countries.

Post: #22

One point to keep in mind is that if you're afraid of getting sick from tap water, you shouldn't be ordering drinks with ice or eating fresh vegetables (they wash them with tap water) either. I think we all have our own comfort level depending on the country we're in, but if you make the decision to drink bottled water, make sure you don't sabotage it with stuff like ice or produce that's just as likely to get you sick.

Post: #23

A lot of Latin America, such as the rural parts of Mexico and ALL of Ecuador.

I always travel with a Camelbak All Clear UV purification water bottle and purify the tap water for drinking and even brushing my teeth. No point in getting ill from water on a trip if you can avoid it.

Post: #24

In Russia and Ukraine, I would only drink the tap water in Moscow, and only after having it tested in whichever flat you're staying in. The municipal water supply in Moscow is as good as you'll find in most places in the US and EU (as reported by The Moscow Times a few times in the past decade, based on independent tests that they commissioned). However, a lot of the pipes within buildings and complexes are not up to standard, so you'll be at risk of excessive amounts of iron, soil contamination, lead, etc.

The municipalities only maintain the water main which runs along the street, and that's where you can be confident that it's up to standard. Housing authorities are responsible for maintaining the pipes leading off the mains and pipes within buildings, and those you can't really trust.

SPB water is not safe, especially in Spring when there's a lot of surface pollution getting transferred into the water supply due to melting snow.

Other cities - don't even go there.

Post: #25

(01-22-2014 10:55 PM)Antipodean Wrote:  Those Soviets bung a lot of chlorine in it

Yeah, and only recently started to phase it out. There was a civic campaign to get it phased out in St. Petersburg and they were finally successful in 2009. At the time I remember it being A Big Fucking Deal ™. Pensioners didn't want it to change because it meant they had to buy bottled water for drinking.

They were still using chlorine in Kiev in 2011 as I remember... probably still are. You can actually smell it in the shower (pool smell) if your apartment doesn't have mains water filters.