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Coca-Cola Bottled Water For 28 Cents
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In China, no one should drink water straight out of the tap (this isn’t like Montezuma’s revenge in Mexico where locals can drink it; no one can drink the tap in China because the pipes are so old and so cruddy it would be very dangerous) so every is forced to buy bottled water, unlike in most places in the United States. How much does bottled water cost in a place where it is truly a necessity? 28 cents max. It’s 2 RMB at your local 7-11 equivalent, and it’s even cheaper if you buy it in bulk. And it’s bottled by Coca-Cola too.
I don’t quite understand why people in the US are absolutely fascinated with drinking bottled water. Drinking water certainly won’t hurt, it’s definitely better than soda, but to shell out a couple bucks a bottle seems kind of crazy when you can just pick up a indestructible Nalgene bottle for five dollars and fill it up forever from your tap for essentially free. Perhaps my tastes aren’t discerning enough to enjoy the wonders that is bottled water (or I don’t really care about carrying a bottle as a status symbol).
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The main reason I think it’s not safe to drink water out of tap is that the water just doesn’t meet the drinkable water standard. In many places in China, the water is considered “hard water” with lots of minerals, mainly calcium. So it has to be boiled to make it softer.
I don’t buy water for home. I use a brita for that. I realize some of it purely psycholigcal but tap water can sometimes taste bad. The only time I do buy water is when i’m out and want drink and buy a bottle of water instead of soda or something like that. It’s luxury true enough.
I thought the bottled water trend was over. I see more people walking around with Nalgene bottles with filter water from their homes these days.
I agree that it’s silly to buy bottled water in the US, but I can’t agree with your suggestion to use the same bottle over and over and “fill it up forever.” Doing so will breed bacteria very quickly and will cause your own home-grown Montezuma’s Revenge. Wash that bottle out with boiling water each time…or just drink it out of the tap.
A Nalgene bottle is something that you’d wash out, I don’t recommend drinking from the same bottle over and over without washing… that’s definitely dangerous.
I have 4 nalgene bottles. I go through 1 or 2 of them every day at work.
I can not refill them from the tap at work, though, because the water here tastes awful. It is the same water source as the tap at my home, but there’s something about the pipes here that “ain’t quite right”. I figure that its good enough for doing a quick rinse on my dishes after lunch (which then gets washed again at home) but other than that I don’t consume the water here.
If I only bring one bottle of water to work, I usually refill it at lunch time when I go to the local pool to swim.
I went to China a few years back and somebody in my group drank some of the water. After doing so, he could not get out of bed for three days, not even for food or more water.
I do drink tap water at home, but it’s not feasible all the time.
I joined the water club at work because the tap water there actually failed lead tests within the last three years. So I get water from the cooler, and drink it from a large mug.
When I’m out and about, I usually choose to purchase bottled water because I like my water COLD. Not to mention I don’t have enough room in my purse for a Nalgene bottle.
I fill up my Nalgene at home or at work, but I am trying to avoid bottled water at all costs. Why pay $1.25 for what is essentially tap water, and also, the amount of waste created by empty water bottles is the newest scourge of the earth. for specifics, check out treehugger or grist.com…the numbers are pretty astronomical!
I started using filtered water when I asked my son’s pediatrician about letting him drink our local water and she said, “I sure as heck don’t put it into MY body.”
If the pitcher’s empty and we’re in a hurry, I’ll occasionally grab a bottle from our stocked-up emergency water in the corner. Other than that, I tend to avoid the stuff as it usually tastes wretched.
Again, it depends on your locale. Was your pediatrician implying that your tap water is unsafe to drink? In the United States, tap water is much more strictly regulated than bottled water. It’s safe. Building pipes in your building is a different matter, which does affect color and taste. But since we’re long past the days of lead piping, it’s probably still safe.
I’d say: If you’re REALLY concerned, get your water tested. Brita filter (or whatever other carbon-based filtering) will not improve water as far as health is concerned.
Related:
An article in Los Angeles Times’ Sunday Magazine “West”, entitled “The big gulp” on restaurants offering local tap water over fancy imported bottled waters.
See
http://www.latimes.com/features/magazine/west/la-tm-thebiggulp20may20,0,2970162.story
We have very hard water in our area which requires water softeners to reduce limescale buildup in the pipes. The water doesn’t taste very good and the water softening process adds a small amount of sodium to the water.
For drinking I purchase drinking water by the gallon at Wal-Mart (about $.69 a gallon). I drink a lot of water but the expense is worth it because it tastes better and is sodium free.
I belong to a water club at work, but I reuse water bottles both at home and at work. I just rinse them out every day and recycle them when they get old.
In these days many consumer have chosen Magnetic Type (electronic) water treatment devices. Although they’re not water softeners in the real sense, it could make some dollars and cents to try since they’re a lot cheaper
I buy the Great Value drinking or spring water at my local Walmart for 64 cents a gallon. I can definitely taste the difference from my nasty tap.
I dislike the taste of most bottled water, which often tastes dusty to me–at best, I find it flat.
I drink tap water when it tastes good, and use a Brita filter when it doesn’t.
I use the same bottle everytime I goto the gym. What I do is just empty the water out and fill it up with the gyms water fountain water for my workout. Are you saying this is a bad idea?