Raoul's China Saloon (V5.0) Beta
The Bar Room => The Bar (ON-TOPIC) => Topic started by: Yokie Kuma on December 16, 2009, 10:30:58 PM
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We don't. We have the machine and large bottles of water delivered.
We wash our dishes and shower in the tap water. The baby's bottles get sterilized though.
The refrigerator in our apartment has a water dispenser. The water goes through a plastic filter (looks like an oil filter from a car) but is not heated. We only drink that when the bottle is empty and we are waiting for a new one.
Who drinks the water?
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No I don't drink the water. We have water dispensers supplied with our uni apartments and just have to pay for the water. I was told it wasn't considered safe to drink straight from the tap.
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We drink the tap water here in Chengdu AFTER boiling it. We fill up a couple of plastic bottles and once cool put them in the fridge for cold water. I never get sick from the water, although it could of course be doing untold long-term damage. However this is what all the local people do, and to be honest I don't trust that the water in the bottles is any safer than the water from the tap but maybe that's me just being cynical!
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I only drink it boiled. I suppose it may be killing me, but I dare say the air is doing more damage
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mostly mineral water for me, from those big water dispensers.
I use tap water for cooking and might drink it occasionally after double-boiling it.
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i just buy bottled water, don't trust tap water anywhere
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We have a filter system. Pour in the water straight from the tap and drink the result. No problems.
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i just buy bottled water, don't trust tap water anywhere
Anywhere? Even outside China. I grew up on Melbourne's tap water and I can't wait to get home and start drinking straight from the tap again.
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Another bottled water user here. I sometimes do boil a litre or so and keep it in the fridge when I'm getting low and awaiting a new delivery.
Always use tap water for cooking, washing veg for cooking and even cleaning my teeth.
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I have the big water bottles delivered, plus I will drink boiled water from the taps. Like most others, I shower, clean teeth, cook, washup etc using the water straight from the tap.
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Yeah, you can drink most tap water in the U.S. NOT and NEVER N-E-V-E-R in China though. I think I didn't thoroughly boil the water all the way (I don't even know... call me ditzy like my mom) and I had bad stomach problems for 4 days. I will NEVER do that AGAIN. Double boil indeed... and let it run from the kettle a few seconds before boiling as we all know the kettle can turn a white film on the bottom from the water... or is that just my area?
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A clueless newbie friend of mine confessed to have glugged a pint of tapwater here one hungover morning not long after arriving (we're both Scottish, and the tapwater there is very drinkable). She spent most of the next 24 hours on or near the toilet bowl. I felt sorry for her but it was pretty amazing that she was so utterly unaware that this was a no no...(nothing serious came of it long-term).
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I miss Scottish water A LOT, even when we lived in England you could taste the difference and it was always exciting to go home and drink sweet, pure Scottish water from the tap!
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i just buy bottled water, don't trust tap water anywhere
Anywhere? Even outside China. I grew up on Melbourne's tap water and I can't wait to get home and start drinking straight from the tap again.
the stuff in england is safe, but it's full of drugs
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Growing up I drank tap water back home in America, as did everyone else I know. Later on bottled water became more popular, but as a kid the only time I remember not drinking tap water was when our hometown was hit by a hurricane and we didn't have electricity or safe running water for weeks. I am sure the tap water back home is still safe, but it seems like everyone prefers bottled these days.
In China I drink tap water if it has been boiled. It is safe but there is a lot of mineral residue left when the water boils off. My husband doesn't even like to drink the bottled water from our water machine if the water has not heated all the way up to boiling first, as apparently you can't always trust that the water is always actually bottled water and not just tap water packaged up to look like bottled water. aoaoaoaoao Personally I take my chances because there are times when I would just rather not drink hot water, or wait for my hot water to cool off.
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Yep..........I have to agree about our lovely Scottish water. bjbjbjbjbj
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So many Scots on the forum - I have a couple more staying at my place at the moment. Just had to go check they weren't drinking the tap water!!
We get the big water bottles and have a free standing dispenser. Our gate keeper guys replace them for us - it's RMB10 for one with a blue top and RMB12 for one with a pink top. Appparently the pink ones have better quality of water...which means nowt when the gatekeeper unseals it by sticking his fingers in the top... kkkkkkkkkk
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first couple of years here, it was bottled water for everything. Even took some home every day from school, and boiled it the next day for my tea/coffee. Late in the second year, I began double boiling the tap water for coffee and tea. Now I just single boil it. I figure I've given my intestinal tract enough time to become accustomed to the local microbes. As accustomed as one can be; there are limits. I don't ever plan on drinking tap water straight, but I do brush my teeth with it.
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What about mixed drinks at bars? Do you bring your own ice cubes in your wallet or purse? Or salads at restaurants where the vegetables were probably rinsed...or not.
When I was in India you could tell which bottles had been re-sealed after having been refilled with tap water.
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I also grew up drinking from the tap - oh, hang on, you are talking about water. But, regardless, sitting under the tap and drinking is a pretty good way to go.
cheers all. :alcoholic: :alcoholic: :alcoholic: agagagagag
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Tap water boiled for coffee or tea. Tap water for cooking, if it involves boiling. Tap water for rinsing when brushing teeth. Straight from the big water bottles for everything else.
PreChina: Tap water all my life in Canada and 3 US states. Filtered water in Florida.
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I didn't and I won't drink tap water in China. Truth is, drinking tap water anywhere is a crap shoot. There is always beer, wine or boiling water for tea or coffee to quench the thirst.
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that's the right idea, Eagle. Always carry a bottle of whiskey in case of snakebite. Furthermore, always carry a small snake
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We have a filter system. Pour in the water straight from the tap and drink the result. No problems.
And this raises an interesting question .... we have something similar in the frig ... the water passes through a filter. But I opened a filter once .... it looks mostly like carbon pellets with some "other" stuff mixed in.
Now, I am no chemist, and I understand the carbon can filter out "bad" minerals and deposits, but can it really filter out the microbes and bugs and the stuff that causes the less than happy intestinal system?
I've had fish tanks ... they use carbon to filter the water ... and in that carbon lives some type of microbes or bacteria or what not that helps break down the fish-shit. But some must be able to get through .... hmmmm
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Carbon filters should be only used with potable water. bfbfbfbfbf
In Canada, there is a warning on them to that effect. Bugs live and multiply on the carbon filters. llllllllll
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We've never had any problems since we started using the filter. It's due to be changed about now, so I'll have a look at the replacement.
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What, I gotta come over an' smack you up? asasasasas
Of course you don't drink tap water in China! Not even the Chinese drink straight-from-the-tap water in China! aoaoaoaoao
Water quality has inched up a smidge in a few Chinese cities, but NOWHERE in China is the tap water safe to drink. The only exception is upper-tier hotels that have their own water treatment systems. Regular city water is adequate for washing (we hope), but should never be drunk.
Tap water in China gets little more treatment than having the mud filtered out. It's not only polluted, but it can easily bear hepatitis, typhoid, and all kinds of other horrible diseases. This is NOT something to fuck around with. The only way to make Chinese tap water remotely potable is to boil it-like the Chinese always do. Ever wonder why they tend to drink HOT water? mmmmmmmmmm
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One is reminded of the ditty by Tom Lehrer: If you visit American city, you will find it very pretty/just two things of which you must beware/don't drink the water and don't breathe the air/ pollution, pollution, we've got waste and sewage and crud/turn on your tap and get hot and cold running mud....Just replace "American" with "Chinese" and it fits perfectly.
I only use tap water to make coffee agagagagag agagagagag "fish gotta swim and birds gotta fly, but they don't last long if they try"...same thing goes for laowai drinking tap water agagagagag agagagagag
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The ONLY place where I will/do drink tap-water is at home in BDA. :alcoholic: That's because we collect rainwater, and each house/home stores their own, individual supply in tanks. No central system. ahahahahah
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Good idea for lovely Bermuda. Terrible idea for China...the rain is too dirty. bibibibibi
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Terrible idea for China...the rain is too dirty.
Yeah, and yer never know what the tanks have been used for!
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This thread reminded me of something:
Did tea and beer make Britain great? (http://www.aim-digest.com/gateway/pages/book/articles/tea.htm)
Theory is, our twin national tipples protected the working class from water-borne disease and therefore enabled a population explosion which allowed the industrial revolution and expansion of empire.
Cheers.
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I guess that wine would explain why France produced so many philosophers ... wine as a substitute for water.
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Boiled tap water is healthy enough to drink, in my opinion. And the bottle water is also not safe to drink because of the plastic pollution or some else reasons.
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is the tap water in usa better than boiled china water? some would argue china's is better as has fewer chemicals (used to kill bacteria; mostly chlorine, a nasty chemical) and boiling the water will kill even the bad organisms that the chlorine will not kill. crytosporidium and giardia both highly resistant to chlorine and really cause gut problems. also, more chemicals found in usa well water due to heavy use of farm chemicals and recently, rock fracturing to find natural gas. i drink the local reservoir, rain water, once boiled and see no need to buy bottled. the mineral deposits are mostly calcium and easily cleaned away with vinegar solution. the taste of water is variable and mostly the best taste is the one from 'home' but that is only habitual conditioning.
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I do not recommend drinking the tap water here, at all.. BUT.. visitors didn't realise and spent 3 weeks wandering all over China, drinking the tap water and had no ill effects.
I think the potability is improving.
Or only the survivors lived to tell about it. ahahahahah
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The potability is definitely improving, at least in many places...
Still not where you'd want it to be, though...
I drank bottled water for years with no known ill effects. But I just can't think of any real reason to risk the tap water, without at least boilling it first... aoaoaoaoao
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There is absolutely no way in purgatory I would ever drink the water straight from the tap. First week in China like a moron I took a few gulps (I was thirsty, and I had no clean water and didn't know where to get it); it was great: the enema rush from the fudge misty explosions lasted for seven days; even better, I learned to live without underwear and after three days, without pants. Memories...... aaaaaaaaaa
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boiling twice? excessive contribution to global warming to no use. boiled once kills all that need be killed. rain water, best for many drinks, no minerals. collect rain into clean, covered tank, let settle for some time and use as is. extremely unlikely any potability problems in rain water. the 'dirt', mostly dust, coal ash microparticles, etc. will settle out to the bottom. don't drink the bottom. just like coffee dregs. from the water we may get sick from bacteria and/or bad chemicals, organic and inorganic, from various sources. high heat (boiling) kills all bacteria and other organisms. however, high heat does not all bacterial spores but these are of no concern in water. we all take chances with the plastics and hidden chemicals. try drinking boiled water with tasteless mercury for a few years. yet, in fact we probably all do.
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boiling twice? excessive contribution to global warming to no use.
Of course, you can always go for extreme overkill. First filter, then pump some ozone through it, add a little chlorine, then boil twice, then double-distill, and then run that through a reverse osmosis system. Next, use electrolysis to separate the hydrogen from the oxygen, ignite the resulting gases, and collect the pure, safe water vapor.
Use the resulting ultra-pure water to wash out your beer mugs. agagagagag
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Never heard of boiling twice, but the official advice I've seen usually advised one boil of at least 20 minutes. Apparently some of the bugs are pretty tough to kill...
Fudgy, you're scaring me. You're lucky to only get off with explosive diarrhea; could easily have been typhoid in that neck of the woods... aoaoaoaoao
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Water is properly pasteurized significantly below the boiling point. The reason for the boiling recommendation is twofold. One, it's easy to see. No questions about whether or not it got hot enough. The second (also possibly the reason for 20 minutes when 2 would be more than enough) is that some other unpleasant contaminants may boil off or break down into less harmful subcomponents under those conditions.
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With all this discussion on water, I should say I'd sooner drink the tapwater in China than in my hometown in Queensland! At least here it's not flurodated (guess that's a debate for another day)...
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Hmmmmmm....well, the advice of MDTravelHealth.com, the best site I've found so far for advice on how us squeaky-clean Westerners can live safely in filthy foreign countries, is siding with EL...they're saying one minute of vigorous boil will do the trick. I don't remember now where I saw the 20-minute advice.
It also talks about water filters...some are good enough and some aren't. If you're like Gerge (shudder) and using a filter, might want to take a close look at what you got.
MDTravelHealth.com is in our sadly under-utilized Links pages (under Living Info) but you can see the page in question at
http://www.mdtravelhealth.com/illness/water_purification.html (http://www.mdtravelhealth.com/illness/water_purification.html)
I just want to get across that this is NOT something to trifle with. Tap water in China is untreated except for (maybe) a bit of filtration, and it can and often does carry typhoid, several flavors of hepatitis, and all manner of other truly horrific diseases. It's just not worth the risk...boil it, chemically disinfect it, filter it with a filter that removes microbes, or just don't drink it.
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If you're like Gerge (shudder) and using a filter, might want to take a close look at what you got.
So far, so good. Our compound belongs to Jinan Water Co., so we get the best!
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is the tap water in usa better than boiled china water? some would argue china's is better as has fewer chemicals (used to kill bacteria; mostly chlorine, a nasty chemical) and boiling the water will kill even the bad organisms that the chlorine will not kill. crytosporidium and giardia both highly resistant to chlorine and really cause gut problems. also, more chemicals found in usa well water due to heavy use of farm chemicals and recently, rock fracturing to find natural gas. i drink the local reservoir, rain water, once boiled and see no need to buy bottled. the mineral deposits are mostly calcium and easily cleaned away with vinegar solution. the taste of water is variable and mostly the best taste is the one from 'home' but that is only habitual conditioning.
Agree wholeheartedly.........we won't even talk about the pollution of the "Great" Lakes with pesticides causing genetic mutations and hermaphroditism in frogs (and, of course, we won't mention 'Monsatan', god forbid!).
I refuse to pay the ludicrous prices for 'bottled' water - in my old home town in the UK, we referred to Perrier water as 'derriere' water - 'cos only an ass would drink it!
Mind you, the tap water in Edmonton, Alberta, tastes disgusting! Further east though, it gets better.
I've been drinking 'council pop' for the past 51 yrs, and still healthy.........even throughout the Middle East and most of Asia.
(fwiw, I don't buy into the 'swine flu' clap-trap either - refusing to live in 'fear' rather than 'power' - if you're conned into believing you're going to get sick, guess what???........you'll get sick! Quelle Suprise, eh? bfbfbfbfbf).
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I didn't get sick...I got vaccinated.
Power, not fear. bjbjbjbjbj
And we getting way offtopic here...
I'd never presume to claim that the USA and other Western countries aren't polluted...they are, of course. The difference is a question of extent, and the practices that determine it. Western countries have adopted some reasonably effective controls on both discharges into waters, and treatment and standards for tap water.
China has none of this. The laws might be on the books, but enforcement is virtually nil.. bibibibibi The WORST tap water (not to mention air and soil) in our countries is likely to be far better than the BEST you'll find in Chuna.
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Never drink tap water in China..... I heard some people even find some substances or dead insects flowing from the water tap., hehe Use water dispensers ..- my advice!!!
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or dead insects flowing from the water tap.
Better than live insects flowing from the tap. ahahahahah
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For all of you who boil your tap water before drinking it, does that mean that you bring your own supply of water to the school? Boiled or bottled? I'm hearing time and again that you can't trust the bottled water either.
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does that mean that you bring your own supply of water to the school?
Definitely, unless the school provides its own reliable source of boiled water. It's what the Chinese do...note those water bottles so many of them carry?