Bottled Water: Is it worth it?

[jgm]

I've been drinking quite a bit of bottled water lately. We buy a brand called Ozarka at a really good price, and recycle the empty bottles.

The convenience of the bottle, more than the taste of the water, is what's in it for me. Most of the year, our tap water at home is pretty decent. But in the spring, and sometimes at other times, the reservoir from which our water is taken 'turns' or something, and it turns green and smelly. And the water at work, for reasons I don't understand, is just nasty. (Same source as our water at the house.) Plus, I don't like to use the ice at work when certain co-workers have colds.

There are times when I just fill up empty bottles with tap water from home, and that's fine if I'm going to be drinking it that day. Even though the bottles are freshly washed, I'm told there are issues with bacteria if holding it for longer than about a day. With a sealed "fresh" bottle, I can haul it around for a year and not worry. If I can't find Ozarka, which presumably is a product similar to Dasani and Aquafina, then the other two are fine. Occasionally I'll spring for Fiji.

The other use I have for bottled water, is on my nightstand. Depending upon how much the air conditioner runs, some nights I wake up parched, and I'll break open a bottle of water at that time. We've also had a lot of allergy-inducing crap in the air this summer, and it's nice to have a bottle of water and a bottle of Tylenol beside the bed, so that I don't have to get up and actually function in the middle of the night. The sinus headaches this year have been killers. And I don't always remember to fill up a glass with water and put it by my bed, before retiring for the night.

So for me, it's mainly convenience; but having something handy that I know will taste good, means I'll drink more water than I would otherwise.

[jsolomon]

Ozarka is awesome. The last time I had it, I looked at that particular gallon's origin... Kansas City (or some Kansas town) municipal water supply.

As for what C. sepidus said, I think they RO first, and then they exchange.

[Soupcon]

Bottled water is for those living in countries with no or poor water purification systems. Other than that any one who buys bottled water has more money than brains. Desani for example is taken from the local city tap where the coca-cola bottler resides. Any other bottled water depletes the local acquifers (they do not pay any money for the resource unlike mining or lumber companies who pay mineral extraction fees or timber fees) which will bite the local residents in the ass in later years when their local water supplies are no longer available because the acquifer has been depleted.

[Eden]

Goodness the heat must be making everyone cranky today!

I think the answer to the original question is that coke & pepsi can pay to have little coolers by the checkout stands at the markets so when you're out running errands in the heat that chilled bottle of water looks mighty tempting. Yes other brands may be better, certainly filling a bottle from your own tap is more eco-friendly & financially savvy, but sometimes you don't get much choice:

I dont like either company, but I grabbed a bottle of aquafina this afternoon because it was the only chilled water in the store and I was getting hot & dehydrated with at least another 30 minutes till I got home.

[tommy]

Bottled water is for those living in countries with no or poor water purification systems. Other than that  any one who buys  bottled water has more money than brains.

hmm. compelling...

i buy bottled water when, say, i'm walking through the city for a stroll. what would you suggest? stop at a restaurant and shove my face under their bathroom sink?

i buy bottled water to keep in the car. what would you suggest? pull over looking for potable water? fill up a bunch of jugs at home and throw them in the trunk?

i buy bottled water for large backyard parties. what would you suggest? filling up a bunch of empty milk jugs for my guests? "hey, the beer and wine are over here, and the water, well you can just drink it from the hose. it's tasty in this country."

i buy bottled water for my office water cooler. what would you suggest? have them drink from the sink?

i drink "free" water whenever possible. such as when i'm at home. i keep a filteration thing in the fridge. that's sweet.

but you're probably right about my money/brians ratio. that's pretty sweet, too.

[lapasterie]

I just came back from the ICES convention at the Gaylord Texan hotel in Grapevine TX. There was no way you could drink the water there. I have never had water with so much chemical in it. You could not even drink the fresh brewed ice tea. You had no choice but to drink the bottle water any brand, at any cost. The hotel did supply 2 bottles per person each day at no extra charge. They claimed it was due to the lack of rain.

[ghostrider]

And if you're ever vacationing up on the Blue Ridge -- well, if you really enjoy the taste of rotten egg in your water, then you're in for a treat. Most people, who find contact with the highly sulfuric water difficult even for a quick shower, will abandon their principles & opt for the bottled stuff.

I was lucky my first time up there, no one had prepared me for the local water, but being fond of trying local spring waters wherever I go, & having run into a sale at the Food Lion in Front Royal, I drove up onto the Ridge well prepared.

[purplewiz]

Convenience. I only buy bottled water when I want to take some with me somewhere, or I'm at a gas station and want something to drink and don't want soda (I like soda, but it's more of a treat/snack than a beverage to me, even the diet stuff) or anything carbonated, or I'm at a rest stop on the highway and the water fountain is icky/rusted shut/dispenses warm yellowish water.

I don't drink it routinely - I have a nice glass of tap water and tap water ice right next to me. And yes, I will take along my own water when I remember to. But when I don't, it's nice to have options.

Marcia.

[BarbaraY]

I rarely buy bottled water unless I'm traveling and forget to bring some from home. I have a well and the water is exceptionally fresh tasting. Not bragging up my well because others have commented on the fact.

It has a very high lime content which I think adds to the taste.

[Grub]

What, pray tell, is the reason that so many people are willing to pay so much for tap water in a bottle?  Are they subconciously thinking that these are better waters?  That they are spring water? 

Is there a good reason to buy this water that I am missing?  I am truly mystified and amazed.

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There was another thread on this a while ago, that covered this in great detail. The only sensible reason for buying bottled water is convenience -- it's available everywhere, and you know what quality the water is. I'm sure that egulleteers buy it for this reason. But there is a less sensible reason for it, and that's the marketing hoopla.

The fact that these two brands come from a municipal water source is generally not known by most consumers, and it might be a marketing headache if they found out about it -- but the truth is, this actually a good thing. Municipal water sources are generally goverened by stricter controls than the FDA who oversees bottled water and other foods.

That Pepsi and Coke can sell this, at a higher price than their soda is indeed amazing and mystifying -- at least until you accept that human beings are only partially rational. It's as if McDonalds started selling the uncooked beef patties from their BigMac, at a higher price than a BigMac. Marketing genius.

I just feel bad that someon in a civilized country should feel compelled to buy commercial water because the stuff in their tap tastes bad. It's like a capitulation of a basic human right -- access to a proper water supply.

[Ohba]

Bottled water is for those living in countries with no or poor water purification systems. Other than that  any one who buys  bottled water has more money than brains.

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If only I did, I'd be rich, a man of my intelligence. However, I buy bottled water because the local tap water in my part of Japan tastes of chlorine or some such chemical. I'd much prefer to drink tap water, but it tastes unpleasant enough to render tea or any drink with ice cubes in it just about undrinkable. I don't know if this constitutes poor purification or just a difference of opinion between the water company and the end-user. I keep meaning to get around to buying a water filter, but first I need to find out a bit more about how they work and if they work. In the meantime, Coca Cola (yes, they have long tentacles) have found a way to get money from me, which is the only way they'll do it, because their flagship product tastes like piss.

[Pan]

Bottled water is for those living in countries with no or poor water purification systems.[...]

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I wonder whether you'd consider Santa Barbara, California to be a country, in that case. I'm sure you must never have attempted to drink tap water there.

[Shalmanese]

That Pepsi and Coke can sell this, at a higher price than their soda is indeed amazing and mystifying -- at least until you accept that human beings are only partially rational. It's as if McDonalds started selling the uncooked beef patties from their BigMac, at a higher price than a BigMac. Marketing genius.

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I could see this happening. The McTartare! Only $5.99!

[MomOfLittleFoodies]

I drink tap water at home, but buy bottled water for when I'm out and around because it's just more convenient than searching around for a drinking fountain and then have to lift my kids so they can get a drink. My husband always keeps a few bottles in the car too.

[Andrew Fenton]

In the meantime, Coca Cola (yes, they have long tentacles) have found a way to get money from me, which is the only way they'll do it, because their flagship product tastes like piss.

Ohba, if your urine tastes as sweet as Coke, you should probably go talk to your doctor; that's an indication of diabetes.

[menton1]

I have nothing against bottled water in general; my specific gripe is about Dasani and Aquafina. I'm convinced that a majority of buyers of these products think that these tap waters are high quality spring waters. Aquafina furthers the ruse with the mountains on the label. "Purified" is an ambiguous term. These companies are very secretive about where their tap water comes from and just what they mean by "purified".

If there were regulations forcing Coke and Pepsi to be more transparent about these waters, I would feel alot better. I'm pretty sure, though, that the power of these mega-Corporations would preclude anything like that coming to fruition.

[H. du Bois]

I'm spoiled by the excellent quality of NYC tap water, which I drink constantly. I'm shocked sometimes by the poor quality of tap water elsewhere, though. I'd filter tap water with Britta filters before I'd buy quantities of bottled water if the taste of my tap water was poor.

Bottled water has its uses - I'd rather drink it than soda in a movie theatre, and it's a lifesaver on the street on a nasty hot day. I do think the price of it is ludicrous.

[menton1]

The Europeans are really way ahead of us in this matter-- In France, for example, a typical market has about 2 dozen varieties of bottled SPRING wter, average price (rough exchange rate) is about 15 cents/liter. Reasonable enough.

They seem wiser there, as well, the are no bottled tap waters. In the UK, in 2004, Dasani went right down shortly after introduction after some test labs found bromate in their bottled tap water. It was subsequently banned from sales as well.

[JohnL]

I have nothing against bottled water in general; my specific gripe is about Dasani and Aquafina.  I'm convinced that a majority of buyers of these products think that these tap waters are high quality spring waters.  Aquafina furthers the ruse with the mountains on the label.  "Purified" is an ambiguous term.  These companies are very secretive about where their tap water comes from and just what they mean by "purified". 

If there were regulations forcing Coke and Pepsi to be more transparent about these waters, I would feel alot better.  I'm pretty sure, though, that the power of these mega-Corporations would preclude anything like that coming to fruition.

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The truth is most people are probably confused about bottled water period.

Dasani and Aquafina are not the result of someone filling the bottles directly from a city water supply. As other posters noted the water receives additional treatment.

They are in compliance with all the government regulations.

It is debatable as to what if any, the benefits of source water (Evian etc) vs purified water are.

Or spring water vs mineral water or....

As for flavor/taste--that's debatable also.

The Europeans probably started the bottled water industry with their spa's. One could certainly question the marketing of these spa's with their claims of providing a "cure."

The England debacle for Coke is more a result of their using the term "pure" on the label and in advertising. The authorities were not so concerned with the fact that the source Coke used was the water supply but rather the inference by using "pure" in selling the water implying that the source water (the drinking supply) was not pure.

There's a huge element of "gottcha" in play here. I wonder who is more exaggerated here-- Coke or the journalists who "uncovered" this. (my understanding is that most bottled supermarket waters in England are sourced from the local drinking supply--in essence "purified" water)

One could easily view the fad with bottled water's as a fools game--paying for drinking water no matter where it comes from or how it is advertised and marketed. Taking this view, the Europeans come out as the most gullible with their infatuation with their so called spa waters.

One could also look at the situation from a practical view--bottled water from anywhere is convenient and an alternative to soda or other beverages. it can also be better for certain purposes for those whose tap water is not optimum--too hard or soft or sulfurous--brewing tea or coffee. In this case any purified water would work.

I wonder if it might be more informative if legally any source indication was banned from advertising and labels unless the bottler could prove their water was different in content and taste.

Every water would be labeled as simply water!

[ned]

From a conservation perspective, tap water is a far better choice. Bottled water is, well, BOTTLED. Plastics young man, plastics. Also it must be delivered which means burning fuel to get it from Coke's fauceted bottling facility to your corner store. Imagine the fuel savings if all of us with access to potable water stopped drinking the bottled kind.

PS: If I had a tap in my house from which beer flowed freely, two things would be true. I wouldn't be too picky about the taste and I'd never go to the store and buy it in bottles.

Edited August 3, 2006 by ned (log)

[Shel_B]

Truth or fiction? You be the judge .... regardless, this video brings up some very valid points.

http://www.youtube.com/embed/XfPAjUvvnIc

[weedy]

I think one needs to make decisions on single case bases

in a given scenario bottled water might be 'better' water, or more practical than the local alternative.

and in many cases it isn't.

I know Penn for a long time.

and he's an inveterate 'skeptic' sometimes to a point where it's silly...

[Smithy]

One of my favorite newspaper columnists coined the phrase "as dumb as bottled water". I use that expression quite often. We in the United States complain about the price of gasoline or diesel, and yet many people cheerfully pay much more per gallon for their bottles of water.

On the other hand, I've been in some countries where one shouldn't trust the water, and then those bottles of water are precious. I do wish there were some system for collection the empties, though. The sight of empty plastic bottles cluttering a marina, or the desert, is distressing.

[OliverB]

a lot of bottled water is just tap water anyway, I think all of Dasani or what it's called. Any way, makes no sense unless your water at home is terrible, and even then, a filter is much cheaper and has little to no waste. Only times I ever buy bottled water is on the road etc, where I don't have access to a trusted faucet. And yes, it costs more than gas, LOL. Not as much as the $20+/gal coffee people like to buy though :-D

[annabelle]

Bottled water costs $.89 a gallon. Where are you folks shopping?