Poor quality bottled water

[Lacessit]

37 minutes ago, Dumbastheycome said:

I rarely drink beer at all but on those occasions have no problem with ice  added.

You don't know what quality of water that ice is made from, do you?

Freezing water does not kill bacteria and viruses. It merely puts them into suspended animation.

[Moonlover]

9 hours ago, Logosone said:

How very strange. I've drunk a variety of bottled water brands in Thailand and not once had any issue whatsoever.

 

I do not boil the bottled water nor do I wear a tin-foil hat whilst I drink it, yet still alive. I must be a medical marvel.

It's long been my opinion that the 'fear factor' surrounding drinking water is a product of the overprotective nature that pervades the developed world. Eagerly encouraged by the bottled water industry and propagated by such publications as the Lonely Planet Guide.

 

I've drunk water from many sources in a number of different countries and have never questioned its suitability. My guiding principle is a simple one. If the locals drink it, it must be OK.

 

Here we drink from the 19ltr containers delivered twice a week just as everyone else in the village does. We only buy 'bottled water' if we have squeamish, lily-livered guests coming, which isn't very often. The only time I boil water is for making tea.

 

I don't want to down-play your notion that you're a 'medical marvel' @Logosone. I think you're just a normal, sensible guy. ????

 

[Dumbastheycome]

20 minutes ago, Lacessit said:

You don't know what quality of water that ice is made from, do you?

Freezing water does not kill bacteria and viruses. It merely puts them into suspended animation.

I have few concerns about tube ice itself having seen the process. The  bulk handling after is probably  of more concern but then if the issue is about bacteria or viruses can the  possibility of surface contamination on every utensil or cup, glass or plate be of greater concern? Washed in tap water of unknown quality and handled  by fingers of equally  unknown cleanliness?

Put sterilized water in an unsterilized  glass ? 

I seriously doubt that any business producing water or ice would deliberately sabotage it's own market by being careless. No doubt there are production errors at times even by  major companies.

But after  30 years in South East Asia I have survived even having witnessed some horrific practices such as  dishes  being rinsed in a puddle in the ground and  wiped over with a  grubby  cloth behind what appeared  at the front to be a quite respectable Restaurant.

I had eaten there several times before and never fell ill. Admittedly in previous times  it was advisable to avoid  ice in drinks because it was usually  block ice  made from tap water and delivered by  motorcycle wrapped in a sack then dragged inside across the floor where chunks would  be chipped off as required   to add to drinks.

Quality has dramatically improved in conjunction with expectations.

I prefer practical caution over paranoia. Germaphobes  must live in a permanent state of  misery ! lol

 

[Lacessit]

3 hours ago, Dumbastheycome said:

I have few concerns about tube ice itself having seen the process. The  bulk handling after is probably  of more concern but then if the issue is about bacteria or viruses can the  possibility of surface contamination on every utensil or cup, glass or plate be of greater concern? Washed in tap water of unknown quality and handled  by fingers of equally  unknown cleanliness?

Put sterilized water in an unsterilized  glass ? 

I seriously doubt that any business producing water or ice would deliberately sabotage it's own market by being careless. No doubt there are production errors at times even by  major companies.

But after  30 years in South East Asia I have survived even having witnessed some horrific practices such as  dishes  being rinsed in a puddle in the ground and  wiped over with a  grubby  cloth behind what appeared  at the front to be a quite respectable Restaurant.

I had eaten there several times before and never fell ill. Admittedly in previous times  it was advisable to avoid  ice in drinks because it was usually  block ice  made from tap water and delivered by  motorcycle wrapped in a sack then dragged inside across the floor where chunks would  be chipped off as required   to add to drinks.

Quality has dramatically improved in conjunction with expectations.

I prefer practical caution over paranoia. Germaphobes  must live in a permanent state of  misery ! lol

 

I don't live in misery, I live in the comfort of knowing my self-imposed rules work for me. Not just boiling water, how I look after my finances, what foods I eat, exercise etc.

You can say I am OCD if you like. Fact is, I have seen quite a few foreigners here come unstuck big time by being cavalier in their lifestyle. They're the ones at government hospitals, or begging an Immigration official.

[BritManToo]

3 hours ago, Moonlover said:

Here we drink from the 19ltr containers delivered twice a week just as everyone else in the village does. We only buy 'bottled water' if we have squeamish, lily-livered guests coming, which isn't very often. The only time I boil water is for making tea.

I just use tap water.

[xylophone]

4 hours ago, Dumbastheycome said:

But after  30 years in South East Asia I have survived even having witnessed some horrific practices such as  dishes  being rinsed in a puddle in the ground and  wiped over with a  grubby  cloth behind what appeared  at the front to be a quite respectable Restaurant.

Witnessed something similar although the dishes were not being washed in a puddle, but in an old cut-down oil drum which sat at the back of the restaurant (behind a screen) and was used during the whole course of the evening in which to wash dishes, so, many hours of washing dishes et cetera in the same old "contaminated" water that had been there all evening.

 

And early one morning I saw staff emptying this filthy water down the drain in front of the restaurant (whilst no one was about obviously) and the smell was horrendous.

 

In addition I drink all manner of bottled waters and have been doing so here for 14 years, and have never had a problem with any of them.
 

[Hi Tea]

15 hours ago, Lacessit said:

This is Thailand, the mains water contractor could have the chlorine cylinder run out, the RO machine might not have seen maintenance for years ( I've actually had algae growing in water from one ), the bottled water might simply be filled from the nearest tap, then sealed.

I've even boiled water for drinking in the USA, giardia parasite is endemic there.

I've survived in Thailand for ten years without any problem, so I think I am doing something right.

 

Most of us have "survived" in Thailand without worrying about any of that.   I'm sure that the problems with water in the US doesn't affect anyone here.   Just opening the bottles and drinking the water has worked fine for me and my family for 26 years so I think that I'm doing something right.

[Bender Rodriguez]

18 hours ago, Farma said:

Your local health dept consumer protection department. They should send a team to inspect the bottling plant after a complaint.

hahaha, in thailand, nobody cares

[mr mr]

18 hours ago, Grusa said:

My question, to whom should we notify/complain about this clearly ongoing and dangerous situation, with a reasonable expectation that something effectual might be done?

hhahahahhahaahahahhahahahah

 

wait a minute that was rude of me sorry for that. its just that hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha

 

o man i am sorry but i just can't hahahahahahahahahahh

[mr mr]

2 hours ago, BritManToo said:

I just use tap water.

unfiltered thai tap water ? 

 

nails. 

 

 

[tifino]

Commercial filtering performed by commercial quantities of used face masks

[Estrada]

I have manufactured 1,000s of large R.O. drinking water plants for many of the largest suppliers of R.O. plants for over 40 years. In one country we are supplying 6.43 Billion litres of drinking water per day from bore holes with minimal treatment at TDS 250PPM. Drinking R.O. water is not good for your health because it has no minerals If you put R.O. water in a metal car radiator it will eat through the metal until it leaks like a shower spray head. The natural balance is around 150PPM TDS which can be reached by adding minerals to R.O. water. The TDS of 250 PPM that you quote is a good standard for potable water from the tap in most countries. Many well known commercial brands of bottled water no longer supply R.O. water because they realise that R.O. water is not good for health. You can achieve good quality drinking water using Ultrafiltration membrane. I have lived here 26 years and I don't like drinking bottled R.O. Water, only the mineral water which uses Ultrafilitration. At home I boil the water for hot drinks and filter the water for drinking water with a multistage wall mounted system with ultrafiltration. Only once have we had a problem here with high sulphate taste, possibly because they over dosed the Alum at the treatment works. As far as Mi*ere is concerned you should contact Nestle. but first check the seals on the bottles when you buy them because for years the Thais have refilled all sorts of bottles with fake materials. I once worked next to a drinking water supplier in Bangkok and I saw them filling the bottles with tap water instead of from their water treatment plant.

 

[checkered flag]

3 hours ago, BritManToo said:

I just use tap water.

Tap water is supposed to meet WHO standards at the water site. If you are close to the water processing site you should be OK, but if the pipes get contaminated (esp with water going on and off ) their can be problems.

[BritManToo]

4 minutes ago, checkered flag said:

Tap water is supposed to meet WHO standards at the water site. If you are close to the water processing site you should be OK, but if the pipes get contaminated (esp with water going on and off ) their can be problems.

I'm 10Km out of town, my TDS pen says 80ppm.

Which is better than I had living in the UK.

[checkered flag]

1 minute ago, BritManToo said:

I'm 10Km out of town, my TDS pen says 80ppm.

Which is better than I had living in the UK.

How far are you from the treatment center. These seem to be everywhere at least where I live. They usually have a water tower. I stopped into ours and had a chat with operator. Very nice guy that was more than happy to show how it works.

[jtrump]

49 minutes ago, Estrada said:

I have manufactured 1,000s of large R.O. drinking water plants for many of the largest suppliers of R.O. plants for over 40 years. In one country we are supplying 6.43 Billion litres of drinking water per day from bore holes with minimal treatment at TDS 250PPM. Drinking R.O. water is not good for your health because it has no minerals If you put R.O. water in a metal car radiator it will eat through the metal until it leaks like a shower spray head. The natural balance is around 150PPM TDS which can be reached by adding minerals to R.O. water. The TDS of 250 PPM that you quote is a good standard for potable water from the tap in most countries. Many well known commercial brands of bottled water no longer supply R.O. water because they realise that R.O. water is not good for health. You can achieve good quality drinking water using Ultrafiltration membrane. I have lived here 26 years and I don't like drinking bottled R.O. Water, only the mineral water which uses Ultrafilitration. At home I boil the water for hot drinks and filter the water for drinking water with a multistage wall mounted system with ultrafiltration. Only once have we had a problem here with high sulphate taste, possibly because they over dosed the Alum at the treatment works. As far as Mi*ere is concerned you should contact Nestle. but first check the seals on the bottles when you buy them because for years the Thais have refilled all sorts of bottles with fake materials. I once worked next to a drinking water supplier in Bangkok and I saw them filling the bottles with tap water instead of from their water treatment plant.

 

I call BS on RO water eating thru metal, please explain how that is possible as there is nothing left in RO water but water.  Yes, plain water causes corrosion if no antifreeze is used but other than that, nothing wrong with mixing RO water with antifreeze and using it in your metal car radiator. 

[Lacessit]

1 hour ago, Estrada said:

. Drinking R.O. water is not good for your health because it has no minerals If you put R.O. water in a metal car radiator it will eat through the metal until it leaks like a shower spray head.

 

Because most vehicle systems are a mixture of alloys,  radiator coolants require inhibitors in them. One would do very little better with tap water, it would depend on the Langelier index.

I'm somewhat baffled how you have derived a comparison between a car radiator and human physiology. Too much minerals in water results in ailments such as kidney stones, that's why the WHO sets limits on bore water for human consumption. Kindly post an authoritative link which supports your contention water without minerals is detrimental to human health. Be careful, though. You might upset the anti-fluoride brigade.

BTW, perhaps it has not occurred to you we get an ample supply of minerals from the foods we eat.

Edited September 22, 2020 by Lacessit

[salsajapan]

23 hours ago, EricTh said:

I buy Singha water and no problem with that.

but it seems that you don't even know that singha is not mineral water  !

 

 

[sangtip2]

On ‎9‎/‎21‎/‎2020 at 7:52 PM, Pattaya46 said:

ppm of what ???

Nothing wrong to get drinkable water with a ppm of 270 if it's about alcanility by example. Health norme is something around 40 to 400.

Drinking nearly distilled water with ppm near zero is probably worse for your health.

 

Could be good to read the composition shown on the bottle...

TDS  is  "Total Dissolved Solids"    That is not a test for bacteria  

[Eindhoven]

https://www.chiangmailocator.com/wiki-drinking-water-quality-in-thailand-p152