1 baht street water machines - do they have filters?

[scubascuba3]

Any experts with experience here?

 

The one i usually use is out of order, but at the back there is a filter tank thing, looks like a scuba tank with a black cover on. Water comes out slowly.

 

I just tried another new machine, water flies out fast and at the back no visible filter, just can see a connection to the external water pipe.

 

How can you tell if they have a filter? and is it inside, outside or maybe both? or no filter at all

[CharlieH]

Based on my experience and previous topics over the years, its's pretty hit and miss. At 1bt  or whatever, other than when installed, why would they bother with the expense of changing filters? That money is dead. The user has no idea if it is done or not, so why should they pay for a filter for no gain?

Not saying they are all like that, but personally for small money involved, I'd stick to bottled water.

[Photoguy21]

Yes they do but how often they are cleaned/replaced is a different matter

[black tabby12345]

Yes, they do.

However, frequency of the filter change is not consistent.

In some places, it is replaced once every 3 months though.

[Serenity_Now]

i use a 1 baht machine all the time i hve not been sick yet
it can be hit and miss ike you say

 

the one i use is next to an street eatery and they aso use it (yes thats no guarantee) but  its a well used machine

drinking bottes why use all that plastic!
there should be more filter machines 

in thailand the fightback in beach areas of machines of vendors that sell bottles slows that down

now we know about microplastics 
NESTLE highest count

the ones with the big filter are also pressure
inside machine there will be 2 or more fiters



 

[Don Giovanni]

Christ.

 

Times must be hard, eh scuba??

 

The Don.

[sungod]

20L from the water factory is 40 baht. I'm just living it up

[tomazbodner]

Get yourself a T-D-S meter (total dissolved solids), looks like a large digital thermometer with a removable cap.

 

Fill cup with water from the filter and put in the T-D-S meter. The reading should be below 50, best below 20. If it shows 200-300 reading, then it's not filtering anything.

Additional thing, which is also important is whether you're planning on directly drinking this water or boil it/cook with it. That's bacteria which a removed RO filter obviously would not remove either, but even if it did, RO filters are slow, so to fill your bottle, it would have a tank somewhere in the box. If that tank isn't cleaned, bacteria could grow in it, and make you sick even if <removed> reading comes back in teens.

 

If you feel bad looking at the mountain of plastic bottles waste like I did, get yourself own water filter. I use Coway now on monthly subscription, and have it cleaned and maintained every 2 months. Water has everything removed so I must admit I don't like the taste much (prefer Mont Fleur or Evian taste), but at least I know it is filtered well and safe to drink, without having to cart up many packs of bottles every month.

 

https://www.lazada.co.th/products/1pc-<removed>-ec-meter-0-9990-ppm-i5680681653-s24233293552.html <- a link to a sample of a T-D-S meter...

[BangkokReady]

In my experience, give them a try, then see if you get sick.  If you don't get sick, it's probably alright.

[tomazbodner]

7 minutes ago, BangkokReady said:

In my experience, give them a try, then see if you get sick.  If you don't get sick, it's probably alright.

Gave that recommendation to someone asking me about Russian Roulette...

 

Not sure if he took it. Haven't heard from him since...

[Yagoda]

Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww

[proton]

17 minutes ago, tomazbodner said:

Get yourself a T-D-S meter (total dissolved solids), looks like a large digital thermometer with a removable cap.

 

Fill cup with water from the filter and put in the T-D-S meter. The reading should be below 50, best below 20. If it shows 200-300 reading, then it's not filtering anything.

Additional thing, which is also important is whether you're planning on directly drinking this water or boil it/cook with it. That's bacteria which a removed RO filter obviously would not remove either, but even if it did, RO filters are slow, so to fill your bottle, it would have a tank somewhere in the box. If that tank isn't cleaned, bacteria could grow in it, and make you sick even if <removed> reading comes back in teens.

 

If you feel bad looking at the mountain of plastic bottles waste like I did, get yourself own water filter. I use Coway now on monthly subscription, and have it cleaned and maintained every 2 months. Water has everything removed so I must admit I don't like the taste much (prefer Mont Fleur or Evian taste), but at least I know it is filtered well and safe to drink, without having to cart up many packs of bottles every month.

 

https://www.lazada.co.th/products/1pc-<removed>-ec-meter-0-9990-ppm-i5680681653-s24233293552.html <- a link to a sample of a T-D-S meter...

 

 

Got one of these and tested our Pure filter system, with recently new filters V the tap water- NO difference. However when testing water from the Coway filter system it would hardly register anything, and far less than tap water. How much is your coway filter?

[scubascuba3]

The question remains, where is the filter? what does it look like?

[FlorC]

The 2 filter tubes are usually on the outside.

 

I use that water only for cooking .

Or rinsing rice or veggies.

I don't drink it , not even for my pets.

They get Purra mineral water.

[Serenity_Now]

3 minutes ago, scubascuba3 said:

The question remains, where is the filter? what does it look like?

i thought you knew how to use google 

[CharlieH]

10 minutes ago, scubascuba3 said:

The question remains, where is the filter? what does it look like?

Inside the machine a cylindrical shape approx 10 inch long and 2-3 inch diameter.(generally, models vary)

[ChipButty]

Maintenance is not high on the list of things to do with Thai's, the chances of them street machines getting clean are slim to none, along my usual route around my area there is a few, I have never seen a one of them being cleaned, plus they are connected to the city water from what I can see, if not then they would be connected to a well pump, god forbid if they are some of the ground water here is terrible, 

We now have 2 Makro's in the area I buy their brand of bottle water, I don't even know how much is it's that cheap, 

[Liverpool Lou]

1 hour ago, black tabby12345 said:

Yes, they do.

However, frequency of the filter change is not consistent.

In some places, it is replaced once every 3 months though.

 "...it is replaced once every 3 months..."

How could you know that without being a water machine owner?

[jvs]

1 hour ago, sungod said:

20L from the water factory is 40 baht. I'm just living it up

I have had those with worms inside!

[jvs]

We usually are using these machines also.

We used two different ones before but i noticed from the one machine if water stays in a nearly empty

bottle for a few days ir smells like gasoline.

The other one is fine so it is a good thing to check.

[tomazbodner]

1 hour ago, proton said:

 

 

Got one of these and tested our Pure filter system, with recently new filters V the tap water- NO difference. However when testing water from the Coway filter system it would hardly register anything, and far less than tap water. How much is your coway filter?

Mine is Neo Plus, 690/month although it's now only 442/month. My better half using My Ice (Thais love ice cubes!), at 990/month. We both have 5 year contracts, mine is well over 3 years in, the other probably 2-3 years now.

 

I prefer Neo Plus to My Ice as it's very analogue. If water or power get cut - well, fridge and heater no longer work but water is still there and can be used. My Ice is digital and uses a pump to deliver water, so no power, no water. But yes, hers looks sooo much nicer than mine, especially as it is in black.

 

[scubascuba3]

1 hour ago, CharlieH said:

Inside the machine a cylindrical shape approx 10 inch long and 2-3 inch diameter.(generally, models vary)

If it's inside there's no quick way to check it, so the one i used may have been ok

[scubascuba3]

2 hours ago, sungod said:

20L from the water factory is 40 baht. I'm just living it up

They are as unreliable as the 1 baht machines

[3NUMBAS]

Do they filter out micro plastics ?you won’t how much have in your body 

[SAFETY FIRST]

1 hour ago, scubascuba3 said:

The question remains, where is the filter? what does it look like?

You've come to the right place, lots of hydrologists here, they are amongst us. Our many members are educated structural engineers and investigators, the like of Sherlock Holmes etc. 

 

[bkk6060]

Jeez, the filter is probably a rats butt.

[proton]

36 minutes ago, tomazbodner said:

Mine is Neo Plus, 690/month although it's now only 442/month. My better half using My Ice (Thais love ice cubes!), at 990/month. We both have 5 year contracts, mine is well over 3 years in, the other probably 2-3 years now.

 

I prefer Neo Plus to My Ice as it's very analogue. If water or power get cut - well, fridge and heater no longer work but water is still there and can be used. My Ice is digital and uses a pump to deliver water, so no power, no water. But yes, hers looks sooo much nicer than mine, especially as it is in black.

 

 

 

Thought they were more than 442 a month, we must spend that on bottled, might look at getting one. Sister in law has the big one, they certainly work.

[tomazbodner]

1 minute ago, proton said:

 

 

Thought they were more than 442 a month, we must spend that on bottled, might look at getting one. Sister in law has the big one, they certainly work.

you're right. 

 

https://www.coway.co.th/th/products/chp-264l

 

442.50 for first 12 months, then 590/month...

[quake]

2 hours ago, sungod said:

20L from the water factory is 40 baht. I'm just living it up

 

12 baht in my village for 20L

Life is good.

[pomchop]

google reverse osmosis