I see people, both locals and foreigners in Thailand, get so worked up over which brand of bottled water everyone should be drinking because it’s “the best of the bunch,” and it’s exhausting. Honestly, I can’t tell the difference between Singha, Crystal, Nestle, Minere, Pura, Namthip, Mont Fleur, Chang, Aura, et al., nor could I give a toss. As long as it’s cold, that’s all that matters.

 

When I first came here, it was mainly Polaris delivery in glass bottles and various brands of 5 Baht water in those big, squishy, frosted, plastic bottles. Now Thailand has moved on from that, and suddenly everyone thinks brand matters.

 

The big packs of Singha used to have an onboard carry strap, which was useful, but that’s gone, so they’ve fallen out of favor. If anything, I just go for Tops house brand. Easier on the wallet and the big bottles are a little thicker and don’t collapse in your hand like some of the others. That’s my only “preference.”

 

Sometimes I wonder if the whole thing is just a bunch of petty snobbery over something as common as H2O.

I kind of like Evian, but each to his own.

I just buy those 5L jugs at 7-ll.  I do not care about the brand. Just whatever is cheapest, which is usually the 7-11 brand.  After it's finished I just fill them up at those water refill stations all over the place for 4 baht. 

 

I think buying a bunch of smaller individual plastic bottles is a waste of money. Also bad for the environment if they are not being recycled.  

2 hours ago, Harry Tuchas said:

Sometimes I wonder if the whole thing is just a bunch of petty snobbery over something as common as H2O

thats exactly what it is , and its nothing new, nor is it unique to water. Its a mixture of snobbery spurred on by marketing techniques based on the snobbery

Because in Thailand image is everything even what water you drink. You'd think this would lead to a nation of cool hipsters but in reality we just see consumerism.

Problem with the 1 baht water machines you don't know if the filter is working and clean, i switched to Makro Aro 1.5L

There is a difference between water that comes in plastic bottles vs the ones in glass. Especially in a hot country like thailand where the water is often left outside in the heat and direct sunlight. 

 

Other than that ya its all the same. 

9 minutes ago, blaze master said:

There is a difference between water that comes in plastic bottles vs the ones in glass. Especially in a hot country like thailand where the water is often left outside in the heat and direct sunlight. 

 

Other than that ya its all the same. 

Who buys drinking water in glass bottles? never seen it

 

Some bottled water has added minerals

1 minute ago, scubascuba3 said:

Who buys drinking water in glass bottles? never seen it

 

Some bottled water has added minerals

 

There is a thai brand usually at bars and hotels that comes in a glass bottle. It has a peel off tab on the top. Blue writing if i remember correctly.

 

The things im referring to have nothing to do with added minerals.

 

Its the glass vs plastic part thats important when taken into consideration with the other things I mentioned. 

11 hours ago, blaze master said:

There is a thai brand usually at bars and hotels that comes in a glass bottle. It has a peel off tab on the top. Blue writing if i remember correctly.

 

But 10x more expensive. I ordered one in a restaurant once. Can't remember how much I paid. At least 60 baht for a small bottle. 

 

Mineral water is also sold in glass bottles, but also much more expensive than regular water.

 

 

8 minutes ago, blaze master said:

 

There is a thai brand usually at bars and hotels that comes in a glass bottle. It has a peel off tab on the top. Blue writing if i remember correctly.

 

The things im referring to have nothing to do with added minerals.

 

Its the glass vs plastic part thats important when taken into consideration with the other things I mentioned. 

no one is buying large 1.5L or 6L glass bottles of water, small bottles in restaurants and bars who cares

Just now, scubascuba3 said:

no one is buying large 1.5L or 6L glass bottles of water, small bottles in restaurants and bars who cares

 

Ok.

I only drink commercially bottled water if eating out, as I have a filtering system at home. I find that my home filtered water is way better than store bought. Nice and crisp.

 

I measure the <removed> (Total Dissolved Solids) and litres used in my filtered water to manage the frequency changing of the filters. I have previously measured the <removed> of bottled water and the alleged "filtered water" from a couple of vending machines.

 

The former is of a decent standard but nowhere close to my homebrew. The machine stuff - I wouldn't wash my scooter with it.

 

EDIT: The phobic censor bot removed my three-letter-abbreviation for Total Dissolved Solids. What's the world coming to. 

1 hour ago, scubascuba3 said:

Who buys drinking water in glass bottles? never seen it

We do.

Crates with 24 bottles of 0.5l.

Singha brand.

It's a system of buy in exchange of empty crate/bottles.

One time spend for initial purchase

Not for upper floor condo renters on scooters (no offence).

You need a car and a ground floor house. 

You don't get it at supermarkt chains. Specialized beverage shops/traders.

Plenty in Pattaya. A few in district towns 

 

Water, soda water (0.4l) and Pepsi/Coke (sweet soda) stuff etc. is the norm for all professionals at bars etc.

Rare and not very convincing to get plastic bottles at a bar/restaurant.

 

Soda water in 0.33 disposable glass bottles is available at most supermarkets. The are just in the return/recycle trade.

 

I rarely drink from plastic bottles. I throw away opened bottles even if not completely emptied.

7 hours ago, Harry Tuchas said:

I see people, both locals and foreigners in Thailand, get so worked up over which brand of bottled water everyone should be drinking because it’s “the best of the bunch,” and it’s exhausting. Honestly, I can’t tell the difference between Singha, Crystal, Nestle, Minere, Pura, Namthip, Mont Fleur, Chang, Aura, et al., nor could I give a toss. As long as it’s cold, that’s all that matters.

 

When I first came here, it was mainly Polaris delivery in glass bottles and various brands of 5 Baht water in those big, squishy, frosted, plastic bottles. Now Thailand has moved on from that, and suddenly everyone thinks brand matters.

 

The big packs of Singha used to have an onboard carry strap, which was useful, but that’s gone, so they’ve fallen out of favor. If anything, I just go for Tops house brand. Easier on the wallet and the big bottles are a little thicker and don’t collapse in your hand like some of the others. That’s my only “preference.”

 

Sometimes I wonder if the whole thing is just a bunch of petty snobbery over something as common as H2O.

As long as it’s cold

 

When it is cold , you taste less.

 

I can tell the difference between some of them.

2 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

Problem with the 1 baht water machines you don't know if the filter is working and clean, i switched to Makro Aro 1.5L

 

I just checked the Makro site. Right now you can get a pack of eight 1.5L bottles for 39 Baht, which is pretty good value. Thanks. I’ll probably go for that when I need to restock next month. 

 

I avoid those filter machines though. Feels like playing water roulette. I do wonder if filtration standards vary from factory to factory though or maybe they don't. Almost 30 years ago, there was a scandal in the local papers about one of the biggest factories at the time being caught having filthy filtration systems. I think it might have been Polaris or maybe Singha, but I can’t remember exactly.

 

Back then, I was also told that most water production factories were along a pretty dirty part of the river in Pittsanalok and were using that river water as their source for bottling. That’s some “mineral water” for you and isn't quite the natural spring water you see flowing on the label. 

 

I assume standards are much higher now in Thailand, so worrying about filtration reliability and what’s in bottled water is probably water under the klong bridge these days. But who knows?

 

20 minutes ago, KhunBENQ said:

We do.

Crates with 24 bottles of 0.5l.

Singha brand.

It's a system of buy in exchange of empty crate/bottles.

One time spend for initial purchase

Not for upper floor condo renters on scooters (no offence).

You need a car and a ground floor house. 

You don't get it at supermarkt chains. Specialized beverage shops/traders.

Plenty in Pattaya. A few in district towns 

 

Water, soda water (0.4l) and Pepsi/Coke (sweet soda) stuff etc. is the norm for all professionals at bars etc.

Rare and not very convincing to get plastic bottles at a bar/restaurant.

 

Soda water in 0.33 disposable glass bottles is available at most supermarkets. The are just in the return/recycle trade.

 

I rarely drink from plastic bottles. I throw away opened bottles even if not completely emptied.

I once visited a local delivery shop that supplied the glass bottles to restaurants in the area because I was considering joining their glass water bottle exchange program. They had Burmese delivery guys riding three-wheeled motorcycles making the delivery rounds. Old school.
 

The owner pretty much talked me out of it though. He said he doesn’t recommend it for home use, inevitably you’ll break a few bottles here and there, have to clean up the broken glass, and pay for replacements. That was enough to convince me not to go ahead.

3 minutes ago, Harry Tuchas said:

He said he doesn’t recommend it for home use, inevitably you’ll break a few bottles here and there, have to clean up the broken glass, and pay for replacements. That was enough to convince me not to go ahead.

Not a good salesman 😁

Sure over the years it happens that you break a few bottles. Haven't counted. 5 Baht for missing bottle. Maybe a problem with children in the house?

 

We have a buffer of 6 crates so it will be a while till feeling the need to "fill up".

28 minutes ago, KhunBENQ said:

We do.

Crates with 24 bottles of 0.5l.

Singha brand.

It's a system of buy in exchange of empty crate/bottles.

One time spend for initial purchase

Not for upper floor condo renters on scooters (no offence).

You need a car and a ground floor house. 

You don't get it at supermarkt chains. Specialized beverage shops/traders.

Plenty in Pattaya. A few in district towns 

 

Water, soda water (0.4l) and Pepsi/Coke (sweet soda) stuff etc. is the norm for all professionals at bars etc.

Rare and not very convincing to get plastic bottles at a bar/restaurant.

 

Soda water in 0.33 disposable glass bottles is available at most supermarkets. The are just in the return/recycle trade.

 

I rarely drink from plastic bottles. I throw away opened bottles even if not completely emptied.

so presumably you have filtered water at home otherwise you'd go through thousands of bottles. I wasn't referring to small bottles, more the 1.5l and 6l

18 minutes ago, Harry Tuchas said:

 

I just checked the Makro site. Right now you can get a pack of eight 1.5L bottles for 39 Baht, which is pretty good value. Thanks. I’ll probably go for that when I need to restock next month. 

 

I avoid those filter machines though. Feels like playing water roulette. I do wonder if filtration standards vary from factory to factory though or maybe they don't. Almost 30 years ago, there was a scandal in the local papers about one of the biggest factories at the time being caught having filthy filtration systems. I think it might have been Polaris or maybe Singha, but I can’t remember exactly.

 

Back then, I was also told that most water production factories were along a pretty dirty part of the river in Pittsanalok and were using that river water as their source for bottling. That’s some “mineral water” for you and isn't quite the natural spring water you see flowing on the label. 

 

I assume standards are much higher now in Thailand, so worrying about filtration reliability and what’s in bottled water is probably water under the klong bridge these days. But who knows?

 

Makro have been doing the Aro 8x 1.5l for a couple months now, could stop any time though

10 minutes ago, scubascuba3 said:

so presumably you have filtered water at home otherwise you'd go through thousands of bottles. I wasn't referring to small bottles, more the 1.5l and 6l

Ok. Different topic.

For cooking/coffee and the like we use the big 5 gallon (~18l) hard(!) plastic bottles.

Supplier comes by every other time. 12 Baht for a bottle in exchange for empty bottle.

About 0.7 Baht/liter.

 

Drinking water from glass bottles comes out at 5 Baht/liter.

 

We filter communal water quite  elaborate but only for shower, teeth brush, laundry...

45 minutes ago, KhunBENQ said:

For cooking/coffee and the like we use the big 5 gallon (~18l) hard(!) plastic bottles.

Supplier comes by every other time. 12 Baht for a bottle in exchange for empty bottle.

About 0.7 Baht/liter.

Problem with those is you can't really trust they are filtered properly, back to the same problem as the 1 baht machines. Now if you bought from a huge big name company fair enough, like Makro, Lotus, Big C 6l bottles

8 hours ago, Harry Tuchas said:

I see people, both locals and foreigners in Thailand, get so worked up over which brand of bottled water everyone should be drinking

When I first arrived, 7eleven were selling very cheap bottled water, it came in a similar bottle, to the distilled water below. 

 

The girlfriend would tell me not to buy. 

 

 

8 hours ago, Harry Tuchas said:

I see people, both locals and foreigners in Thailand, get so worked up over which brand of bottled water everyone should be drinking because it’s “the best of the bunch,” and it’s exhausting. Honestly, I can’t tell the difference between Singha, Crystal, Nestle, Minere, Pura, Namthip, Mont Fleur, Chang, Aura, et al., nor could I give a toss. As long as it’s cold, that’s all that matters.

 

When I first came here, it was mainly Polaris delivery in glass bottles and various brands of 5 Baht water in those big, squishy, frosted, plastic bottles. Now Thailand has moved on from that, and suddenly everyone thinks brand matters.

 

The big packs of Singha used to have an onboard carry strap, which was useful, but that’s gone, so they’ve fallen out of favor. If anything, I just go for Tops house brand. Easier on the wallet and the big bottles are a little thicker and don’t collapse in your hand like some of the others. That’s my only “preference.”

 

Sometimes I wonder if the whole thing is just a bunch of petty snobbery over something as common as H2O.

Can't say I recall anyone,Thai or otherwise, getting worked up over a bottle of water.

Same as KB above and get 18+L hard plastic bottles delivered every week of so.  20 baht per botte if delivered, 15 if we pick up.

 

Just buy the cheapest at the chain store, unless wanting mineral water.  We get 7-11 six L (?) bottles when O&A.

 

 

 

2 hours ago, Gsxrnz said:

I only drink commercially bottled water if eating out, as I have a filtering system at home. I find that my home filtered water is way better than store bought. Nice and crisp.

 

I measure the <removed> (Total Dissolved Solids) and litres used in my filtered water to manage the frequency changing of the filters. I have previously measured the <removed> of bottled water and the alleged "filtered water" from a couple of vending machines.

 

The former is of a decent standard but nowhere close to my homebrew. The machine stuff - I wouldn't wash my scooter with it.

 

EDIT: The phobic censor bot removed my three-letter-abbreviation for Total Dissolved Solids. What's the world coming to. 

 

 

I agree, I produce my own drinking water and change the filters regularly, which I doubt is done in the water you buy. At least I can be sure I'm drinking quality water.

 

It appears that most people purchase their water based on cost.

Don't people consider the taste?  Tea is very important in my life, so the taste of the water is very important to me.

I won't use most brands of bottled water for my tea as they ruin a good brew.

 

I installed an under-sink 5-stage filter from HomePro, installed it in about 20 minutes, and now have all the good-tasting water I want, cheaply (I spent 5,000 years ago to buy the unit, and about 500 baht a year replacing filter cartridges).

I guess if you are only in Thailand for a few months a year, renting a different place each time, you are forced to live with buying bottles of water. But if you are here for the long run, I find that a water filter is a much cheaper, more convenient option.

So long as its wet and doesn't have a bad taste, I'm good.

I pay 380bath for 20 6 packs delivered to our home once a month.

No desire for a filter system.

Whatever people choose up to them. 

I find the majority of the waters salty and have bad after taste and can cause odd stomach issues.

The only water I drink is Mont Fluer.

Years ago i live in a Room off of Third rd South Pattaya, the Room overlooked a Water Factory  where i used to watch them fill those big Plastic bottles via a large bore Hose pipe,   the surprising thing was  those large bottles with  a blue tint that sell  for more money than the White bottlles are filled from the same Hose pipe