Is It Alright To Accidentally Drink Tap Water?

[Chads]

I noticed Thais only drink from bottled water so I've been doing the same. Today I accidentally drank half a glass of water straight from the tap, is that alright?

Excuse my ignorance/naivete, because I know in Indonesia people told me not to take in any amount of water straight from the taps.

[Soutpeel]

Depends were you are in the country...I have drank a lot of tap water over the years were I live with no ill effects

[apetley]

Where do you live?

Some tap water is supposed to be drinkable. Whether you believe it is another matter.

Where I live the local mayor had a big celebration and made a big show of drinking from a public water fountain when the local water works fitted new purifying plant.

[ArtVandalay84]

I've brushed my teeth with tap water. I'm still alive.

[Beechboy]

Quite right Soutpeel. In some areas it is more polluted than others.

I saw a microscopic view of some Bkk. water a few years ago (and this should be the most cleansed). It was crawling with little obscenities, wriggly little things that induced nausea. Full of livlies.

Mostly harmless to the average immune system, but hardly a nice thought.

You should be ok, but avoid it in future my friend. There is only so much fighting that your system can do on your behalf.

[naboo]

Should be fine, though may die from stress if you're too worried about it.

[Soutpeel]

Should be fine, though may die from stress if you're too worried about it.

One assumes if he drank this water this afternoon and posted only 15 minutes ago and is currently not bleeding out from every orifice, he will be ok...if one drinks bad water it will hit you pretty quickly

[chrisinth]

As said above, depends where you are in the country. Also depends how long you have been in that area for your body to acclimatize for all the little bugs and bacteria.

Still, probably the worst you can expect is to have a full flush through.

[Shot]

Actually, it can take up to 12-15 hours depending on the strain of the infection. Giardia takes days, maybe even a week.

Sleep well.

[chrisinth]

Should be fine, though may die from stress if you're too worried about it.

One assumes if he drank this water this afternoon and posted only 15 minutes ago and is currently not bleeding out from every orifice, he will be ok...if one drinks bad water it will hit you pretty quickly

OP seems to have gone quiet for the last 18 minutes..............

[mjj]

About 9 years ago I did some English teaching at the Bangkok Water Works. I asked them if is ok to drink tap water and they said it was. I also asked them if they drank tap water, they all laughed and said no. Says it all I think.

[harrry]

In fairness ,and to put the op out of his misery....if needed....Piped water in Thai cities is generally safe as it is heavily treated however local leakage in pipes and dirty building storage tanks can affect this. IF the OP doesn't come back we will know why.

[arthurwait]

If it's not you're find out soon enough.

[Tywais]

I do drink bottled water, but have occasionally had drinks from the tap at hotels. Also been brushing my teeth and making coffee with tap water and ice cubes for around 20 years with no si si sig sign of problems.

[barefoot1988]

you might need to see a doctor. not for the water though but slight paranoid personality disorder

[Swiss1960]

Should be fine, though may die from stress if you're too worried about it.

One assumes if he drank this water this afternoon and posted only 15 minutes ago and is currently not bleeding out from every orifice, he will be ok...if one drinks bad water it will hit you pretty quickly

OP seems to have gone quiet for the last 18 minutes..............

fingernails already falling out... can't type anymore...

[draggons]

Been all over Asia for the last thirty odd years and had some really bad cases of the sh**s after drinking tap water. Still alive and kicking though

[zziffle]

Definitely not alright. You should apologize.

[Payboy]

Quick antidote - dilute with beer straight from the tap.

[Beetlejuice]

You`re live, but in future, I wouldn`t chance it.

[Chittychangchang]

Stick to the Chang it's safer.

[MrHammer]

Who can drink the tapwater anyway, it has a horrible, horrible taste. Makes you feel thirsty after drinking it.

I once got very bad stomach cramps after using some tap water for coffee which you'd think was safe, so my guess is it depends on the plumbing and metal/chemicals in the supply.

[gk10002000]

IThe idea is to minimize possibility and numbers of bacteria and organisms you may ingest or inhale. Ice cubes are often made from tap water. So some people order no ice. I typically use bottled water when brushing my teeth to avoid the water as much as possible. Of course, don't forget that when you shower, you are probably using "tap" water and are inhaling and ingesting water that you just dont think about. Water sits around who knows where in the plumbing and for who knows how long. Thai water mains tend not to be pressurised as western lines are. The pipes definitely can have more inputs than desired. That is why so many places have water tanks on roof. They pump the water up there and use gravity for the pressure in the building

[travelmann]

Its only ok if non accidentally drunk

[cdnvic]

If there`s been flooding recently you may want to be a little more cautious, but in major centres brushing with tap water is no big deal.

[chessplayer]

If it is only bugs and germs will not boiling it be sufficient? Apparently most Thais think otherwise and an additional filter is necessary.

[lopburi3]

Actually boiling is more effective than normal filter used by most Thai (which filters most bacteria) but when I was here more than 30 years ago the US Embassy medical unit had Bangkok water tested against the best bottled water and tap water was cleaner. Although the mantra has always been "clean at treatment plant" but chance of contamination en-route that chance has been greatly reduced in Bangkok and many other areas in recent years. But most will drink from a bottle or at least use a filter (partly at least due to the status it brings I fear). I have been using basic ceramic filter for many decades but would not be concerned with tap drinking here in Bangkok. But as said how much you can tolorate is often a key factor - a new traveler may get ill much faster than those who have tasted the taps for awhile.

[expat63]

I had never taken that risk drinking tap water when you know that even the ground water,both under and over the bedrocks, are poluted with pesticide. Its only in Japan the tap water is suitable as drinking water.

[Soutpeel]

Western water mains are not "pressurised" either in the way you mean and in most respects are the same as Thai one's...

One of the biggest water distribution companies in Thailand is "Thames Water" ....

So in certain parts of the country the water in ya taps is being managed by a British company...

[craigt3365]

This is a good thread to review:

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/385634-bottled-water-is-it-safe/

And then this one will really make you think:

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/571167-just-one-fifth-of-wastewater-in-thailand-is-being-treated/

They do a pretty good job of getting rid of the bugs, unless you have cracks in your delivery pipes or unclean holding tanks. It's the pesticides and heavy metals that are the concern. But both tap water and bottled water contain these. Tough choices for sure.