Recently, I freaked out on my bf after he cracked open a plastic water bottle…at my house. Yes, I did purchase the case, but it was solely meant for a road trip AND other “emergencies”.
Suffice to say, I hate the idea of bottled water. When did drinking tap water become uncool or unsafe for that matter? I grew up drinking tap water and the last I checked, I didn’t sprout an extra limb! So how did bottled water become the latest rage??
(If this post was about exploring how bottled water became popularised, the quick answers would be FEAR and CONVENIENCE. Instead, I want to talk about the alternatives.)
To steer away from bottled water, I try to drink water that has been previously boiled from a kettle. On the go, I’ll use a stainless steel canteen, filled with boiled water OR cooler water at work. <– I hope that’s filtered!
Lately though, I’ve gotten lazy to wash/air-dry the canteen. In addition, I’ve dropped it a few times, so it’s all dented, and doesn’t stand up properly. Furthermore, the plastic around the lid has cracked, so it’s not going to last much longer.
Recently, I discovered a relatively inexpensive solution, the water bobble! Designed by a Canadian, and probably one of the most famous industrial designers, Karim Rashid, the water bobble looks like a plastic water bottle, but it comes with a colourful spout that doubles as a carbon filter.
I’ve been using the bobble for about 2 weeks now and here’s my pro/con list:
PRO
– Unlike boiling water, the bobble can be used instantly…just fill it with water straight from the tap. Yeah, I can finally drink cold water without hours of refrigeration!
– Makes me drink more water
– Cheaper, more green than bottled water
– 1 filter = 300 water bottles
– BPA-free
– Lightweight
– Doesn’t leak
– Great for travelling, especially at the airport. Arrive with it empty, fill at the water fountain after customs
CON
– Probably not a good idea to use hot water or water enhancers such as slices of fruit, green tea with this product
– 3 sucks = 1 gulp for me. The suction system doesn’t dispense enough water…without a lot of effort!
– The packaging states, “Do not use where water is microbiologically unsafe or of unknown quality”, so it’s no miracle worker!
– Uncertainty of when to replace filter. Do I just guestimate how many times it’s been used before buying a new one?
– Bottle and filter (~$7) do eventually have to be replaced at a cost
The pros definitely outweigh the cons, so the bobble is a good addition to any lifestyle!
How do you drink your water?
I enjoy my bottled water
I work for a bottled water plant. It is extremely safe and cheap for the customer. It is more convenient. We are very aware of the environmental impact and have worked through out the years to reduce it. We have paid for tests to ensure that our spring water is renewable.. it is. We have reduced the amount of plastic in our bottles by 30%. When I started our bottle weighed 17.2 g, now it weighs 9.1 g. thats within 10 years. My company is ISO 14001, 18001, 22001 certified and we are constantly working on reducing our impact. When natural or environmental disasters occur we often donate tons of bottles. Our bottle is 100% recyclable and we are currently bottling certain brands of water with 100% recycled material, only problem is that the technology is new and its still expensive. PS. Just for your information Dasani and Aquafina are tap water that works with a reverse osmosis system, my company is pure spring water.
Give me a break? Boiling your tap water? That’s just being paranoid.
lol funny talk tou your government lol sorry we tried that bombarded the MPP office and when the parlimant bill came up for scab labour second bill Mr. Harper told his party to vote the way i vote or your out. Hmmmm so much for my democratic riding its now communism its a joke. We actually have to riot and overthrow them to do anything and people wont so do as you please. You can talk about chemicals in bottled water but whats in the foods you eat , body wash, deod, toothpaste for that matter and flouride. Look it up the natzis used to give the jews that for their teeth in the camps so theyu could deteriate their teeth. Comon people you have to have a better argument than that . We dont live in a fairlyland bubble.
We drink tap water. We do put it in a Brita. Mostly we do this so that it is cold (which is a must for me!) and so that it has a chance to sit to reduce the chlorine taste.
To me, the biggest issue with bottled water is that access to clean water is a basic human right. We are filling the pockets of big businesses like Coca-Cola for bottled water that most of the time, as a previous poster said, is right out of the tap to begin with.
I love the argument that bottled water is “convenient.” How inconvenient is it for me to drive to the store, buy a case for whatever price, drive home, open a bottle, drink it, and hopefully recycle the bottle (never mind the fossil fuels that were burned to make the bottle, transport the empty bottles, fill the bottles, seal the bottles, and transport the full bottles to the store)? Very inconvenient, in my opinion, when compared to going to the tap, filling up a reusable bottle or glass and drinking. Sure, I add in a step where I put it in the refrigerator, which is a step I would do anyway with bottled water.
Drink tap water!!
I suppose we all should go out buy kits to test our own Ph levels of water then another to test what sort of minerals are found in our water then another kit to test how much water we waste daily after we spend 1hr in the washroom then another 2 hours watering our driveways…and they said we had like 3% of the worlds water supply. People pay big bucks to buy the water that may or may not come out of our taps that we ship to other countries…People are still going to drink out of water bottles…if its not in our country it will be in others…
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/article798991.ece
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/story/2011/02/08/calgary-fluoride-city-water-supply-removal.html
Anyone worried about the flouride in tap water. This debate has just recently came to my attention.
First off, WHERE IS MY BOBBLE ALREADY?!? Lol, is my free sample of it ever going to actually come??
Second, I think everyone should try to test or find out about how safe their tap water is. I thought mine was fine, I live in Toronto, and my water tasted fine, but it was tested, and found to have a lead level that was slightly too high, so we got another tap filter. If you have young children, even low levels of these chemicals can be harmful, but on the other hand, I think alot of tap water is safe enough for consumption. This type of filtration is good for when you’re on the go, and has the potential to save on alot of bottles of water from ending up in a garbage dump.
Lastly, the hard sucking required doesn’t sound appealing to me, who wants to be sucking for life when your dying of thirst?? lol
Tap water for me!
Many people in my city complain about smell/taste/quality of our city tap water, but I find it just fine. Perhaps since I have been drinking it since the day I was born, and very rarely ever get sick. So I think the water is just fine.
I honestly think ‘big business’ has scared the average person into thinking anything except bottled water is unsafe.
For the average Canadian, I bet if you had your tap water tested, it would be safe to drink. (I know not everywhere would pass this test.. I’m just saying the majority would pass — we aren’t a third world country!).
I had an issue with this bottle a couple of months ago after about 2 weeks use the filter started to stink really badly and when I replaced the filter, it started to smell within a couple of days and that was with constant washing of the bottle and mouthpiece
I’m a strong advocate of drinking tap water, and always have straight from the tap.…until recently anyways…
While all water is cleaned perfectly when leaving the water treatment plant, by the time it reaches your tap, it probably has picked up some unfavorable things, and in the case of one of my experiences, something that made me sick.
I live in an apartment, one day I unknowingly drank from the tap when the building was doing maintenance on the water tanks or something. The next day I had e-coli up the whazoo. It was awful, I had to go to the hospital to get a fluid IV because I couldn’t keep down any liquids and was dehydrated. I definately knew I wasn’t the only person affected, I heard wrenching and toilet flushes through the walls. The next thing I knew I saw notices posted everywhere saying “Do not drink the water!”. I was feeling to miserable to be angry or complain at the time.
I still drink from the tap, but it’s filtered now. And if I’m iffy about the water, I boil it also.
BTW, there’s a great exhibit at the ROM now about water: http://www.rom.on.ca/water/
When I was sick, all I wanted was clear, cool, clean water. I wanted to gulp it, I wanted to splash in it, I wanted to touch it, I wanted to smell it. It’s the most precious resource we have, and I am so grateful I live in a part of the world, even a part of Canada, where I don’t want for it at all.
Water contamination during maintenance–signs if not posted early enough don’t help YOU. Keep your public health dept. number or clean water number by the phone in case you have that occur again.
Brita has a filter bottle out now for personal water toting. Walmart, Cdn Tire and Zellers are selling the bottles. Some shopping mall kiosks might have them too. Filter and bottle are BPA-free; plastic gets recycled into consumer plastic products later.
As a pedestrian, carrying a metal water bottle is not going to happen due to how heavy that would be (ditto glass bottle). I have used Gatorade sports drink bottles for water (ideal, little chance of leakage) as well as reusing plastic water bottles.
I have to say, The Bottled Water Dilemma Canada is a honestly quality site. I might like to offer you my personal thanks. Best regards, absolutely adore