The water here, from the tap, is generally in better condition than bottled water!

I drink tap water, often gassed up with the Soda Club, or when I do a big shop, I'll buy a couple of crates of "Medium" water (lightly carbonated). I can't stand bottled still spring water, it tastes, well, of nothing! Tap water tastes much better, but having a few litres of chilled sparkling water in the fridge on a hot day is better than pumping the Soda Club every half an hour...

Exactly, I doubt tap water will harm you or bottled water will make you perform 5 million times better at life but the fact of the matter is, I prefer the taste of bottled water.

I drink copious amounts of water, but don't mind much tap water (Although here in Bath I sometimes add some cordial to it). On campus, however, I buy a bottle most days, sometimes two, but at 42p for 1.5L, it's not too outrageously expensive.

Edd

I always drink tap as a preference. I'm used to Wiltshire water, but the water in the W.Midlands tastes fine too, and as long as Severn Trent haven't been messing about with the supply it looks alright as well

Tap water in this part of East Belfast tastes of fluoride (dunno for definite if it's been added or not) and is therefore not much fun to drink, but then I only drink it when taking the odd paracodal or cup of tea

If I actually fancy some water for a change, it's Evian.

When I lived at home with the 'rents in Brum, I drank tap water all the time. Then I went to uni in Soton and the water was foul. Kept to bottled water for the first two years (loved volvic over evian) - used to buy boxes of the stuff. In the third year of uni (and from then on), I've stuck to using a Brita filter like Pingy:



Since then, despite moving to several places, I've found the Brita filter helps make the water taste better. Though when I head back to Brum, I will happily drink tap.


Another thing, when I had to drink tap water in soton (no filter, ran out of bottled, no time for shopping) I fell ill three times. Each time, I was staying at a different accommodation. The first symptom was a sore throat and it would develop from there. Now, when I forget to change the Brita filter (every two months instead of every one month), I begin to get a sore throat!

Tap water for me. Was in Gran Canaria a few weeks ago and just didn't like having to buy bottled water

I have drunk/will drink both, personally I find it very hard to tell the difference.

Tap water,

the Goverment impose 100's more heath and safety regulations on tap water than bottled water.

Plus, if bottled water has "bubbled through streams and bedrock for hundreds of years" to attain it's individual clean flavour....why does it have a sell by date?

Its the maximum time allowed for the water not to get erm.... plasticified.

Hobgob.

Jeez, a girl can't even be facetious around here anymore

If memory serves correct.....
The plastic used to store the water (in the bottle) has harmful (possibly carcinogenic) properties if kept for too long

It's the same reason they do not advise you to reuse them

Which sort of makes me wonder what comparrison there is between water bottled in possibly harmful packaging versus water sitting in pipes until it's used.

At least with a tap you can run the water for a few seconds to get rid of any immediate water that has been sitting in pipes...I usually collect it in a bottle and give to house plants...