What is Digg?197 Comments
- Salgat, on 10/11/2007, -4/+99I buy cheap bottled water(5 bucks will last me at least 2 weeks, thats nothing to cry over) because the water here at my apartment tastes like crap(and I'm a bit doubtful on their plumbing reliability considering how they handled the basement flooding with sewage). To me its worth it to buy bottled water.
- wonderchemist, on 10/11/2007, -10/+82Never worth it, unless you are dying of dehydration...
- SaxxonPike, on 10/11/2007, -8/+69You're really just buying overpriced plastic. The water? It's just an included bonus.
- Pozer, on 10/11/2007, -9/+62this must be the worst article about how bad bottled water is. this guy is just frustrated about his "co-worker or colleague". he doesn't make a clear point. He could have made so much more better points and come with better facts. But he just chooses to bad mouth the dude he works with and disguise it as a "Bottled water is bad for the world" article. The fact of the matter is, this dude doesn't waste his time and money but his boss his time and money and stealing company water/money. He doesn't waste any water at home so he saves money. yeah bottled water and tap water are the same in most cases (especially in the states) because utility companies over there bottle, package it and give it some zen name and promote it, your buying yourself a product. The only water that really sells over here ( in Holland and i guess in most other west-European countries) is water that is bottled from springs. But 99% of the people over here just drink tap water because the utility companies have strict rules for how clean the water must be before the can start pump into pipes. thank god for government (EU) rules and regulations. BURY this article
- Wonderkind, on 10/11/2007, -2/+34Bottled water was worth it when:
1. Hurricane Ivan destroyed our house in NW Florida and there was no running water for miles.
2. When I try drinking tap water that actually has an odor. (Try the water in Pensacola. Yech!)
3. When I owned a deli. I bought it for a dime and sold it for a dollar. - Mu99ins, on 10/11/2007, -2/+30Public water is usually healthy, but under some circumstances, it isn't.
As an industrial plumber, I took a night class on backflow prevention.
Backflow, resulting from negative pressure in the water piping system,
is the culprit. I'm talking not only from industry, like aerospace, meatpacking,
and elecro-plating, which most of the time do not pollute the water system,
(although I've seen gross infractions), let me mention the problem of backflow
from residential units. Replacement ball ***** assemblies for residential
toilets are almost all have sufficient backflow prevention. Unfortunately,
this is not necessarily true of the very cheapest brands. Another residential
problem area is the carpet cleaners that hook directly to the kitchen faucet.
Normally, these do not present a back flow problem, but in rare moments of
high usage, which are early morning and early evening, there can occur negative
pressure in the piping system. There's only so much pressure and supply in
the pipes, and If enough people put demand on the water, the pressure will
go from positive to negative. So, sometimes toilet tank water and also carpet
cleaning soapy water get into the water pipes. Also, there are homeowners who
think they understand how to install water sprinklers for their garden and lawn,
but fail to understand that they require backflow devices. In short, you do not
know how safe your water is, and the health inspector is not in the business of
telling you. - inactive, on 10/11/2007, -7/+34@shadus
Fiji is over priced and over rated. You do realize distilled water is as pure as you're going to get, and water should have absolutely no taste. Also,
http://digg.com/environment/The_true_impact_of_Fiji_bottled_water_absoluetly_staggering - crackah, on 10/11/2007, -12/+33Tip:
Buy bottled water only once, then just keep refilling the bottles!
There is some common sense! - scabbers, on 10/11/2007, -0/+17Barely anyone who commented so far seems to have actually RTFA. It's just some bizarre ramble about how someone is wasting their time by filling up their own bottles at the water cooler at work... and it doesn't even make any sense.
- Diggtatorship, on 10/11/2007, -4/+19Bottled water makes sense in lots of situations. It's a convenient way to carry water when you're not at home. I buy the cheapest bottled water at costco and refill each bottle about 10 times sometimes more.
The convenience of having a portable disposable water bottle is more than worth the pennies per bottle that it ends up costing me. - shadus, on 10/11/2007, -8/+23@omgwtfroflmaox2
I fully realize it is massively overpriced... I'd disagree with overrated though. My family owned a small grade stainless steel commercial distiller when I was a kid, I was used to tasteless water, which is good don't get me wrong. Far better than the sulfur taste our water had to be sure... but even having drank good distilled water and even natural spring water straight out of the ground in a park about 20m from my house... neither compare. Fiji *does* have a taste and IMO it tastes better than tasteless water... although, I would argue mineral water and spring water have a taste and that is also superior to distilled water in flavor.
You'll also notice in that article you linked that they recalculated it because they were using absolute bs numbers... and the numbers STILL look suspect to me. (Not that I'd expect unbiased accurate information from a site called "treehugger" shrug.)
Regardless of the cost of bottling the stuff, I still say it tastes better than any other water I've had in my life. - cyberpope, on 10/11/2007, -0/+15I drink mainly bottled water. Here in Ukraine the water quality is veeeery poor. I buy water mainly in those large 5/6 liter high grade plastic bottles. Tastes better then the Brita filtered water (also most filters here are overly expensive).
- inactive, on 10/11/2007, -0/+15"I guess this is why this person is a colleague and not a friend."
WTF? Because of his water drinking habits!? - Bahimiron, on 10/11/2007, -0/+13This guy's kind of a dick.
He says that he's tried 'several times' to explain to his co-worker that he's not saving money. Gosh, I wonder why his co-worker doesn't want to talk to him anymore. Could it be the fact that he's a ***** badgering little manbitch who can't keep his ***** out of other people's business? I think yes! - Satanael, on 10/11/2007, -0/+13Article sounds a little cynical against his co-worker.
- Ninjab3ar, on 10/11/2007, -4/+17I cant stand Fiji drinkers. They have been so fooled by its marketing that they are willing to pay $4.00 for a bottle of water because it "tastes" different
- fireball74, on 10/11/2007, -1/+14Aside from the rambling article and the guys fetish over the coworker, I'll still have to disagree that bottled water isn't worth it. Our local tap water generally smells and tastes like a swimming pool. I have a big problem with ingesting that much chlorine or chloramine. Bottled water, even if it's just heavily filtered tap water, usually tastes a lot better than anything I can get out of my tap.
- kinesis8, on 10/11/2007, -10/+22"Bottled Water - Never worth it."
Duh. Was there any doubt on this one?
I've been drinking faucet water ever since I began college. If you're really concerned, just boil the water beforehand. - inactive, on 10/11/2007, -3/+15think about how much bottled water costs compared to gasoline.
everyone complains about gas prices, but not much about water prices - phenom2k7, on 10/11/2007, -0/+11Sorry, I'm confused.
How the hell is he losing money by filling up empty water bottles?
This article is crap and the guy comes across as a right douche bag. - roosterjm2k2, on 10/11/2007, -1/+12Whether or not bottled water is worth it or not is purely opinion.
"Worth" alone denotes opinion, as "worth" changes from person to person. That said, its worth it to ME. Why? Like the guy above, I drink Fiji. I don't care how different it really is, but I do know that its *nearly tasteless, it's easy to drink, i tend to prefer what flavor it does have to that of other bottled waters.
That said, if i'm not drinking it pure, then I'll either use tap water (for my tea/coffee), or dasani. You can get a 24-pack of dasani for like $4 on sale at either Target or Walmart at pretty much any time. And propel makes little packets made for 20/24oz bottles, add a good bit of flavor with marginal calories ...
Also, in all of the US, and most of the world, the water standards are only in effect up to the mains. Once it leaves the mains, there are no regulations or testing requrired (federally, some states require testing closer to the house). If you live out in the country, then you might be going through a miles of old pipes, unchecked. Or, if you're like me, you could be on well water. Ours, luckily, is pretty clean (we test it regularly) and we have a main (after the pump) filter system, then an under the sink filter system, and also the fridge has its own filter systems. So yeah, our water is plenty "healthy" to drink, but I prefer flavor and mineral content of bottled water when drinking it pure.
Lastly, a little PSA: If you have filters, CHANGE THEM REGULARLY. A friend of mine's whole family was getting and staying sick all the time. They checked everything (mold in walls, attic, crawlspace, air vents...etc) ... turns out it was just that they hadn't changed their water filter for like a year. After that activated carbon has done its job as much as it can, it becomes a great place for bacteria to fester... so keep that in mind. - swiftekho, on 10/11/2007, -1/+11Bottled water is easy though... It's "good to go"
I'm one of those last minute kinda guys and so when I can get hydrated quickly without having to worry about how cold my drink will be or if I may spill it, I'll do it... Cheap bottled water is the way to go... Like store brand (Kroger, Publix, Costco etc) - Pozer, on 10/11/2007, -0/+9that's what i said an hour ago, but I'm just getting buried for it. People are only reading the head lines now a days.
this thing actually made the front page, that's a real disgrace. - lieutenantmudd, on 10/11/2007, -2/+10Just because something is overpriced doesn't make a bad buy for a consumer. Look at text messages for cellphones. Way overpriced, but when I send one, it's worth my dime.
Sure, tap water may have the same taste and be free, but having water pre-bottled is convenient for enough people to have a whole industry. - CushyL, on 10/11/2007, -13/+21Bottled water is the pet rock of the 21st century.
- Robboblob, on 10/11/2007, -0/+7@justlanavigator
1) the UK is not unique in adding flouride (or other chemicals) to tap water. the US actually does this a lot more.
see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_fluoridation#United_States
2) The reason dental problems are increasing is because it is now nigh on impossible to find an National Health Service dentist, even for emergency treatment. and most cannot afford private treatment as such dentists often charge up to 5 times what is standard on the national health sevice.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4860498.stm
Rob. - Cornloaf, on 10/11/2007, -0/+7Bottled water is worth it when you are working in the Philippines. There is no way I will drink the tap water again. Plus side is that a 1 liter bottle of distilled water only costs about $0.43.
- phatboyslim, on 10/11/2007, -0/+6Have to respectfully disagree. Alot of old buildings here in Chicago have their original pipes with lead and other mineral problems. Additionally, the college town I attended, had a high level of radium in the ground water and encouraged purchasing bottled water. To go even further, with fireball's comment, tap water usually tastes like a swimming pool, and as long as I recycle, $4 for 24 bottles is cheaper than pepsi/coke which is even worse for you.
- mattxb, on 10/11/2007, -2/+8Nalgene bottles are great, and pretty much indestructable
At my apt. we have a brita tap on our kitchen sink, and I fill up my nalgene and take it all over the place. Its also nice because 2 nalgene bottles are the amount of water you're supposed to drink every day, if you try to pay attention to that kind of stuff. - PueSi, on 10/11/2007, -0/+6Here in Mexico we also buy bottled water, some people do drink from the tap but mexican tap water has this distinctive taste that i don't like. The good thing is that we have big ass 19 liter bottles which cost one or two dollars to refill.
- puny_midget, on 10/11/2007, -0/+5It's actually about $1 for a 600mL bottle if you know where to look. At least that's how much I usually pay in Sydney.
Also, boiling water is a completely effective way to kill bacteria. It's just that most people turn their kettles off right when the water boils instead of waiting the advised ~30 seconds or so that is required to kill stubborn bacteria.
But bacteria aren't your only concern. Suspended particles, various ions, and dissolved salts can still get through. And those fancy Brita-filters? They're only good for removing the obvious, suspended particles, letting other impurities pass without challenge. Paranoid yet?
Sydney, however, has some of the best and most drinkable tap water in the world - so you shouldn't really be worried about contamination. Plus it has those handy Flouride ions which prevent tooth decay (a feature that bottled water noticable lacks). - iceperson, on 10/11/2007, -0/+5"Duh. Was there any doubt on this one?"
Other things that are a waste of $$$
1) Beer
2) Soda
3) Pretty much everything you've ever spent $$$ on. - JrGhoull, on 10/11/2007, -1/+6it doesnt make sense if theres clean water avaliable. if there isnt any however....
i'm goin to china in a couple of weeks and had orientation today. One of the things they covered? drink bottled water. In many places throughout the world, the water is not so safe thaty you should drink it. the natives are either used to w/e is in the water (think mexico) or are putting the water through a process before drinking it (eg boiling it). In america it doesnt make much sense, unless something is really wrong with ur pipes, in which case u can get it fixed or use one of thoswe water purifiers. basically, in the usa it doesnt make sense, or any other 1st world country...but u go onto 2nd and even 3rd world countries...either you get water you know is clean or risk suffering some serious consequences. - thepeopleseason, on 10/11/2007, -0/+4@crackah: you shouldn't refill water bottles.
There's been various studies around which indicate that PET, Polycarbonite, and other commonly-used plastic water bottles tend to leech toxins such as bisphenol-A or antimony when re-used/heated. So leaving that case of Dasani in your car isn't doing your health any favors. - Homunculiheaded, on 10/11/2007, -0/+4Did anyone even read this article? The person it discusses IS NOT BUYING his bottled water he's taking it from the water cooler at work and bringing it home... which doesn't sound like such a bad idea if you don't mind transporting the bottles. The article is just some bitter ***** trying to pee in his co-worker's cheerios.
- supernovasky, on 10/11/2007, -0/+4Wow. Some of the people commenting obviously have not had to drink the ***** that comes out of my tap.
- mt066, on 10/11/2007, -0/+4The water in any of the faucets at my office tastes like a filthy pipe. There's no mistaking it. So what am I supposed to do, lug a gallon jug from my faucet to work twice a week on the metro? I can get water for an even $1, so what's wrong with that? And how come there is all this talk of "bad for the environment" when people have been buying bottled beverages for decades now?
- spambutcher, on 10/11/2007, -1/+5bottled water's competitor often isn't tapwater - it's sodapop / powerdrinks / etc.
I drink bottled water when I'm going on an impromptu hike / road trip / etc. I wouldn't drink it around the house or office.
It would of course make more sense to plan - and refill a water bottle (saving $.85) - but that's not always the way things work out.
same reason I'd go to subway as oppose to making / packing a sandwich. not that it's any better - it's just more convenient. - Dundasbro, on 10/11/2007, -0/+4@ 1randomguy
Yeah but it depends mate. It's comparable to coke in supermarkets and coke sold from a fish and chips shop. A room temperature 2L bottle of coke from the supermarket will cost roughly the same as a cold 600ml bottle from the fish and chips shop you plan to drink at that moment. Same as you can spend $2 for 600ml cold water from a fish and chips shop or you can buy a 12 pack for about $4.16 from aldi. It all depends... (This is coming from a fellow Aussie) - Raingwc, on 10/11/2007, -0/+4The only reason I buy bottled water is on a hot summer day, out on town and I have no water available to just go and drink from, so I buy a already chilled bottle of water, handy to carry around, doesn't spill. Nothing wrong in that, right?
- GonzoLiga, on 10/11/2007, -1/+5Both of them need to stop yakking about water and get back to work.
- Tobark, on 10/11/2007, -0/+4From the article:
"So, for the sake of argument, he spends 20 minutes a day on water. And he saves about $2.50 each day, so that means he’s saving $7.50 per hour."
How does this math work? How does $2.50 a day equate to saving $7.50 an hour??? - fatpads, on 10/11/2007, -0/+4FTA "I guess this is why this person is a colleague and not a friend. I have tried to explain this to him on several occasions, running through the numbers with him and talking about how his business presence is severely compromised with this money-saving habit of his, but to no avail."
I think the reason he's a colleague and not a friend is because the article writer is a complete wanker. - intense321, on 10/11/2007, -0/+4@mu99ins
Kudos to you for using the words "ball *****" and still being dugg up because you made it sound intelligent! - numb, on 10/11/2007, -2/+62.5 gallons of drinking water from the supermarket = $1.99. It lasts me a couple weeks. Not only does it taste better than the tap water here, it's way more refreshing. They add so much junk to the tap water here that you actually feel more dehydrated after drinking it than before. $1/week for bottled water here is well worth it.
- Bizdorph, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3the tool who wrote this article used incorrect math.
the guy is not losing an money because he does not lose pay for doing this. he works at an office so he's on a salary, not an hourly wage. the 20 minutes he spends getting this water is not penalised in any way shape or form, so he is saving money.
duh. - roosterjm2k2, on 10/11/2007, -1/+4cerialthriller,
if you're getting your city water directly out of a main, then yes, it will be damned clean.
The problem is, that the city isnt responsible for the cleanliness of the water after the main, which leaves anywhere from a few feet to miles of feeder pipe for it to go through. Considering backwash and leeching, those pipes are far from as clean as the main. If you live in a rural area, its even worse, because feeder will run even more distance, and likely be older than that of a densely populated city. Ever looked into an old pipe (i did recently, they are replacing them around where I work) .. ***** they are gross, rust, sediment in every color of the rainbow....I really dont want to be drinking that... - orbit1979, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3"think about how much bottled water costs compared to gasoline.
everyone complains about gas prices, but not much about water prices"
I hate this argument. It is flawed. Well maybe not if we are talking about "fiji" water or some trendy yuppy ***** like that. But if one buys gallon jugs of water, they cost around $.60 - $.80 depending on where you buy it. Even if you went through two jugs a day, the cost is not even close to what it cost the average person for gasoline per week. Or, if you buy a 24-pack of bottle water at an average price of $5, and go through 3 or 4 per week, again, the average person will not spend close to what the weekly gasoline bill would be. - joe573, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3Im getting sick of seeing these stories. I don't buy bottled water because I think it is safer. I buy it because of the convenience of being able to take it with me and, probably more importantly, because it tastes better than my tap water. Im sure most people feel the same way. Buried as lame.
- iceperson, on 10/11/2007, -1/+4"Never worth it, unless you are dying of dehydration..."
You sound like a guy I work with. He drinks 5-6 cans of soda every day but has the nerve to give me ***** about wasting money because I bring in bottled water that I buy for about 25 cents a bottle at Sam's club.
Unless you're prepared to have someone give you ***** every time you spend any $$$ whatsoever on any drink at all (water's always cheaper and it's all you need right?) then STFU. -
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