Why is "straight from the tap" not an option in the survey?

I was wondering the same thing, Swordspoint. We still mostly drink ours straight from the tap (or occasionally bottled if we are headed out or from the fridge water supply).

yeah, I vote for out of the tap. We have great tap water here.

Straight from the tap, but I put it in a pitcher (regular, with no filter) and keep it in the fridge because I like really cold water, but I don't want ice in it.

I was concerned about contaminants in tap water a few months ago and started looking into things. Brita filters may help water taste better but they don't remove any of the things I'd be concerned about (trace antibiotics, estrogen, etc.) and neither does a whole-house or under the sink filtration system (unless you spend BIG bucks). Since most bottled water is just municipal water anyway we just drink it straight. Do I still worry? Yes. But I know I did what I could to find out what was going on with our water and for now it looks to me like it's just one of those hazards of modern life that is very difficult to avoid.

We drink straight from the tap. Our pediatrician recommended it for our kids too.

straight from the tap for us as well.

Another vote for straight from the tap.

tap!!!

so very pleased to see we're not alone.

Straight from the tap, and that's coming from someone who designs drinking water treatment plants for a living. While there are most definitely trace contaminants such as antibiotics and hormones in our drinking water supplies, there is no scientifc evidence showing that these contaminants, in these extremely low concentrations, are harmful to human health. So don't waste your money on expensive filtration systems - if you don't like the taste of chlorine, use a Brita or Pur filter, or fill a gallon jug and keep it in the fridge.

This is a pointless question. It totally depends on what the water is like where you live. I used to live in the Phoenix area and the water was totally disgusting. I wouldn't even rinse my mouth with it after brushing my teeth. Where I live now the tap water tastes OK, but it definitely tastes better after a little extra filtration. I've never been worried about tap water harming me, only tasting nasty.

And the only way to make Phoenix water drinkable is reverse osmosis. Seriously. Several hundred dollars for a decent under-the-sink setup.

I like the Culligan faucet filter. It is not as cheaply made as other filters that attach to your faucet, and the flavor of the water is good. I had the city test our water, and there was a trace amount of lead in it. So your home pipes might have stuff in it that your city water doesn't. We have a glass pitcher with a glass lid on it that I got from Target, and we store the water in the fridge in that. Tastes great!

jillandmo- it was more of a survey than a question- and I did ask which method works best for you and your family- assuming- as is usually the case- that everyone is different and comes from different places/situations-not that one way is better than the others.

Living in old buildings in cities- the concern of tap water isn't the actual water, but the pipes it flows through, some of which are found to have lead when tested, as was the case in several of the brownstones in our Brooklyn neighborhood.

We use the Brita, although after looking into what chemicals are in our local water supply, I guess I should be getting a PUR or an under the sink filter.

See http://www.ewg.org/tap-water/home
This website is very helpful to get your local water supplies report, and then you can search for appropriate water filtration.

we grew up with tap water. same city new water souce and no way could i drink that end of the line dirty river water!

We live in LA and recently had someone test our water (while also pitching the Lifesource whole house filtration system). Thanks to all the nasty stuff LA has to cover up, chlorine is at a "shut-down-the-pool" level. Its side-effects are alarming, so we're considering getting this system. Anyone have any experience with it? In the meantime we've been using filtered water from the refrigerator for everything. I used to put flowers in vases and they'd last a day, now they last a week. Wonder what the insides of our bodies look like after drinking this municipal sludge...

mountain valley spring water delivered.

also check this site out:

www.findaspring.com

There have been repeated issues with the city well we're on (mangenese, etc.), so while we cook with the tap water, we use refillable jugs and get UV-filtered/reverse osmosis water from our local coop or grocery store. We've had the same reusable BPA-free containers for years and the taste difference is astonishing.

We use a PUR filter (counter top, not faucet.) First of all, we live in an old house and are concerned about the lead in the pipes. Secondly arsenic is a problem here. Also, our tap water is heavily chlorinated several days out of the week which gives me a headache.

The drinking water in College Station TX is yucky. We bought RO water for years... and after finally growing up and buying our own house (not in College Station), decided that the RO under the sink system was the way to go. We're both scientists and only use RO in the lab (as all labs do) so it only made sense to do it at home, too. Plus, we've found that with better tasting water, we drink more of it. If tap water from city systems tasted as good as the well water that I grew up with, I wouldn't worry, but alas...

We live in L.A. (Pasadena to be exact) and the water out of the tap is absolutely disgusting! I'm from Hawaii and my husband is from the Upper Peninsula of MI and we both grew up drinking GREAT water from the tap! The water in L.A. smells like a sewer and tastes like chlorine. I don't even want to know what's in it! I'm sad we have to bathe in it (and bathe our kids in it), but can't do anything about that. We filter our water and it tastes MUCH better. :)

But what about the Fluoride? Do these filters (ie, Brita, PUR, Culligan) do they filter out the Fluoride??? Our kids need this for good strong teeth!

I grew up in Los Angeles on tap water and I have really good strong teeth. I'm sure genes has something to do with it but I'm sure the tap water with Fluoride helped a lot. That's why our Pediatrician recommends it for our 2 1/2 yr old daughter.

I second rubyp3's post! check out the environmental working group's website to get detailed information about your areas water supply and which filters would be most effective. They are a non-profit independent watch dog group so they aren't selling filters or water, just providing useful information.

In my household we drink from a Berkey 3 gal. water filter. It filters the stuff like metals and crap (it can even filter out food coloring) but minerals are still there. So much cheaper and environmentally friendly (no plastic waste) and the filters last 5 years. Where I live the tap tastes yucky and the filter makes it taste so soft and good. And since the one I have is large, I can use it for cooking too. I figured the investment would pay itself off in about 2 years (We used to buy water by the gallon) and we don't have to run to the store when we run out. We love it and wouldn't think about going back.

I sound like a commercial but it's true.