For all we know, the water we drink originates from several sources. As number one consumer of this valuable basic needs of mankind it is important to know the sources and the types of water we drink.
Tap Water
Tap water is water that is supplied through a water distribution system and intended for public consumption. It can come from either a public or private water supply. Almost all tap water comes from surface sources like the rivers basin. The water is processed using basic filtration techniques like sand filtration (filters out the big pieces of stuff floating down the river), coagulation–flocculation-sedimentation processes (chemicals added to the water to get smaller particles to coagulate and float so they can be removed) followed by chlorination, chlorine is added to kill micro-organisms and bacteria .
.jpg "THE TYPES OF WATER WE DRINK")
In most cases, this tap water is potable (drinkable) according to standards.However, as we all know, there can be problems with the water like the chlorine smell, taste and aftertaste.This chlorine is not particularly good for our body it has been linked to a variety of cancers but it does kill the microorganisms that can make you violently ill. The present of lead is also an issue. That is not lead in the water at the treatment plant it’s in the pipes bringing the water to some of our homes.
Tap water is not pure water, it contains dissolved substances. There are particular agencies that regulates the quality of tap water from a public water supply.The allowable levels for a number of potential contaminants have been established by the Safe Drinking Water Act, and must be tested on a scheduled basis. Presently, public water supplies are tested for nearly one hundred contaminants, and tap water can't contain more than the admissible level for any regulated contaminant.In the event that a public water supplier is in full compliance with the rules, then it should be suitable for drinking and cooking,even though not all potential contaminants are regulated and there is always some risk of contaminants going undetected between testing intervals. In addition, all public water suppliers requires to provide yearly water quality reports, alluded to as consumer confidence reports. Reports are required to indicate if they exceed the maximum allowable level, identify any regulated contaminants that are present in the water and their concentration.
Bottled Water
Bottled water is water that is sealed in food-grade bottles and intended for human consumption. It can come from several sources, such as groundwater from a well, water from a public water supply tap or water from a protected spring. Groundwater comes from an aquifer; an underground zone of saturated rock , gravel, or sand that yields significant quantities of water. Mostly, a well is drilled in the ground and cased, and the water is pumped out.The source of water for a public water supply can be groundwater, surface water, a combination of the 2 or country’s river systems. Spring water flows naturally to the surface from an underground formation.Bottled water from each of the sources is available to consumers.
With the increase in bottled water consumption, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has set standards of quality for bottled water intended for human consumption. Standards are established for mineral, purified, alkaline, distilled bottled, and spring water. Soda,seltzer, tonic, and certain sparkling waters are considered soft drinks and are regulated accordingly. But not all bottled water is regulated in the same way.
Domestic bottled water sold in a country other than that in which it was bottled is regulated as a food by the FDA.This water must meet FDA water quality standards. To make sure that the standards are met, bottling companies must regularly and consistently test their items.These practices cover the packaging and production and provide assurance that bottled water products are clean and safe for human consumption and processed under sanitary conditions.
Bottled water like tap water is not pure water because dissolved substances in nearly all bottled water were present. Allowable levels have been made for a number of potential contaminants, thus bottled water cannot contain more than this allowable level for any regulated contaminant. If a bottled water producer is in full compliance with the rules and regulations, then water should be suitable for drinking and cooking, even though not all potential contaminants are regulated and there is always some risk of contaminants going undetected between testing intervals.
Imported bottled water also is regulated as a food by the FDA and must meet all FDA water standards described above. To make sure those standards are met, imported bottled water from foreign countries is randomly tested at ports of entry.
The bottled water industry regulates itself through the International Bottled Water Association (IBWA.) The IBWA sets manufacturing requirements, that help make sure that bottled waters meet FDA health standards. Bottled water manufacturers that are members of IBWA are assessed annually by a recognized independent organization, NSF ( National Sanitation Foundation ) International. NSF is an independent certification body that is recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO) thus being one of the most reputable and credible public health and safety company in the world. Through unannounced inspections, members are assessed on compliance with IBWA’s manufacturing
requirements and FDA Quality Standards. Not all bottled water producers are members of the IBWA. The label may show whether a bottled water originates from a member company.
If you're going to pay for an item you could get for free of charge, it serves to know what you're buying, so below you'll find a glossary of water. Along with the information that follows.Whatever the bottle says, don't be misled by crisp blue labels and mountains images. Forty-seven percent of the bottled water sold in the U.S. is tap water that has been purified, as indicated by information from the Beverage Marketing Association, a trade group. If you are concerned about the water quality in your area but don't want to pay for bottled water, installed water filter system in your own home that can make removing impurities from your drinking water almost as easy as turning on the tap.
Mineral----- Water from the depths of the earth, that has been enriched with the earth’s minerals and gotten naturally purified trough filtering countless times during its journey underground.Groundwater that naturally contains at least 250 parts per million of dissolved solids.The minerals and other trace elements must be present in the water when it emerges at the source. Mineral water is water from a mineral spring that contains various minerals, such as salts and sulfur compounds. Natural mineral water must originate from an officially recognised single source and must be bottled in that place. Before water can be officially recognised as natural mineral water,the source must be protected from all risk of pollution and that the temperature, composition, and other essential characteristics remain stable, it must be showed to the authorities, through consistent and frequent micro-biological testing for a period of 2 years, The water is then subjected to progressing statutory testing and consistent maintenance for the duration of its continued extraction from its source.
Distilled-----Water that has been boiled and then recondensed from the steam that the boiling produces. This distillation kills microorganisms and uproots minerals, giving water a flat taste.
Purified------Water from any source that has been treated to remove chemicals and pathogens according to standards set. Must contain no more than 10 parts per million of dissolved solids. Deionization, distillation, and reverse osmosis are all purification methods. Purified water represents the fastest developing segment of the bottled water industry. Why? Maybe it’s purer than other types of waters. When it comes directly down to it, why does anyone purchase their water. Some buy out of convenience, but most buy on the grounds that they need something that’s of a higher purity and quality than other options like tap water. Like any other water, there are known misconceptions about purified water too. To meet the legal meaning of “purified water”, water impurities must be removed or diminished to a great degree low levels.
Purified water is frequently mistaken with filtered water. Many individuals believe the two terms to be synonymous, however this is not the case. Though both types of water are subject to some sort of filtration , purified water is cleansed and cleaned through extra purification processes, typically distillation, deionization or reverse osmosis,The resultant product, “purified” water, is of essentially higher purity than either tap water, filtered water or spring water.
Purified water may originate directly from the tap or from a spring, or from a surface or groundwater source . It simply doesn’t matter. Since, the purification process is intended to remove essentially all types of impurities, the nature of the source water has little bearing on the quality of the end product. An appropriately designed and functioning purification system will create greatly high quality water every time, regardless of variations in the quality of water's source. This is not true for filtered water, spring water or tap water. Therefore, purified water is viewed as the target benchmark against which the purity of other waters is judged.
If you’re purchasing water for higher quality and higher purity reasons, then purified water is your best option.
Alkaline-----Alkaline water is also called ionized water, with a pH regularly somewhere around 7 and 10. A pH of 8.4 or above is best. A well known source of alkaline water is spring water, generally a pH of 8 to 8.5 that naturally becomes alkaline by absorbing minerals as it passes over rocks. You can buy water ionizing machines, but specialists advises against them, because such machines use platinum or titanium to make water alkaline and don't introduce natural minerals the body requires.
Spring-------Water derived from an underground formation from which water flows naturally to the surface of the earth. Spring water is collected at the spring or through a borehole tapping the underground formation (aquifer) feeding the spring. Spring water is the subject of numerous publicised misconceptions. A significant number of those misconceptions are promoted through less than accurate advertising pitches. As for instance, many people believe that spring water is actually “pure” water. Actually, spring waters contain many of the same impurities found in drilled wells or even tap water. Since springs feed our rivers, there’s a loads of spring water right in your own tap water! On average, the purity of spring water is practically comparable to that of tap water. Some have lower TDS (total dissolved solids) levels and some are much higher.
But is spring water “100% pure” as many spring water companies advertise? As it turns out, the “100% pure” refers not to the absence of impurities in the water, but to the origin of the water itself. And that is, 100% of the water in the bottle came from an underground source (i.e. a spring), rather than from a surface water. These cunningly worded phrases may be legally permissible, yet numerous individuals find them to be misleading, to say the least. Much more terrifying is the fact that vast majority of people actually believe them.Spring water advertising is all about images – images of the wildlife, mountains and streams . What really happens to get that bottle of water to you is actually quite different from those images. Mostly, spring waters are not bottled at their source. Rather, the water is pumped into extensive tanker trucks for transportation to a bottling facility at a different location. Health regulations tell that the water in those tanker trucks be either ozonated or chlorinated at all times to protect against bacterial contamination.
At this point, particularly if chlorinated, spring waters are virtually indistinguishable from tap water that undergo chlorination. Once the tanker truck water arrives the bottling facility, a carbon filtration treatment is used to remove the chlorine. Somehow, most of the other impurities remain. The “spring” water then has to go through more treatment like micron filtration to take out floating particles and more ozonation before being put into the water bottles.
But the real question is why stop on a few filtration process? Why not remove all of the impurities? Who wants nitrates in their water? Who wants various metals in their drinking water? The answer is that if most people don’t know what’s in the water in the first place, perhaps they don’t care.
Artesian-----Water obtained from a well that taps a confined aquifer, an underground layer of rock or sand that contains water.
.jpg "THE TYPES OF WATER WE DRINK")
Sparkling----Water that contains carbon dioxide at an amount equal to what it contained when it emerged from its origin. Carbon dioxide lost during the treatment procedure may be added back.
Refilling stations water
Water from refilling stations – stations or stores that sell purified water.The quality of purified water conforms with the national standards for drinking water and is even better than the quality of water produced by traditional water supply systems in terms of removed impurities. They are not required to get approval from the FDA.
They are under the supervision of the local government units.
.jpg "THE TYPES OF WATER WE DRINK")
Vended Water
Vended water ordinarily comes from a public water supply. Water is distributed through the systems of vending machines where people fill containers.This machines may be located in grocery stores, convenience stores,mall, schools or other locations in a community.
Vended water is not considered bottled water and is not regulated as such.The water source for vending machines is typically the local public water supply, which must be in compliance with drinking water standards. Extra treatment may occur to diminish dissolved substances and disinfect the supply of water.
Water vending machines are under the jurisdiction supervision of local authorities. Department of Health is the one issuing permits to vending machines, and occasional tests are done for nitrate and coliform bacteria. While you can expect the supply of water to a vending machine to be potable, improper cleaning or unsanitary handling of the vending machine or the tools used to collect and store the water could bring in bacterial contamination. Good sanitation measures are vital to keep vended water safe.
Tap Water
Tap water is water that is supplied through a water distribution system and intended for public consumption. It can come from either a public or private water supply. Almost all tap water comes from surface sources like the rivers basin. The water is processed using basic filtration techniques like sand filtration (filters out the big pieces of stuff floating down the river), coagulation–flocculation-sedimentation processes (chemicals added to the water to get smaller particles to coagulate and float so they can be removed) followed by chlorination, chlorine is added to kill micro-organisms and bacteria .
Tap water is not pure water, it contains dissolved substances. There are particular agencies that regulates the quality of tap water from a public water supply.The allowable levels for a number of potential contaminants have been established by the Safe Drinking Water Act, and must be tested on a scheduled basis. Presently, public water supplies are tested for nearly one hundred contaminants, and tap water can't contain more than the admissible level for any regulated contaminant.In the event that a public water supplier is in full compliance with the rules, then it should be suitable for drinking and cooking,even though not all potential contaminants are regulated and there is always some risk of contaminants going undetected between testing intervals. In addition, all public water suppliers requires to provide yearly water quality reports, alluded to as consumer confidence reports. Reports are required to indicate if they exceed the maximum allowable level, identify any regulated contaminants that are present in the water and their concentration.
Bottled Water
Bottled water is water that is sealed in food-grade bottles and intended for human consumption. It can come from several sources, such as groundwater from a well, water from a public water supply tap or water from a protected spring. Groundwater comes from an aquifer; an underground zone of saturated rock , gravel, or sand that yields significant quantities of water. Mostly, a well is drilled in the ground and cased, and the water is pumped out.The source of water for a public water supply can be groundwater, surface water, a combination of the 2 or country’s river systems. Spring water flows naturally to the surface from an underground formation.Bottled water from each of the sources is available to consumers.
With the increase in bottled water consumption, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has set standards of quality for bottled water intended for human consumption. Standards are established for mineral, purified, alkaline, distilled bottled, and spring water. Soda,seltzer, tonic, and certain sparkling waters are considered soft drinks and are regulated accordingly. But not all bottled water is regulated in the same way.
Domestic bottled water sold in a country other than that in which it was bottled is regulated as a food by the FDA.This water must meet FDA water quality standards. To make sure that the standards are met, bottling companies must regularly and consistently test their items.These practices cover the packaging and production and provide assurance that bottled water products are clean and safe for human consumption and processed under sanitary conditions.
Bottled water like tap water is not pure water because dissolved substances in nearly all bottled water were present. Allowable levels have been made for a number of potential contaminants, thus bottled water cannot contain more than this allowable level for any regulated contaminant. If a bottled water producer is in full compliance with the rules and regulations, then water should be suitable for drinking and cooking, even though not all potential contaminants are regulated and there is always some risk of contaminants going undetected between testing intervals.
Imported bottled water also is regulated as a food by the FDA and must meet all FDA water standards described above. To make sure those standards are met, imported bottled water from foreign countries is randomly tested at ports of entry.
The bottled water industry regulates itself through the International Bottled Water Association (IBWA.) The IBWA sets manufacturing requirements, that help make sure that bottled waters meet FDA health standards. Bottled water manufacturers that are members of IBWA are assessed annually by a recognized independent organization, NSF ( National Sanitation Foundation ) International. NSF is an independent certification body that is recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO) thus being one of the most reputable and credible public health and safety company in the world. Through unannounced inspections, members are assessed on compliance with IBWA’s manufacturing
requirements and FDA Quality Standards. Not all bottled water producers are members of the IBWA. The label may show whether a bottled water originates from a member company.
If you're going to pay for an item you could get for free of charge, it serves to know what you're buying, so below you'll find a glossary of water. Along with the information that follows.Whatever the bottle says, don't be misled by crisp blue labels and mountains images. Forty-seven percent of the bottled water sold in the U.S. is tap water that has been purified, as indicated by information from the Beverage Marketing Association, a trade group. If you are concerned about the water quality in your area but don't want to pay for bottled water, installed water filter system in your own home that can make removing impurities from your drinking water almost as easy as turning on the tap.
Mineral----- Water from the depths of the earth, that has been enriched with the earth’s minerals and gotten naturally purified trough filtering countless times during its journey underground.Groundwater that naturally contains at least 250 parts per million of dissolved solids.The minerals and other trace elements must be present in the water when it emerges at the source. Mineral water is water from a mineral spring that contains various minerals, such as salts and sulfur compounds. Natural mineral water must originate from an officially recognised single source and must be bottled in that place. Before water can be officially recognised as natural mineral water,the source must be protected from all risk of pollution and that the temperature, composition, and other essential characteristics remain stable, it must be showed to the authorities, through consistent and frequent micro-biological testing for a period of 2 years, The water is then subjected to progressing statutory testing and consistent maintenance for the duration of its continued extraction from its source.
Distilled-----Water that has been boiled and then recondensed from the steam that the boiling produces. This distillation kills microorganisms and uproots minerals, giving water a flat taste.
Purified------Water from any source that has been treated to remove chemicals and pathogens according to standards set. Must contain no more than 10 parts per million of dissolved solids. Deionization, distillation, and reverse osmosis are all purification methods. Purified water represents the fastest developing segment of the bottled water industry. Why? Maybe it’s purer than other types of waters. When it comes directly down to it, why does anyone purchase their water. Some buy out of convenience, but most buy on the grounds that they need something that’s of a higher purity and quality than other options like tap water. Like any other water, there are known misconceptions about purified water too. To meet the legal meaning of “purified water”, water impurities must be removed or diminished to a great degree low levels.
Purified water is frequently mistaken with filtered water. Many individuals believe the two terms to be synonymous, however this is not the case. Though both types of water are subject to some sort of filtration , purified water is cleansed and cleaned through extra purification processes, typically distillation, deionization or reverse osmosis,The resultant product, “purified” water, is of essentially higher purity than either tap water, filtered water or spring water.
Purified water may originate directly from the tap or from a spring, or from a surface or groundwater source . It simply doesn’t matter. Since, the purification process is intended to remove essentially all types of impurities, the nature of the source water has little bearing on the quality of the end product. An appropriately designed and functioning purification system will create greatly high quality water every time, regardless of variations in the quality of water's source. This is not true for filtered water, spring water or tap water. Therefore, purified water is viewed as the target benchmark against which the purity of other waters is judged.
If you’re purchasing water for higher quality and higher purity reasons, then purified water is your best option.
Alkaline-----Alkaline water is also called ionized water, with a pH regularly somewhere around 7 and 10. A pH of 8.4 or above is best. A well known source of alkaline water is spring water, generally a pH of 8 to 8.5 that naturally becomes alkaline by absorbing minerals as it passes over rocks. You can buy water ionizing machines, but specialists advises against them, because such machines use platinum or titanium to make water alkaline and don't introduce natural minerals the body requires.
Spring-------Water derived from an underground formation from which water flows naturally to the surface of the earth. Spring water is collected at the spring or through a borehole tapping the underground formation (aquifer) feeding the spring. Spring water is the subject of numerous publicised misconceptions. A significant number of those misconceptions are promoted through less than accurate advertising pitches. As for instance, many people believe that spring water is actually “pure” water. Actually, spring waters contain many of the same impurities found in drilled wells or even tap water. Since springs feed our rivers, there’s a loads of spring water right in your own tap water! On average, the purity of spring water is practically comparable to that of tap water. Some have lower TDS (total dissolved solids) levels and some are much higher.
But is spring water “100% pure” as many spring water companies advertise? As it turns out, the “100% pure” refers not to the absence of impurities in the water, but to the origin of the water itself. And that is, 100% of the water in the bottle came from an underground source (i.e. a spring), rather than from a surface water. These cunningly worded phrases may be legally permissible, yet numerous individuals find them to be misleading, to say the least. Much more terrifying is the fact that vast majority of people actually believe them.Spring water advertising is all about images – images of the wildlife, mountains and streams . What really happens to get that bottle of water to you is actually quite different from those images. Mostly, spring waters are not bottled at their source. Rather, the water is pumped into extensive tanker trucks for transportation to a bottling facility at a different location. Health regulations tell that the water in those tanker trucks be either ozonated or chlorinated at all times to protect against bacterial contamination.
At this point, particularly if chlorinated, spring waters are virtually indistinguishable from tap water that undergo chlorination. Once the tanker truck water arrives the bottling facility, a carbon filtration treatment is used to remove the chlorine. Somehow, most of the other impurities remain. The “spring” water then has to go through more treatment like micron filtration to take out floating particles and more ozonation before being put into the water bottles.
But the real question is why stop on a few filtration process? Why not remove all of the impurities? Who wants nitrates in their water? Who wants various metals in their drinking water? The answer is that if most people don’t know what’s in the water in the first place, perhaps they don’t care.
Artesian-----Water obtained from a well that taps a confined aquifer, an underground layer of rock or sand that contains water.
Sparkling----Water that contains carbon dioxide at an amount equal to what it contained when it emerged from its origin. Carbon dioxide lost during the treatment procedure may be added back.
Refilling stations water
Water from refilling stations – stations or stores that sell purified water.The quality of purified water conforms with the national standards for drinking water and is even better than the quality of water produced by traditional water supply systems in terms of removed impurities. They are not required to get approval from the FDA.
They are under the supervision of the local government units.
Vended Water
Vended water ordinarily comes from a public water supply. Water is distributed through the systems of vending machines where people fill containers.This machines may be located in grocery stores, convenience stores,mall, schools or other locations in a community.
Vended water is not considered bottled water and is not regulated as such.The water source for vending machines is typically the local public water supply, which must be in compliance with drinking water standards. Extra treatment may occur to diminish dissolved substances and disinfect the supply of water.
Water vending machines are under the jurisdiction supervision of local authorities. Department of Health is the one issuing permits to vending machines, and occasional tests are done for nitrate and coliform bacteria. While you can expect the supply of water to a vending machine to be potable, improper cleaning or unsanitary handling of the vending machine or the tools used to collect and store the water could bring in bacterial contamination. Good sanitation measures are vital to keep vended water safe.
