What are they doing to the water in the UK

[ByBrightSloth]

I used to be able to drink the tap water. It now tastes more like chlorine and can’t be drank after more than an hour or so of sitting out as it tastes rancid. I can actually smell it. I moved and it tasted ok but a few months later they must have started adding more chlorine and chemicals. How is this OK?

They are obviously doing something to the water, what can we do about it?

Get a fridge with a filter and connection to the mains. Ours is always chilled and you can add ice in one go.

What do you mean 'they'? All the water in the UK doesn't come from the same source.

You can do something about it yourself.

Chances are it is a localised issue in your specific area. Contact your water supplier and tell them you have a complaint. I did that once, and it turned out to be something with the water tower in the next village, they'd had been doing work on it and using additional chlorine. Within a few days it was fine again. Their scientist also told me on the phone that most people's sense of smell can't tell the difference between 2 and 3 parts per whatever of chlorine in the water, but I could.

Just Google it.

Yes, 'they' are cleaning it and trying to keep it safe to drink and a good supply for as long as possible.

The UK water crisis doesn't have a simple solution and I'm shocked that it's not being talked about more in the upcoming election.

My Google ability is dreadful so please provide a link. I'm interested in how much, and if there is a specific area where it goes to and whether it goes straight into the general drinking/domestic supply. Thanks!

Hi, no I can't provide a source as it's just something I learned at university. It happens in years of low rainfall regularly, for general supply

Husband and me have had dodgy guts for 8 weeks now. We're fine when staying elsewhere in the UK, I'm beginning to wonder if it's the water (York).

Yeah, the water in Uk tastes awful now. Growing up we drank it all the time, then I moved abroad to where it’s mountain spring water in taps and now can’t drink British water from tap when we return. Takes like either mud or chlorine

@ByBrightSloth Once upon a time I was a water quality advisor in one of the UK water companies. Let's see if we can get to the bottom of the problem. If you can answer my questions I might be able to help?

1. Do you live at the end of a cul de sac or in at some distance from other properties?
2. Has your water been turned off for repairs by your supplier?
3. Has the fire brigade used local hydrants?
4. Does it taste/smell like TCP?
5. Have you had any tap washers replaced?
6. Have you had a new washing machine or dishwasher plumbed in recently?
7. Can your neighbours taste it too?
8. Do you only use the kitchen cold tap as your drinking water tap?
9. Is there any discolouration of the water?

10. Are you pregnant or taking medication? 11. Do other members of your household notice it?

If you answer the above I should be able to pinpoint the cause.
Rest assured UK mains water is the most rigorously governed in the world and there are also about 10 times the number of regulations governing the provision of it when compared with bottled water.

We’re in the SE. Our tap water is perfect. No taste at all.

We have a holiday place in SW Florida. The tap water is potable, but horrible.

When I visited Moscow, a long time ago now, the water was shit brown. Bottled water was essential.

[edit: quoted the wrong post, sorry!]

The continued supply of sufficient clean water is always an issue in the UK. Water companies are generally shit-hot on pre-treatment and quality testing, but the infrastructure for both water delivery and wastewater management is pathetically old. Warnings were already being raised in my twenties and I'm really old now!

We're losing a lot of clean water through leaks. Sewers keep failing. The systems are kept going by very determined operators but, when it comes down to it, we're going to need more investment if we want to continue enjoying trustworthy water.

Climate change and population growth will add stress.
https://environmentagency.blog.gov.uk/2024/03/21/meeting-our-water-needs-for-the-next-25-years/

I’m in the West Country. Ours is fine.

Profit before quality for most of UK.
I'm lucky NE Scotland our tap water is lovely.

Good tap water NE England, NW England and Scotland.

Bogging tap water SE England. Can't make a decent cup of tea with it either.

MaryFuckingFerguson · Today 16:56

We have a holiday place in SW Florida. The tap water is potable, but horrible.

It's slightly saline in Southern Florida, so people from outside the area can really tell. More concerning is the level or arsenic in their water, about 20 years ago, Governor Jeb Bush passed a regulation raising their safe level to ten times the maximum allowed by the Who.

This was to save his mates from having to spend a fee hundred thousand Dollars on filters.

i dont drink tap water, i buy sparkling water in plaggy bottles - i know, the horror! I just cannot stand the taste of council pop 🥴

In Worcestershire and my tap water is fine, always drink it. I’ve lived in various countries abroad and never drank their tap water though, always bought bottled water ….. more to do with different minerals in their water and me not enjoying the taste of it.

You only do not care as you are seeing it all as drinkable. But other posters are clearly saying that in their area, it is not at all pleasant. It is actually undrinkable to them. Safe and drinkable are not the same thing. So by all means, appreciate yours. You are lucky. I am also lucky that way. It is disturbing though, how often people are reporting not bring able to drink theirs. For people right here, I. The UK, right now, there are water supply issues.

My tap water has a lack of salts in it. I actually had an electrolyte imbalance for a while until I realised I wasn't thirsty when I started drinking mineral water and juice. I never drink from the tap now apart from tea and coffee

The tap water where I live is foul. I have fought against acknowledging this for many years, but it has recently got even worse and tastes revolting. I can’t drink it anymore.

I've never met anyone who prefers London water to Welsh water before, I hate tea from our relatives in London as it always tastes odd!

Our tap water tastes lovely. It can be a little brown, sometimes but that's normal when water is peat filtered. I used to live a few miles away where the water came from a different source and it was very hard and quite strong tasting and put me right off tea.

Our lake District tap water is delicious.

Visited worcestershire recently and found that left a film on everything. Preferable to London though 🤣