How can I make tap water in London taste nice?

[Miaaaaaow]

Our family drink only bottled water. I know it’s bad for the environment and expensive too, but I can’t stand the taste of our tap water. We live in London in a hard water area. I want to buy some kind of filtering can, but will it also make water taste better?

I am originally from another country where tap water tastes really nice, but I can’t get used to London water🤮

Any advise for how to get water taste better?

Just a bog standard jug filter will do the job. That's what I use and it does get rid of the taste

I'm originally from up North and I used to only drink squash when I moved to the South East because the water tastes so awful I agree.

I now just use a lidded jug which I keep in the fridge as I've found if it's cold I can drink it with no issues as the taste is dulled. Could be worth a try as a cheap and easy option?

I am not in London but we have a Berkefeld water filter. Just sits on our counter top. It filters through special ceramic 'candles' that filter out parasites, lead, fluoride etc
Just change the candles every six months.

It's what they use when living off grid to filter rainwater and make it drinkable.

You can get it fitted to your taps etc and we tried that but it made our cold tap barely usable because it's a tiny stream of water so washing up is always in boiling hot water 😩

The cartridges can’t be reused though and you get through a lot over the years. I’m looking at filters you fix onto your tap but not sure what they’re like.

Not all water in London tastes the same. Some is better than others.

I find soft water tastes sickly sweet for some reason.

But I also drink bottled mostly and consequently tap can taste a little on the 'wet dog' side. Obviously it's still much better than nothing and we are very lucky to have abundant drinkable water.

I'd say filter it, boil it? Serve it very cold with filtered water ice cubes? Mask the taste with a squeeze of lemon or lime juice?

You can get activated charcoal stick water filters. Literally chunky sticks of charcoal. Sounds woo but they really do work, last ages, and are biodegradable.

Put it in the freezer until it is solid, then add it to rum and coke! 😆

Best idea so far 🤣

I live in London and use a Brita filter for the kettle and we have a carbontaor (think like a Sodastream). With that tab water taste decent but we also drink it mainly mixed with pure juice, 1/5 juice, 4/5 sparkling water.

In the office we have a softener attached to the tap, the water makes black tea taste really bad so I am not prepared to install it at home.

What does it actually taste of?

(I used to work in the water industry).

I have a Brita filter jug that I keep in the refrigerator. The water tastes lovely.

It's not being hard water that's the problem as it usually tastes fine elsewhere, it's the fact that it is London water and I agree, it tastes vile.

You just have to grit your teeth and get used to it I'm afraid.

I've got a brita filter tap. I couldn't drink the water at all before.

I live in London and hate the water elsewhere. It’s just what you’re used to that you like.

Brita filter tap, had one for years, when we moved one of the first things we had fitted. Jugs are ok, but usually only one person in the house does the refilling.

Grew up in North East London and tap water always tasted vile, so I'd never drink it and even hated it for teeth cleaning. Moved to Surrey/South London border 35 years ago and the water tastes divine in comparison. Our is SES water which takes 80% of its supply from deep underground water-holding chalk rocks called aquifers, so the water gets pumped up to treatment works rather than from reservoirs. I've always wondered whether this explains the difference in taste compared to Thames Water. My SIL found the same when she moved to a SES area too after years of gross London tap water. The difference is astounding. London tap water has a sort of stale/old dishwasher water, taint to it. It also has a bit of a musty aroma when you lean in to drink it in a glass. SES water has no taste or smell, I could drink it all day.

If you do use a filter jug, follow the hygiene instructions strictly because they can be a good breeding ground for bacteria https://www.bbc.co.uk/future/article/20240417-is-filtered-water-healthier-than-tap-water

Brita filter jug, using the Pro Max filters that remove quite a lot of the limescale stuff that makes water ‘hard’

In fridge.

I have to admit that when I lived in London I didn't ind the taste, although tht was 30 years ago.

I now live in Cornwall and the water is very odd. If you drink some straight from the tap it tastes fine, after about half an hour the taste changes to horrible. The Brita filter does deal with it then.

Ditto… cold with ice and it’s fine.

Filter jug, boiled, chilled and stored in a glass jug in fridge. Perfect