When can I stop using boiled water as a drink?

[mum2seb]

Ds2 is 6 months, and I've only given him boiled cool water as a drink with meals for the last 2 days (I bf the rest of the time!). My question is, when can he have water straight from the tap? I thought it was something like 6 months, but as he's only just started drinking water, do I have to boil it anyway? And then kind of wean him onto tap water? No-one said anything, and I boiled his water for a year!! I don't fancy having to do anything I don't need to!

tap water is fine from 6 months. I have given ds tap water from around 23 weeks (around the time I started solids)

I boiled dd's till she was 1

Are we positively absolutely sure about this? I always heard you have to boil it till they're one. But it sounds fabulously labour-saving and I'll stop boiling NOW if a few more people say it's fine...

I still boil water for ds who is 22 months

I know I should stop but it's part of my routine now!

Mine had tap water from 6 months.

6 mths is fine. if bottle feeding you don,t have to sterilise past this age so tap water is o.k also.

my dd was drinking bath water from 4 mths and hasn,t died yet!

I asked this on mn when dd was about 6 months and the resounding answer was as soon as they start drinking the bathwater there is no need to boil drinking water!!

from babycentre website:

Tap water should be boiled for babies up to six months of age. After that it can be offered straight from the mains supply. If you wish to use a filter that is your personal choice, but do follow the filter manufacturer's instructions and keep filtered water in the fridge, as the filtering process removes some of the additives, such as chlorine, used to keep tap water fresh

From the Food Standards Agency:

For babies under six months old, take water from the mains tap in the kitchen and boil it. Remember to allow the water to cool before giving it to your baby.

Oh hurrah! Still find the little habits the hardest to break though - maybe I should start a thread about Compulsive Obssessive Behaviour... Still rinse all the utensils and their little dishes in just boiled water. Does this really mean no sterilising bottles too?

its recommended to sterilise bottles/teats for 1 year and 6 months for everything else but you will find threads on mn that say you dont have to sterilise at all (but I still do - ds is 9 months)