I love drinking water BUT recently, I notice when boiling water there has been a huge build up of hard deposit inside my tea kettle. So, I wondering is it safe to drink tap water or build a tank outside my house to collect rain water for drinking? which one is the safest?
It safe to drink tap water or rain water ?
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Dr.3D
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Rain water will need to be boiled if you plan on using it for drinking.
The municipal water supply should be safe if you live in the United States. The minerals won't hurt you.
If you have a well, that is probably the best. I would have my well checked once in a while though to make sure nothing has polluted it.
The municipal water supply should be safe if you live in the United States. The minerals won't hurt you.
If you have a well, that is probably the best. I would have my well checked once in a while though to make sure nothing has polluted it.
donnay
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Not anymore. Rainwater contains pollutants; soil, plant parts, insect parts, bacteria, mercury, aluminum, mold, algae, and radioactive materials that the rain/snow has washed out of the air.
If your going to collect and use rainwater for consumption then you better get a water purifying system like reverse osmosis or a good gravity filter.
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Keith and stuff
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No. You are gonna need to drink raw milk, coconut milk, almond milk, distiller water, processed spring water, carbonated water, tea, coffee or Zima. 
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donnay
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donnay
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Drinking Rainwater
Think Before You Drink
People who think about drinking rainwater have a good idea, but their main concern is usually the rainwater quality. Rainwater in and of itself is not usually a problem, however Mother Nature does use water as a way to clean the sky as well as the rivers, lakes and streams. There are dangers and there are safety measures that must be taken, in today’s world of modern industry. First of safety measures, is the catchment system (area where water is caught, collected, directed and accumulated). Second is the filtration system (area and equipment used to make water potable). Third is the storage system (area where water is kept for sometimes long periods during consumption.
Pollution in the sky, dust particles, tar on roofs, chemical products that may be used for anything upon/of/within the catchment surface can end up in the rainwater tank. Water is more than life giving liquid; water is a substance that latches on to just about anything, that could be harmful (or even tasteful). The first step in understanding how rainwater quality can be achieved to the point of drinking it is the concept of hygiene. Water must come in contact with as little contaminants from the time of condensation in clouds, to the time it finally hits the human organism and if it does it must be filtered.
Keeping rainwater quality to the point of drinking it, means using a catchment system that is low impact; where, roof, gutters, downspout and primary containment areas, all have as little influence on the water as possible. Vinyl is good alternative for gutters and downspouts but all gutters can harbor bacteria. Asphalt is absolutely not a good choice, however unfortunately what is most found on the roof so the filtration process chosen must be effective.
Drinking rainwater that comes from a clean and well kept catchment system is still not acceptable for today’s standards of rainwater quality due to air pollutants that poison the water. Mechanical filters like screens and closed gutters, French drains, gravel, sand, sumps, grates, and wire mesh, and first flush units are all first steps in filtration. Just remember to always concentrate on bigger to smaller debris, and the filters will always be placed correctly in the catchment system.
Second step to achieving good rainwater quality from a catchment system is finer debris filtration. To really be sure that rainwater is suitable for drinking, the water must filtered. Do not take chances! Even if you live in the middle of the Brazilian Amazon Rainforest, pollution can get into your rainwater. So unless you are a specialist and know everything there is to know be sure and use something like a reverse osmosis system to ensure pure water quality. If you need to take out bad-news chemicals, the chemical filter is the best choice.
Storing the rainwater for drinking later means SSS. (Safe, solid and sealed). Safe, is water that comes into the storage facility after being fully filtered. Solid, is water that cannot escape or cannot be tainted by anything from outside the container (hence the word solid). Sealed, is water that does not float away due to evaporation.
Quickly going over drinking rainwater, we see that there are three parts to the whole process, catchment, filtration and storage. Each part needs to be given the proper attention. And the biggest rule is “don’t get water dirty in the first place”, and you will always know it is good for you but for most this is not possible. If you are going to drink rainwater filter rainwater, check places like ebay.com for complete reverse osmosis and other filtration systems and make them you last step to ensure pure water quality.
http://www.rain-barrel.net/drinking-rainwater.html
Think Before You Drink
People who think about drinking rainwater have a good idea, but their main concern is usually the rainwater quality. Rainwater in and of itself is not usually a problem, however Mother Nature does use water as a way to clean the sky as well as the rivers, lakes and streams. There are dangers and there are safety measures that must be taken, in today’s world of modern industry. First of safety measures, is the catchment system (area where water is caught, collected, directed and accumulated). Second is the filtration system (area and equipment used to make water potable). Third is the storage system (area where water is kept for sometimes long periods during consumption.
Pollution in the sky, dust particles, tar on roofs, chemical products that may be used for anything upon/of/within the catchment surface can end up in the rainwater tank. Water is more than life giving liquid; water is a substance that latches on to just about anything, that could be harmful (or even tasteful). The first step in understanding how rainwater quality can be achieved to the point of drinking it is the concept of hygiene. Water must come in contact with as little contaminants from the time of condensation in clouds, to the time it finally hits the human organism and if it does it must be filtered.
Keeping rainwater quality to the point of drinking it, means using a catchment system that is low impact; where, roof, gutters, downspout and primary containment areas, all have as little influence on the water as possible. Vinyl is good alternative for gutters and downspouts but all gutters can harbor bacteria. Asphalt is absolutely not a good choice, however unfortunately what is most found on the roof so the filtration process chosen must be effective.
Drinking rainwater that comes from a clean and well kept catchment system is still not acceptable for today’s standards of rainwater quality due to air pollutants that poison the water. Mechanical filters like screens and closed gutters, French drains, gravel, sand, sumps, grates, and wire mesh, and first flush units are all first steps in filtration. Just remember to always concentrate on bigger to smaller debris, and the filters will always be placed correctly in the catchment system.
Second step to achieving good rainwater quality from a catchment system is finer debris filtration. To really be sure that rainwater is suitable for drinking, the water must filtered. Do not take chances! Even if you live in the middle of the Brazilian Amazon Rainforest, pollution can get into your rainwater. So unless you are a specialist and know everything there is to know be sure and use something like a reverse osmosis system to ensure pure water quality. If you need to take out bad-news chemicals, the chemical filter is the best choice.
Storing the rainwater for drinking later means SSS. (Safe, solid and sealed). Safe, is water that comes into the storage facility after being fully filtered. Solid, is water that cannot escape or cannot be tainted by anything from outside the container (hence the word solid). Sealed, is water that does not float away due to evaporation.
Quickly going over drinking rainwater, we see that there are three parts to the whole process, catchment, filtration and storage. Each part needs to be given the proper attention. And the biggest rule is “don’t get water dirty in the first place”, and you will always know it is good for you but for most this is not possible. If you are going to drink rainwater filter rainwater, check places like ebay.com for complete reverse osmosis and other filtration systems and make them you last step to ensure pure water quality.
http://www.rain-barrel.net/drinking-rainwater.html
amy31416
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Humor me. If the rain is toxic, why isn't everything it touches contaminated? If you're going to make the claims, you ought to be able to take it to the next logical step instead of making ridiculous claims. And nobody's talking about drinking rainwater next to a plant in China, off a tar roof or out of a slimy bucket.
If it's air pollutants that make the water toxic, then the water that lands on plants and animals in the wild is also toxic. <---- Do you deny that?
donnay
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I am not here to humor you. Being you have a backing in science you should know how to research and get the answer to your questions. A lot of the information doesn't necessarily need a science backing per se, but a little common sense.
http://www.angelfire.com/nc3/pictures5/
ClydeCoulter
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I think people want you to say, "yeah, walk outside and you'll die" or "okay, I'm wrong and it's all good, drink away".
Perhaps when discussing the issues it would be good to mention that it's a "slow death" not an "instant death" that is created by pollutants of certain types.
angelatc
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That's the only way your scenario makes any possible sense.
Most states offer testing of well water for a small fee. Plenty of private services also. In Michigan the most common are two types, a biological and chemical test. Farming can cause high nitrate counts which harm the young and elderly the most. This mostly affects shallow wells in farming areas but just lawn fertilizer can cause high nitrates. If you are on a well get it tested (It probably was when you bought the house, if it's been in the family for generations every now and then isn't a bad idea. Water quality can and does change over time). Personally, I grew up with well water and I like a few minerals in it for a nice taste.
Donnay is giving good advice about avoiding rainwater and reverse osmosis if you are going to drink it. I'm sure you can drink it for awhile without a problem - I have done a number of trips to Canadian waters for a week at time and drank only from the middle of the various lakes. Long term... far too many known risks.
Donnay is giving good advice about avoiding rainwater and reverse osmosis if you are going to drink it. I'm sure you can drink it for awhile without a problem - I have done a number of trips to Canadian waters for a week at time and drank only from the middle of the various lakes. Long term... far too many known risks.
angelatc
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The problems with the water in lakes and streams usually is not because the rain contaminated it.
donnay
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Point taken--duly noted.
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