Tap vs. Bottled water

omni

Arachnobaron
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I have kept a t watering w/regular tap for 5 yrs, no water softener, she's not had any problems, but they started adding Fluoride to our water 2 yrs ago. I have many T's now and want to learn more about variables in healthy conditions for them. That some may be more sensitive to the chemicals in tap I wonder, and if there could be a long-term buildup in a T's system.
Other than that, would bottled water put less spots on the glass? I put water in back corners because the glass gets unsightly and I'm not keen on sticking hands inside some of my tanks.
 

Talkenlate04

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I thought along those lines as well a while back. I use a big weed sprayer chemical holder deal and I put boiled water in it only. Thats what I mist and fill my water dishes with.

I mean if you think about it people say things like dont feed wild caught insects they could have chemicals on them, and water we know chemicals are going into it, that's my reasoning for taking that extra step.
 

Nitibus

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I buy a 4 Litre ( 1 Gal ) jug of distilled water. It's only $2, it's totally pure, and leaves no water marks inside my enclosures that I'd later have to clean.
 

phil jones

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its good old tap water for my ( t ) as in the wild they do not have bottled water ? phil
 

Lopez

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Mine like Brecon Carreg, I did try Evian but they rejected it. Perrier will do if nothing else is available.

Seriously, it's just water. Use anything.
 

Bedlam

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They dont have bottled water in the wild, but they dont have tap water either. I use distilled water since I know its clean and it doesn't make spots on the side of the enclosures.
 

AcmeMan

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I use bottled drinking water for my t's drinking water but spring water would probably be just as good. I use distilled water to rinse the sides of the cages because it is mineral free and leaves no spots but because it is mineral free, man cannot live on distilled water alone. I don't know if arachnids need the minerals from the water or not but I would suspect they need something other than hydration from their water. Most tap water has chlorine in it which is a known carcinogen (can arachnids get cancer?) and though some would say if it's good enough for humans it must be alright but how much chlorine do arachnids in the wild consume? Why don't you add some aspartame to their water too since it's good enough for humans. I would rather play it on the safe side than risk giving them water that is "fit for humans". Humans are notorius for poisoning themselves with modern science. Why do apparently healthy animals sometimes drop dead? Any water source could become contaminated at any time, Perrier has had problems in the past. Cryptosporidium is deadly in mammals and is not killed or filtered by current water treatment methods though boiling may be a solution. There are drawbacks to boiling water that need to be addressed as well. Heavy metal concentrations and maybe some other issues as well. There is always the risk of death or illness when consuming foods and liquids but you also risk death if you completely avoid them too. Would you feed hot dogs to your kids if you thought they might get sick or die? It happens. We avoid wild caught food items for our pets because they may be tainted with pesticides or some unknown contamination but what if the feed the cricket farmer gave them was tainted? We all gotta eat and drink but you need to educate yourself of potential health hazzards.
 

cacoseraph

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Mine like Brecon Carreg, I did try Evian but they rejected it. Perrier will do if nothing else is available.

Seriously, it's just water. Use anything.
well.... i don't think this can be true all the time. there are some places with BAD tap water. around my work nobody is supposed to drink tapwater on account of us having dumped various rocket fuels and exhaust products into the ground for around ~30 years. where i used to live (Rialto, CA, USA) was actually famous for its per capita murder rate and it's bad water from industrial pollution. there were carcinogenics, teratogenics, and mutagenics. granted, i still used the tap water for myself and my bugs... but there was some fairly hideous stuff in there that was probably doing amusing things to me and mine.



this really seems like another one of those situations where you have to decide what level of risk you, personally, are willing to take with you bugs. also, each person would have to research their respective tap water sources, as virtually everyone on the board (except ppl living close together, like in the same town) would have tap water with a different composition. i suspect people in the boonies and hinterlands are less prone to industrial waste product pollution but more susceptable to biological intrusion/pollution
 

Vys

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Two things,

Acmeman said 'Man cannot live on distilled water alone' - this seems like a curious statement, as man surely cannot live on any kind of water alone. And as far as minerals found in tap water and most bottled water goes, which of them would be critical for human health(and unique to water)?

talkenlate: Boiling the water will remove any organical impurities, as far as I'm aware, but unless you are distilling the water (collecting the steam) the minerals will remain. Still, those are probably ok for our pets(from most taps/bottles), but minerals are as mentioned always nigh impossible to get off glass.
 

Taceas

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If I wanted to give all of my pets and myself pool water (aka tap water), I would. Our local water smells and tastes more chlorine-y than my parents swimming pool, which I think is disgusting and can't be healthy for anything.

We buy bottled water for everything in my house to drink/live in, its not that expensive. Ice Mountain delivers 3-4 5 gallon jugs for our water cooler every month for around $25-30.

Our local water is also notoriously hard, everyone in our locality has to buy a new water heater every few years due to the mineral buildup and when you get a glass of water, there are mineral floaties in it. The town water company actually adds calcium to the water because they say it coats the inside of the old water mains and pipes in our older homes that may still have lead plumbing. I think its a crock, but what can you do.

Most municipalities actually don't have fluoride in the water right now because there is a nationwide shortage of fluoride, due to phosphate mining not being as viable as it once was. Our own local water is included in that, they just can't buy it anywhere. Darn, and I was so looking forward to tainted water. ;)

For most of my houseplants and aquariums, I collect rain water when I can and store it for use later on. Can't beat that free stuff.

I also don't think distilled water should be used for watering things for extended periods of time, it lacks all minerals and electrolytes and could potentially leech them out of the body of the animal/plant and cause health problems. Not that I know officially, just saying what my college chemistry professor told us. It would be fine for misting, though.
 

Drachenjager

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I buy a 4 Litre ( 1 Gal ) jug of distilled water. It's only $2, it's totally pure, and leaves no water marks inside my enclosures that I'd later have to clean.
distilled water is fine for misting but sorry for drinking. ALL animals need minerals that mostly come disolved in water. I would never give any living creature distilled water to drink on a regular basis. Best bet is to use the RO machines at Wal-Mart ect. those remove the bad stuff but leave some minerals in. OR straight well water.
I also used plain tap water for a long time but since we have a RO water treatment plant at work i just bring bottles home.
 
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Drachenjager

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I use bottled drinking water for my t's drinking water but spring water would probably be just as good. I use distilled water to rinse the sides of the cages because it is mineral free and leaves no spots but because it is mineral free, man cannot live on distilled water alone. I don't know if arachnids need the minerals from the water or not but I would suspect they need something other than hydration from their water.
ALL animals need minerals and best source is water.

Most tap water has chlorine in it which is a known carcinogen (can arachnids get cancer?) and though some would say if it's good enough for humans it must be alright but how much chlorine do arachnids in the wild consume? Why don't you add some aspartame to their water too since it's good enough for humans. I would rather play it on the safe side than risk giving them water that is "fit for humans". Humans are notorius for poisoning themselves with modern science.
yes but the stuff chlorine kills is even worse than an increased chance of cancer. I do believe there are better ways to disinfect the water tho just not EPA approved ...yet

Why do apparently healthy animals sometimes drop dead? Any water source could become contaminated at any time, Perrier has had problems in the past. Cryptosporidium is deadly in mammals and is not killed or filtered by current water treatment methods though boiling may be a solution.
Crypto is generally not deadly to healthy mammals, but it will cause a severe stomach issues and the body will get rid if it later. Chlorine will not touch crypto but it IS filtered out fairly easily. Problem is when it gets in the ground water as ground water system generally dont filter as they have disolved solids to tend with not suspended and organics.

There are drawbacks to boiling water that need to be addressed as well. Heavy metal concentrations and maybe some other issues as well. There is always the risk of death or illness when consuming foods and liquids but you also risk death if you completely avoid them too. Would you feed hot dogs to your kids if you thought they might get sick or die? It happens. We avoid wild caught food items for our pets because they may be tainted with pesticides or some unknown contamination but what if the feed the cricket farmer gave them was tainted? We all gotta eat and drink but you need to educate yourself of potential health hazzards.
true that

I am a license water treatment operator and also a licensed waste water treatment operator if you are wondering. Also a while back the city of Georgetown, Texas had a bad crypto contamination in the water system because of the porus nature of the aquifer they pump out of and a leaking waste water lift station. No deaths reported of humans or pets from it but lots of upset digestive tracts.
 
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Drachenjager

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well.... i don't think this can be true all the time. there are some places with BAD tap water. around my work nobody is supposed to drink tapwater on account of us having dumped various rocket fuels and exhaust products into the ground for around ~30 years. where i used to live (Rialto, CA, USA) was actually famous for its per capita murder rate and it's bad water from industrial pollution. there were carcinogenics, teratogenics, and mutagenics. granted, i still used the tap water for myself and my bugs... but there was some fairly hideous stuff in there that was probably doing amusing things to me and mine.



this really seems like another one of those situations where you have to decide what level of risk you, personally, are willing to take with you bugs. also, each person would have to research their respective tap water sources, as virtually everyone on the board (except ppl living close together, like in the same town) would have tap water with a different composition. i suspect people in the boonies and hinterlands are less prone to industrial waste product pollution but more susceptable to biological intrusion/pollution
yes there are some places wiht really terrible tap water. Even what i consider bad water in Texas is generally good reletivly speaking. I suggest you get an under sink RO wiht a carbon pre filter for that and it should be just fine
 

Drachenjager

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Two things,

Acmeman said 'Man cannot live on distilled water alone' - this seems like a curious statement, as man surely cannot live on any kind of water alone. And as far as minerals found in tap water and most bottled water goes, which of them would be critical for human health(and unique to water)?

talkenlate: Boiling the water will remove any organical impurities, as far as I'm aware, but unless you are distilling the water (collecting the steam) the minerals will remain. Still, those are probably ok for our pets(from most taps/bottles), but minerals are as mentioned always nigh impossible to get off glass.
actually the real problem with pure water ( distilled or De Ionized) is that its very agressive in leaching minerals . You drink it and it will draw the minerals out of you and down the toilet. THen you have probles of mineral deficiencies. And you wont be able to take enough suppliments if you continue to drink Pure water. When peopel talk about pure water , they really arent generally they are just talking about water thats safe to drink lol
yeah you CAN get minerals from places other than water, but disolved minerals in water is the best way to get many. goes in your system easier more natural ect
 

Arocknid

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distilled water is a bad plan, its dangerous for living things, causes problems.
 

Drachenjager

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Most municipalities actually don't have fluoride in the water right now because there is a nationwide shortage of fluoride, due to phosphate mining not being as viable as it once was. Our own local water is included in that, they just can't buy it anywhere. Darn, and I was so looking forward to tainted water. ;)
Most ground water containes natural traces of flouride. In fact some places have to remove it from the ground water because they have too much.

But even then , you are right since most cities use surface water now days.Just a bit off on why.
 

Vys

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actually the real problem with pure water ( distilled or De Ionized) is that its very agressive in leaching minerals . You drink it and it will draw the minerals out of you and down the toilet. THen you have probles of mineral deficiencies. And you wont be able to take enough suppliments if you continue to drink Pure water. When peopel talk about pure water , they really arent generally they are just talking about water thats safe to drink lol
yeah you CAN get minerals from places other than water, but disolved minerals in water is the best way to get many. goes in your system easier more natural ect
It seems that is largely a myth.

http://www.cyber-nook.com/water/distilledwater.htm

But at least your argument appears a bit logical, as opposed to Arocknid's :)
 

Drachenjager

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It seems that is largely a myth.

http://www.cyber-nook.com/water/distilledwater.htm

But at least your argument appears a bit logical, as opposed to Arocknid's :)
Well they still teach it in the water treatment classes lol
I am sure like all things its more a matter of quanity. All water can wash you out . i would assume the less minerals in the water the better job it will do. DI water is much harsher than RO water. RO water leaves a good bit of minerals in the water. like down to say 15ppm where as DI leaves less than .1ppm thats how dialysis works. He does make a point tho about mising it with food. I wold also guess that people who do lots of dieting where they eat lots of lettuce and not much else(iceberg lettuce especially since it no more than water lol ) and drink lots of water would be very much more at risk than someoen wiht a fat juicy hamburger in thier belly ....crap now im hungry...
 
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Ewok

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For years my family had used a distiller for our water, then we found out the water is too pure lol. I don't really like the taste of distilled either, its too acidic.

I like RO water the best for drinking and for aquariums
 
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