Another travel day today, this time to what Davelcorp has aptly termed “Rainland”. It’s cold, nasty, and rainy — just like how Pacific Northwest is supposed to be in the winter.
Rainland (i.e. Portland OR) has decent tap water. This is, I think, largely true of this region, where they get plenty of rainfall plus a good dose of glacial water coming down stream. I remember living in Vancouver BC where the water was always crisp and clean, even in the relative heat of summer. The only problem, it seems, is that tap water will always have a bit of chlorine in it, no matter what you do, because they need to process the water to make it potable. Even after they run it through the plant which usually tries to dissipate the chlorine taste, there’s still a bit of it left by the time it reaches your faucet. If nothing else, a water filter will get rid of the chlorine taste. Boiling it seems to take care of most of it, but sometimes if the water hasn’t reached full boil the chlorine taste doesn’t quite go away.
Meanwhile…. I have to survive a few more days on my survival kit with random aged oolongs. I can’t complain too much, I suppose.
2 responses so far ↓
Dogma_l // January 9, 2008 at 9:35 am |
Slight refinement, if I might presume: water treatment plants usually do several levels of gross and micro-filtration to remove particulates, and sometimes pH adjust. Then they chlorinate to kill bugs, which takes some time. I believe that this is usually done by a few days’ hold in a tank or labyrinth (for better mixing). Sending pure water down pipes doesn’t work, though, because fresh bugs grow. At least in the US, it is usually required that there be some residual sterilizing capacity, in the form of a slight excess of chlorine. It’s not a mistake or sloppy technique; it’s required for public safety. Ozone treatment, which sometimes makes much better-testing water by burning out organics completely, still needs chlorine added for safety in the distribution system.
-DM
(Just toured my town’s new treatment plant; highly recommended if your area allows it given security concerns.)
MarshalN // January 10, 2008 at 12:28 am |
Ah yes, of course… I totally forgot about the need to drink water straight out of the pipes. Since I never drink unboiled, unfiltered water these days…