Why is Florida tap water so gross???

[DanMedix]

One of the few things I like about the Memphis area (where I live) is that we have some of the best water in the nation. Our artesian well water is actually bottled and sold in some markets around the country (or at least it used to be sold like that). With that, I can tolerate Orlando's water to a certain extent (maybe because of my strong stomach..lol). The rest of my family, however......they're the reason I spend so much on bottled water during each trip! I'm considering bringing a filter pitcher for next month.....lol

 

[LittleFlounder]

At home, I will ONLY drink tap water.... I refuse to buy, or drink bottled water. At Disney however, I can't stand the tap water and water from the drinking fountains! To me, it has such a strong sulphur smell and taste.

The taste of Disney water has become a joke in my family! When drink drinking fountain water at Disney, we always ask one another "What did that drink taste like?"... the answer is always "Pirates of the Caribbean" or "Fireworks!".

 

[LilyU]

We usually have Garden Grocer deliver a case of Deer Park water to our room. BUT Last Sept. 2011 when we went, that case of water tasted terrible! I don't know if it sat in a hot truck for too long or what. So we ended up buying a good bit of the Dasani water while there and it tasted fine.

 

[Emteach]

We were thinking the same thing when we were in the world. Needed the water from the fountains but it was SO yucky tasting imo. The vast majority was also very warm (think we encountered 2 or 3 cold fountains) so that didnt help matters!

 

[Feralpeg]

One of the many reasons why I regret leaving NYC: home to the best-tasting tap water on earth. Have been a South Floridian for 3 & 1/2 years, and I have never consumed tap-water that has a gas-like aftertaste until I came to FLA. In fact, I first experienced what appears to be a Southern phenom in Georgia on my shlep to FLA. Had a soda with my dinner at Shoney's (manager believed that he was overseeing a 4-star restuarant in Manhattan LOL!), and the first sip prompted me to ask the manager: "This tastes funny!" His response: "We never had any complaints!" LOL! Then I realized in hindsight that the ice-cubes were the culprit. How have Floridians tolerated this possible health-hazard without complaining to their Congress or Senate? It must be complacency, not knowing how tap water should taste - ie. it should have no taste.

The water in my home tastes fine, but the home was built in 2004 and has a built in filtration system. Any new builds or construction must have a filtration system. That is the code. Thus, you may go into a restaurant and get water that tastes great. Go into another restaurant that is older and the water may be horrible. Even at WDW, the water will differ based on whether the establishment/resort has been built or remodeled since the code change. A lot of the drinking fountains are old. Therefore, they don't have the filtration built in and the water tastes bad.

As for the ice, you are correct. The ice can really ruin a drink if the water it was made with was not filtered. I've gotten used to asking for my drinks without ice. Most soda, etc. is cold anyway. Ice isn't really needed and I never have to worry about whether the place has filtered water or not.

 

[MarciaBrady]

I thought the water from the water fountains in Hollywood Studios & SeaWorld tasted a bit...odd, but not nasty or anything. What WAS yucky was that a lot of the water fountains were warm. (I hate drinking warm water.)

 

[DeborahA]

Our water here in SW Florida taste OK but it has a chlorine smell. We drink the water after it goes thru the filter in the fridge and then it taste good. I miss our water from up north because it always was so cold. Our water here flows thru very close to the surface and it is hot down here

 

[MichaelLIFL]

Florida really does have terrible tap water. It's something I've noticed my entire life every time I visited there. It is extremely hard water, which means that it has a very high mineral content (specifically
magnesium and calcium). This affects the taste, of course, but also dries out your skin, dries out your hair, doesn't lather as well, doesn't launder well, and wreaks havoc for your appliances. However, the water quality and taste varies in different parts of Florida. IMO, Jacksonville area and Orlando had the most foul water. Tampa's didn't have much of an odor, and in South Florida, it varies - Miami is a little better than Broward and Palm Beach. Believe it or not 85% of the US has hard water. I will say that out of other places I've been to, Florida is the worst. Los Angeles has hard water but it doesn't smell like it does in Florida. Washington DC has hard-ish water but not terrible. Savannah GA water is almost identical To Florida. New Jersey and NY have great tap water hence great bagels, great pizza, and great hair

 

[EdMck]

What I want to know is why I'm paying so much for water out of my tap in Jacksonville Florida and it's not worthy of drinking. I moved here from Memphis Tennessee where they make vaccines out of their water. It is the best tasting water in America. But they don't want to sell it to anybody. The water in Memphis is so pure that there is hardly any filter cleaning associated with it. The water has been found to be over 1,500 years of age.