# Tap water in spain



## andyviola (Aug 11, 2018)

Is tap water in Spain safe to drink? To be honest when ive been on holiday ive drunk it with no ill effects but does any expat resident drink it daily and not bother with buying bottled? 

Our agent says its terrible hard but to be honest if temperature gets to 35c i really don't care what it tastes like when blooming thirsty.... 🙂
(Apologies if discussed but i searched and couldn't find)


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## Trubrit (Nov 24, 2010)

To be honest is it really worth the risk when you can buy 8 litres from Consum for about 80 cents?


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

Trubrit said:


> To be honest is it really worth the risk when you can buy 8 litres from Consum for about 80 cents?


Risk of what?


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## davexf (Jan 26, 2009)

Hola 

When I first came to Spain in 2002, I didn't give it a thought and simply drank the water from the tap. Later I realised I had a well at the bottom of the garden and was drinking well water. I still do without any problems but I do buy bottled water for visitors as they won't be used to my water. 

When I was just a lad, France had an appalling reputation for bad water - but that was over 60 years ago. 

I have had my well water tested and am happy with it 

Davexf


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## Barriej (Jul 23, 2012)

I always drink the water. And I'm still ok. No extra limbs yet 

Why would it dangerous? 

It tastes funny compared with Uk water but we run it through one of those Britta jug things and keep it in the fridge, which helps with the taste.

Edited to add,

And what water are your salad items washed in? 
Do you clean your teeth with bottled water?


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## kalohi (May 6, 2012)

Of course the water you drink will be different depending on what part of Spain you're in. But here in the Seville area I drink tap water (which tastes great) with no ill effects whatsoever. I've also traveled throughout the country and drunk the water everywhere with no problems. In some places it doesn't taste as nice as in Seville, but a Brita water filter would probably take care of that.


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

Our tap water comes from springs just a few miles away and it is quite potable, if a little hard, so we have a decalcifier and a three-stage filter (removes any saltiness.) Sometimes after heavy rains, the Ayto. adds a little chlorine just to be sure but otherwise...


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## Alvarro (Dec 23, 2016)

I was advised by my urology consultant not to drink the tap water in my village, I have a cluster of small kidney stones. He said that the water in the village is not good for this condition. This was confirmed by my pharmacist in the village who said that very many people here have stones. I steam my vegetables rather than boil them The kettle has to be cleaned of calcium deposits every couple of months.


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## jimenato (Nov 21, 2009)

It varies from place to place but generally Spain will comply with EU rules on water as does the UK.

However at least in our village (Jimena de la frontera - Cadiz) they are not good about warning the residents about outages (which they should) and after the outages you would not even touch the water let alone drink it. I have photo of a washbasinful somewhere and it's brown and smells bad. You have to flush it through for minutes before it's usable in any way.

So - we use it for making tea and coffee and washing and so on but on the odd occasion we drink water  - it's bottled.


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## Juan C (Sep 4, 2017)

I have been drinking tap water for around 40 years in Spain.

'Of course I don't know if it will be bad for me if I drink it long term' !!!!!!


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## Alf Tupper (Jun 23, 2018)

Been drinking the tap water for 14 years with no ill effects. Calcium is good for your bones.


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## Juan C (Sep 4, 2017)

Just in passing

Putting a few small stones with 'sharp edges' (mine were from the beech) in the kettle will prevent limescale build up. Thus even with hardest water no descaling required


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

All the water in Spain is safe for drinking. We are living in the 2000's, not the 1960's.
Like any other European country, water tastes different in different regions and you might like or not like the taste, and it's true that there may be traces of minerals that aggravate certain conditions as pointed out by the forum member Alvarro. 

I live in the region of Madrid and the water is great and renowned for being so. When I go to Bilbao I do drink bottled water because I don't like the taste there, and I am only there for a short time, a week at most. I would urge people who are already living and settled in Spain not to buy bottled water just because you don't like the taste. It's just a question of getting used to it. Buy bottled for a month say and mix it little by little with the local water in a jug.


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

Alvarro said:


> I was advised by my urology consultant not to drink the tap water in my village, I have a cluster of small kidney stones. He said that the water in the village is not good for this condition. This was confirmed by my pharmacist in the village who said that very many people here have stones. I steam my vegetables rather than boil them The kettle has to be cleaned of calcium deposits every couple of months.


So what you need is a decalcifier a.k.a. a water softener.


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## andyviola (Aug 11, 2018)

wow thanks guys....I am going to go for it. If I die then at least I avoid expensive care home where nobody has patience with my pigeon Spanish


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## andyviola (Aug 11, 2018)

Pesky Wesky said:


> All the water in Spain is safe for drinking. We are living in the 2000's, not the 1960's.
> Like any other European country, water tastes different in different regions and you might like or not like the taste, and it's true that there may be traces of minerals that aggravate certain conditions as pointed out by the forum member Alvarro.
> 
> I live in the region of Madrid and the water is great and renowned for being so. When I go to Bilbao I do drink bottled water because I don't like the taste there, and I am only there for a short time, a week at most. I would urge people who are already living and settled in Spain not to buy bottled water just because you don't like the taste. It's just a question of getting used to it. Buy bottled for a month say and mix it little by little with the local water in a jug.


almost (omg) the 2020's,


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## Trubrit (Nov 24, 2010)

mrypg9 said:


> Risk of what?


I live in the campo and when I moved here 4 weeks ago there was a warning letter from the ayuntamiento saying under no circumstances should I drink the water as it is well water and not safe to drink and only use for cleaning, feeding plants and animals,


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## alpinist (Feb 8, 2009)

You can access water tests online: http://sinac.msssi.es/CiudadanoWeb/ciudadano/informacionAbastecimientoActionZA.do

Safety aside, we drink tap water at home and have done for the 3 years we've been in this flat, but I drink bottled water at work a mile across town because it tastes bloody awful there. 

---
Castilla y León | Andalucía


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## tebo53 (Sep 18, 2014)

I've drank tap water with no I'll effects Spain is operating under European rules having tap water made safe .


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## Isobella (Oct 16, 2014)

I have always drank tap water. They do say if you have a well to get it tested as like springs some have been contaminated by soakage from agricultural products. A friend who lived in an enclave of 6 houses on the village outskirts didn't really know where their water came from, was a private supply. An old guy came every month for payment with a little notebook. After a few years he suffered from kidney stones and had them blasted but they came back again. Shortly afterwards two men in lab coats came to the door and said they had come to test the water. Turned out that 4 out of the 6 houses had kidney stones. Shortly after they were put on town water.


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

It's only sensible to have water that comes from a different source than the the regulated supplies tested, as you would in any country I would have thought...


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

I never tasted tap-water until I was seven years old and I found tap-water was horrible. Our well was fed constantly by a spring and it was delicious. I still will not drink water from the normal tap. We have a system of three filters downstream from the softener and while it isn't perfect, it definitely tastes better than straight from the normal tap-water supply. When I was in hospital, SWMBO bottled it for me and brought it in when she visited.

One thing to be remembered is, if one has a softener, the output is OK for coffee but for tea one needs hard water.


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## Beach buddy (Jul 7, 2018)

Been drinking it for 25 years with no problems at all.


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

Beach buddy said:


> Been drinking it for 25 years with no problems at all.


I've been avoiding it for 70 years!


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## andyviola (Aug 11, 2018)

LOL baldillocks during our massive 3 week (though over exaggerated by media as whole summer) humid hot uk summer 2019 our Thames tap water tasted heavenly i can assure you.


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## The Skipper (Nov 26, 2014)

I lived in Cornwall for 40 years before retiring to Spain and our house had a natural spring at the end of the garden which at one time supplied water for half a dozen neighbouring houses. After mains water arrived - before we bought the house - nobody bothered to come to the spring although we were obliged to maintain a sign on the gate saying "public access to water shute." One day a Land Rover pulled into the drive and an official from South West Water said she needed to take a sample from the spring. We asked, out of curiosity, if she would let us know the results. A couple of weeks later she came back and told us not to drink from the spring. In fact, she said "don't even wash the car with it!" We have been in Spain for 11 years and have had no problem with tap water although, I must be honest, we still buy bottled water as I think it has a better taste, although most days I still fill a glass from the tap.


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## Salonica (Feb 28, 2014)

I think that water, as with any food or drink, is a matter of taste. I love the tap water in Madrid much more than bottled. I remember when I bought my apartment on the coast and would make tea from the bottled stuff, I couldn’t stand the scum it left on the top of the tea nor the different taste. I started to lug tap water from Madrid to the coast just for my tea until a friend told me to buy the brand Bezoya which is bottled water from Madrid and has a low mineral content. Now it’s the only water I drink at the beach. So I’ve come to the conclusion that my taste buds don’t like the mineral in the normal bottled water. And I would say that almost all tap water in Spain is very safe to drink, whether you like the taste is another story.


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## andyviola (Aug 11, 2018)

Haha indeed Salonica though if Catalonia gets 35 to 40C all August again i won't notice any taste differences i am sure 😁


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

If you don't like the taste of your tap water, get a filter jug and keep it in the fridge. Get a reusable bottle for when you go out. Far better for the environment than all those plastic bottles.


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## fortrose52 (Nov 29, 2018)

Tap water in Scottish Highlands great. At our office hardly anybody drank from the water cooler and it got taken away as unhygienic.


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## andyviola (Aug 11, 2018)

fortrose52 said:


> Tap water in Scottish Highlands great. At our office hardly anybody drank from the water cooler and it got taken away as unhygienic.


No entiendo. Your office in spain or highlands?


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## DawnColin (Jul 12, 2018)

We are living in Javea (8 weeks now) and I would love to drink the tap water, but it tastes really metallic. We use it for tea making, cooking, washing, cleaning teeth etc but buy bottled water for drinking.


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

DawnColin said:


> We are living in Javea (8 weeks now) and I would love to drink the tap water, but it tastes really metallic. We use it for tea making, cooking, washing, cleaning teeth etc but buy bottled water for drinking.


Have you tried a filter jug, e.g. Brita? There's a cheaper brand which I've got, but I can't remember the name. It removes the metallic taste. The filters last two or three months and cost about €5 each, so much more economical than bottled water and better for the planet.


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## country boy (Mar 10, 2010)

Alcalaina said:


> Have you tried a filter jug, e.g. Brita? There's a cheaper brand which I've got, but I can't remember the name. It removes the metallic taste. The filters last two or three months and cost about €5 each, so much more economical than bottled water and better for the planet.


We do likewise with one of these ...100 % excellent!


https://www.amazon.es/BRITA-Depósit...15150&s=gateway&sprefix=brita,aps,402&sr=8-12


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## tebo53 (Sep 18, 2014)

I have one of those jugs and can highly recommend them. Its sometimes difficult to find the replacement filters. I find it easier and cheaper to get the filters from Amazon site.


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## andyviola (Aug 11, 2018)

a week into my spanish adventure and drinking tap water, no extra limbs yet.

dont notice a taste difference but boy the cow's milk tastes different


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## jimenato (Nov 21, 2009)

andyviola said:


> a week into my spanish adventure and drinking tap water, no extra limbs yet.
> 
> dont notice a taste difference but boy the cow's milk tastes different


Are you drinking fresh pasteurised milk or UHT?


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## Monkey104 (Aug 24, 2014)

andyviola said:


> a week into my spanish adventure and drinking tap water, no extra limbs yet.
> 
> dont notice a taste difference but boy the cow's milk tastes different


According to Ernie, pasteurised is best.


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## Juan C (Sep 4, 2017)

Some years ago a friend who was an agent for a water tap filter system. He lent me a portable unit to try out. I filtered water and then put the water in the fridge. It seemed to taste better. Then I thought maybe it was just because it was cold. I put water direct from the tap in a jug in the fridge. It tasted exactly like he filtered water

Just leaving water stand for a few hours will clear any chlorine flavour. 

I wonder if those who believe filtered water is better have tried putting tap water straight in the fridge !

Re Spanish milk. ‘Leche del día’ is fresh, untreated milk. My son uses that when in spain as he and his family do not like ’Spanish milk.’ It tastes the same as such milk in U.K.


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## andyviola (Aug 11, 2018)

jimenato said:


> Are you drinking fresh pasteurised milk or UHT?


ah yes thanks - UHT

I have to get used as dont want to go to supermarket every 2 days haha

no corner shops for top ups like in UK


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## jimenato (Nov 21, 2009)

andyviola said:


> ah yes thanks - UHT
> 
> I have to get used as dont want to go to supermarket every 2 days haha
> 
> no corner shops for top ups like in UK


That'll explain it at least in part. 

I found that skimmed (red carton?) UHT tastes less 'strong' than semi or full fat - more like the UK pasteurised variety.


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

andyviola said:


> ah yes thanks - UHT
> 
> I have to get used as dont want to go to supermarket every 2 days haha
> 
> no corner shops for top ups like in UK


You'll get used to it very quickly. Then non-UHT milk will taste strange!


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

jimenato said:


> That'll explain it at least in part.
> 
> I found that skimmed (red carton?) UHT tastes less 'strong' than semi or full fat - more like the UK pasteurised variety.


Semi for me, with added calcium and vitamins because I am an old lady. 

Skimmed is too watery, especially in tea.


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

Fat-free and no lactose, UHT. Spanish UHT tastes vastly different from that ghastly French UHT we used to get in UK.


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## andyviola (Aug 11, 2018)

baldilocks said:


> Fat-free and no lactose, UHT. Spanish UHT tastes vastly different from that ghastly French UHT we used to get in UK.


I agree its satisfactory whereas uk's is yucky.

fortunate given I use quite a lot of milk and have cereal every morning, a very british habit!


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