You don’t need to buy bottled water for health reasons as the drinking water supplied by the Lake Huron and Elgin Area water systems meets all the provincial requirements and standards for drinking water. If you wish to drink water with a different taste, you can buy bottled water but it may cost as much as 1,000 times more than your municipal drinking water.

Bottled water is considered a “food product” and governed by different regulations and standards than that of municipal drinking water. The content of some minerals and other impurities in bottled water may be listed on the bottle label along with its source. Not all bottled water is “spring water” and, in fact, may be municipal drinking water filtered to remove the chlorine.

Yes. Many studies have shown that the amount of chlorine found in municipal drinking water is safe to drink, although some people object to the taste. Chlorine is added to drinking water to kill pathogens (disease causing micro organisms such as germs, bacteria and viruses) and prevent pathogen contamination in the water distribution system.

To eliminate the taste of chlorine, try storing a closed glass pitcher of tap water in the refrigerator. Although some plastic bottles are okay for storing drinking water in the refrigerator, some types of plastic may cause a taste in water. If you are having trouble, use a different kind of plastic.

No. A typical vinyl garden hose has substances in it to keep the hose flexible. These chemicals, which can get into the water as it goes through the hose, are not good for you or pets.  Do not  fill drinking containers from the garden hose unless the water is allowed to run for a while to flush the hose before using the water.

You can obtain “food-grade” plastic hose which will not contaminate the water. Campers with recreational vehicles or trailers should use this type of hose when hooking up to a drinking water tap at a campsite. Check with a store that sells accessories for recreational vehicles.