Boiling ro/di water.

[harlequinnut]

I finally got a ro/di unit and hook it up. My wife used to boil the tap water then let it cool for drinking but now with the ro/di, there's really no need to, right? Wrong, she still insist on boiling the ro/di water to drink which makes no sense to me. What is your view on this? Does boiling the ro/di water make it better, worse or no difference?

 

[atf88]

i have no real input, but i just thought it was funny

 

[thomas712]

Its hard for some people to change, the boiling of the water gives her peice of mind.
Tell her this, The RO/DI water is great with all of the heavy metals removed, now what she is doing is placing that water into a metal (I assume) container and placing it on the stove to boil, thereby, replacing some of the metals into the water. If the pot were not rinsed well enough from the last washing then she is also adding detergents, oils, foodstuffs. Pot been sitting out all this time, then add dust, dustmites, and other airborn particals.
Education is the key here, show here reports of what RO/DI water is, what it removes, how it works, HAVE HER TASTE IT. That alone should tell her there is a difference.
My 2 cents.
Thomas

 

[elfdoctors]

I also agree that boiling is unnecessary. However I see two potential benefits.
Boiling will still sterilize the water. Microbes cannot pass through a properly functioning RO unit. However they are very adaptable and will start colonizing the blue end of your tubing after repeated usage. There have been reports of bacteria which can live in distilled water. The growth will be minimal and has not been shown to be able to cause disease.
Depending on the cookware used to boil the water, there may be a taste benefit. Many people do not like the taste of RO or distilled water. Many bottled water suppliers add trace minerals (especially magnesium) to improve the taste.
If she still insists on boiling the water let her do it. To me it appears to be a waste of time but she may get some psychological benefit from it and there is no harm in it. (Boiling tapwater actually concentrates heavy metals).

 

[petem]

How bad is your water supply there where you need to boil the drinking water?
At work, (NYC) I have a double distilled water unit. The water had so much sediment in it, I had to install two prefilters. One gets changed everymonth, the other every 3-6 months.
I need to have the purest water possible for my Dna samples.

 

[jrpage]

Originally posted by Kipass4130
... and i am ok... excpet for this third eye in the back of my head

 

[harlequinnut]

Thanks everyone.

 

[elfdoctors]

IMO, unless you are drinking bathtubs of RO water it will be safe. Depending on your local drinking water, it may actually be safer.
As I said earlier it usually comes down to taste. People like mineral water for a reason. This will vary from person to person and will also depend on the taste of your local water.

 

[harlequinnut]

My ro/di unit doesn't have a bypass of the di filter, does that mean I shouldn't drink the ro/di water?

 

[dreeves]

You know Harlequinnut...you could always buy a cheap little 8watt UV and put at the end of the line right before the little faucet...she seems concerned about the bacteria...which you cannot blame her...the UV will destroy and and all bacteria...maybe that would help you folks out.