Water Utilities

karenssp

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Jul 28, 2004
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What type of water utilities does the DR us to service the houses and businesses their?

Karen
 

karenssp

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Jul 28, 2004
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karenssp said:
What type of water utilities does the DR us to service the houses and businesses their?

Karen

Are their any Public Water Services, where you can get connected, once you build a house? Or how does that work their. Here the water is piped through a line to an exsisting tank which services your house or business.
Or the other way is a catchment on the roof, which runs into your tank when it rains.
 

Texas Bill

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Feb 11, 2003
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The water system is run by INAPA---

the government agency in charge of all commercial and agricultural water supplies.
Unlike in 1st world countries, this water is NOT potable and you drink it, untreated by you, at your own risk. it is pumped directly from the lakes and streams into the transmission/distribution systems to you the user.
Not a very good system from a health standpoint. For that reason there is a booming business in bottled water---but I'm not o sure about the purification processes used by those water companies either. I've gotten some fairly smelly water at times (then used a few drops of clorax to make sure about it's potabilit).
All in all, it's a "catch-22" situation.

Somebody correct me if I'm wrong, please. Don't want to give out erroneous information.

Texas Bill
 

karenssp

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Jul 28, 2004
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Texas Bill said:
the government agency in charge of all commercial and agricultural water supplies.
Unlike in 1st world countries, this water is NOT potable and you drink it, untreated by you, at your own risk. it is pumped directly from the lakes and streams into the transmission/distribution systems to you the user.
Not a very good system from a health standpoint. For that reason there is a booming business in bottled water---but I'm not o sure about the purification processes used by those water companies either. I've gotten some fairly smelly water at times (then used a few drops of clorax to make sure about it's potabilit).
All in all, it's a "catch-22" situation.

Somebody correct me if I'm wrong, please. Don't want to give out erroneous information.

Texas Bill



Thank you
 

leekirkpatrick

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Mar 9, 2005
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Just because the bottling plants are healthy & have good processes, does NOT mean that the bottled water delivered to your house is the same. TRUST ME! I've seen companies sell "bottled" water that was not from the factory.

Make sure the bottled water you purchase is from a reputable company & get to know the people delivering your water. The better friends you are, the less likely they'll deliver the "crap" to you. When they show up to the door, coordially invite them in. Offer them a drink, water, kool-aide, made from their water. Watch if they accept or reject it. If they reject it, offer then a Presidente or a shot of Brugal. If it's a hot day, they will likely accept the Presidente. It's always a good idea to have cupcakes, "pan dulce", cake to go with the drink. Kind of like "afternoon tea", English style. Be suspicious if they won't accept the water or drink made from their water. It's also a good idea to periodically test the water yourself. You can get a little chemistry test set fairly cheaply online or in the states, the next time you're there. I wouldn't hurt to have a couple spare kits.

Lee
 

leekirkpatrick

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Mar 9, 2005
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JDJones said:
I've visited a couple of water bottling plants, and they have some pretty impressive equipment.
Not to long ago, quite a few bottling plants were closed because they didn't meet the proper requirements, so the gov't does check(sometimes!)


Does the government really check or does the word get out about contamination or poor quality at the water plants & then the news gets into the newspapers & public opinion & outcry gets so widespread & heated forcing the water plant to close. I seem to recall "WaterWorld" in Santo Domingo was infecting patrons with the contaminated water in their pool(s) & waterslide(s) and that's want forced them to close down. Maybe after the news got out the government tested the water & forced them to close down, but it's a little late to test after you already know the water's bad. :ermm:

Lee
 

karenssp

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Jul 28, 2004
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Texas Bill said:
the government agency in charge of all commercial and agricultural water supplies.
Unlike in 1st world countries, this water is NOT potable and you drink it, untreated by you, at your own risk. it is pumped directly from the lakes and streams into the transmission/distribution systems to you the user.
Not a very good system from a health standpoint. For that reason there is a booming business in bottled water---but I'm not o sure about the purification processes used by those water companies either. I've gotten some fairly smelly water at times (then used a few drops of clorax to make sure about it's potabilit).
All in all, it's a "catch-22" situation.

Somebody correct me if I'm wrong, please. Don't want to give out erroneous information.

Texas Bill


What are the names of the water distribution plants, and where are they located? I may want to visit them.
 

yasmin

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Jun 16, 2005
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Even if the government checks the companie who bottles the water, and everything seems to be OK. There can still be a problem when you drink it. It all depends off the conditions the water has been stored and how long it has been bottled before consumption.
Lots of colmados store the water outside and the bottles are in the heath of the sun all day, this might cause the development of microbes in the water. Take a habit to boil it before you store it in the refrigerator.

Don't drink any tap water! Also be careful with ice-cubes, some colmados sell "home made" ice, it's not sure they use good water.
 

rellosk

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Mar 18, 2002
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yasmin said:
Even if the government checks the companie who bottles the water, and everything seems to be OK. There can still be a problem when you drink it. It all depends off the conditions the water has been stored and how long it has been bottled before consumption.
Lots of colmados store the water outside and the bottles are in the heath of the sun all day, this might cause the development of microbes in the water. Take a habit to boil it before you store it in the refrigerator.
It doesn't sound right that microbes can develop in an unopened bottle. I may be wrong, but it is my understanding that unopened bottled water never spoils. It may taste funny if it's past the expiration date, but that's due to the plastic bottle it's stored in.

Also, are you suggesting to boil bottled water? If so, why buy bottled water?
 

btm55

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Jun 15, 2005
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Does anyone know what is considered to be the best filtered bottled water sold in the DR?
 

NotLurking

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Jul 21, 2003
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btm55 said:
Does anyone know what is considered to be the best filtered bottled water sold in the DR?

In order of best quality:
Orbis: most expensive - usually sold in pharmacies by the gallon
Crystal: Sold in 5 gallon containers, gallon and small bottles.
Planeta Azul: same as above
Alaska: same as above
and a few others.

What I don't recommend is buying filtered water off of small trucks that can be found around the city. They will fill your empty 5 gallon container for 10-15(?) pesos. I don't trust the quality and they usually don't wash the trucks with any appreciable regularity. I remember visiting a Crystal purification plant in 1982 it was quite impressive back then. I suppose they've maintained or upgraded their facilities.

I think Crystal is the best and perhaps the oldest(?) in DR. I personally like Crystal and Planeta Azul they taste a bit 'softer and lighter' than the others brands I've tasted.

NotLurking