Do you have any recommendations on ways to avoid drinking contaminated water while I’m out of the country?

Simple, just carry Aquatabs to sterilize and add a small dash of cordial in the flavour of your choice.

http://www.aquatabs.com/home/about-aquatabs/

I've had similar experiences. I generally take the attitude of doing what the locals do (within reason, some people may be unfortunately too poor to any options). For example, in Egypt, the locals in Cairo drink the water, so I did too. Along the coast, they drank bottled water, so I did too.

In mainland China, I was surprised to learn the locals I was with all drink only boiled tap water. Apparently there is no intentional of the tap water being bacteria free, it is expected that everybody will boil and cool water constantly for drinking. I followed suit.

In the Caribbean, where tap water exists, is it just rain water collected from roof tops and coarse filtered. It is considered safe from the municipal supply because all buildings filter it at their water main. It is never available not from a filter at the site it is dispensed. Other sources are literally a pipe coming out of the ground to tap a naturally occurring spring and not filtered.

Anyway, just copy the locals and bring cipro as a backup. I've never needed mine in a cumulative ~18 months in 3rd world countries.

Call the resort you are staying at and have them get you a couple cases of bottled water. The flora in the water may be different than you are used to, so you still might feel a little off, but you shouldn't get sick.

Drink sparkling water, that way you can be mostly sure the bottle hasn’t been refilled. Also, carbonation kills bacteria. Beer would be one step better as then you’ve also got alcohol killing anything that might grow. Coca-Cola is safe everywhere pretty much everywhere...

Your hotel will let you know if the water isn’t safe to drink, if water is unsafe, there will usually be a notice posted by the faucet in your room, and the hotel will provide complimentary bottles for you to drink from. Make sure you use these bottles to take your pills and brush your teeth too. If water is unsafe, there will usually be a notice posted by the faucet in your room, and the hotel will provide complimentary bottles for you to drink from. Make sure you use these bottles to take your pills and brush your teeth too. https://iwaterpurification.com/best-filtered-water-bottle/

Corey Bookem wrote:

Great question! wrote:

Don't drink water out of puddles, streams, or gutters.

Then where in the Hell are we supposed to drink from here in New Jersey?

Drink whatever the hell you want. You're a walking mutant now anyway. The critters in the water should be protecting themselves from you.

voice of the third world wrote:

Pro tipp: buy bottled water.

You coming to Flint?

where to? wrote:

For starters, if you are going to any industrial country other than the U.S., you will probably have safer drinking water than at home.

/thread

Carbonation does not kill bacteria. Yeast create CO2 and sometimes alcohol when they breed while digesting sugars. Alcohol kills bacteria.

You must only stay in five star digs.

Malaria sucks.

Brewer and Distiller wrote:

Carbonation does not kill bacteria. Yeast create CO2 and sometimes alcohol when they breed while digesting sugars. Alcohol kills bacteria.

Au contraire, my beer drinking friend.

you are welcome

Interesting but I suspect that the salts and minerals in real seltzer water kill bacteria. Salts of course are known preservatives for meats.

I do like the idea of buying soda water to ensure the product is genuine. But soda water might be hard to get in many back country third world locations. Coca-Cola is available nearly everywhere on the planets. Many off the beaten track places now filter and UV treat the local water they serve to travelers. Hot tea and coffee are often safe bets too. So is the local fermented hootch. Kumis is always a good alternative when the local water supply seems sketchy.

If draft beer lines and dipspeners aren’t sanitized regularly they can grow some pretty nasty wild yeast strains even in constant presence of CO2. CO2 can displace air and will kill humans.

Spend the money and buy the Berkey travel kit.

Brewer and Distiller wrote:

If draft beer lines and dipspeners aren’t sanitized regularly they can grow some pretty nasty wild yeast strains even in constant presence of CO2. CO2 can displace air and will kill humans.

As you’ve stated, alcohol kills alcohol (and yeast). Yet bacteria and yeast can live in beer and wine. Bacteria and yeast cannot live in Everclear...because the effect is concentration dependent. It’s the same with C02. This is 100 year old science. Leave the thinking to the thinking men.

MichelleAna wrote:

I will be travelling in a few days. Do you have any recommendations on ways to avoid drinking contaminated water while I’m out of the country?

Tough one. If in Western Europe you can use a thing called a ‘tap’. They have companies that people pay to clean water and distribute it through ‘taps’. They also have a nifty thing called ‘piping’ that helps the flow of water. Most households in Western Europe have ‘taps’ and you basically just use a ‘cup’ or ‘bowl’ to collect the water and drink it.

That was already crystal clear.