We all drink water many times a day. Getting enough water keeps us healthy. If you’re serious about staying hydrated, you’ve probably wondered: can drinking water go bad? How long does it actually last? Good questions! Let’s get some answers from the experts.\\n

Those Tiny Microorganisms

\\nDr. Kellogg Schwab, Director of the Johns Hopkins University Water Institute, explains that the moment your mouth touches the glass, you introduce microorganisms into your water. If your home or office is warm, especially with sunlight streaming in, these little guys can multiply super fast.\\n

How Long Is Water Safe? 

\\nDr. Schwab says if you pour clean water into a clean glass, it’ll stay safe for a day or two. Most tap water in the US has chlorine, which helps kill off small groups of microorganisms. If your day-old water tastes a bit off, it’s likely because it goes “flat” after about 12 hours. That’s when carbon dioxide from the air mixes with the H2O in your glass, lowering the water’s pH. But even then, Dr. Schwab assures us it’s usually still safe to drink.\\n

Bacteria on the Rise

\\nUsing a dirty glass day after day ups your risk of exposure to unfriendly bacteria. This is especially true if more than one person is sharing the glass, mixing their mouth microorganisms with what’s already in the water. The smartest move? Grab a fresh cup every few days and don’t share it. If you do share, wash it quickly.\\n

Clean Hands Matter 

\\nHere’s another important tip: make sure your hands are clean when you touch the rim of your glass. Touching it with dirty hands, especially after using the bathroom without proper washing, can cause real health problems. Human waste is full of sickness-causing bacteria. So, if those dirty hands touch your glass, bacteria can get into your water, then into your stomach, and make you very sick.\\n

How Long Does Stored Water Last?

\\nMany people store plastic water bottles in their car. That’s not a good idea. Heat and plastic are a terrible combination. Dr. Schwab warns that chemicals like bisphenol-A, or BPA, along with other plastics manufacturing ingredients, can leach into your water if the bottle gets hot or sits in the sun. BPA messes with hormones and has been tentatively linked to serious health issues like heart disease and cancer.\\n\\nThe plastic used for bottled water isn’t meant for washing or refilling. Use them once, then recycle them. Better yet, switch to reusable containers made of metal or glass. They’re much better for the environment.\\n

Tap Water’s Shelf Life

\\nZane Satterfield, an engineer scientist with the National Environmental Services Center at West Virginia University, says tap water lasts about six months. After that, the chlorine fades, and bacteria and algae start to grow. This growth speeds up if you store the water in a warm, sunny spot, or in a glass container that isn’t completely clean or sealed.\\n

When to Swap Stored Water?

\\nIf you’ve got emergency water stored in your basement, swap it out every 12 months. Some water will evaporate during that time, showing that plastic isn’t completely impenetrable.\\n

Drinking Long-Stored Water

\\nBefore drinking water stored for a long time, you can add a few drops of plain, unscented bleach. Wait 30 minutes, and your water will be safe to drink. Four drops per gallon should do the trick.\\n

Always Drink 100% Contamination-Free Water – Trust AMPAC USA

\\nDrinking clean, contamination-free water is key to staying healthy and avoiding sickness. You can count on the water treatment solutions from AMPAC USA.\\n\\nAMPAC USA is a top manufacturer and distributor of high-quality, American-made water treatment systems. We started in 1990, building water purification equipment. Over the years, we’ve grown into a large-scale manufacturer, producing all kinds of major purification equipment and handling full-scale, project-based water infrastructure installations.\\n\\nAMPAC USA is known for its excellent technical services. We get how tough marine conditions can be. That’s why we use military and marine-grade certified components in our off-shore and on-shore reverse osmosis watermakers. We build equipment that’s easy to operate, heavy-duty, and reliable. We custom-engineer, design, fabricate, and manufacture systems to handle the toughest water treatment conditions anywhere on the planet, without compromise.\\n\\nTo learn more about us, click here or call us at 909-548-4900. \n

Related reading: QMRA of adenovirus in drinking water at a drinking water treatment plant using UV and chlorine dioxide disinfection, When to Replace Your RO Membrane: How Long Do RO Membranes Last?, How Long Does a Water Softener Last? Understanding Lifespan, Maintenance & Replacement.