The water in Las Vegas is NASTY.

**Kanaric** · November 01, 2009, 10:10 AM

I've been living here since about May since i'm stationed at Nellis AFB and the water here is weird.

It tastes OK, but if you leave it sit it has this strange smell to it that I can't put my finger on. If it sits on like a towel or some clothes its smell is clearly there. Where i'm from, chicago, the water is pretty much like bottled water. It doesn't really have a smell or taste to it at all other than what that the government puts in it.

The reason why i'm posting it in the science forum is i'm wondering, what is in the water here?

**Mar77** · November 01, 2009, 11:04 AM

A lot of it has to do with the differences in the source of water. Chicago gets their water from a giant lake, Lake Michigan, whereas Las Vegas gets their water from a smaller lake (Lake Mead) and river. In addition, there are differences in environment: Nevada is much drier than Illinois.

Lake Mead:

Spoiler Alert, click show to read:

All this can affect the chemistry of the water, things like pH, etc. which in turn can affect flavor. To learn more about the differences between river and lake chemistry here is something for you to read about. It might not specially apply, but it does provide examples of some of the things to look for when comparing sources of water.

**Jexiel** · November 02, 2009, 12:35 AM

Check the local water treatment plant. Most likely, you will find the "problem" there.

http://www.lasvegasnevada.gov/information/5397.htm

http://www.lasvegasnevada.gov/files/BRO-WPCF_04.pdf

**Morkonan** · November 02, 2009, 12:59 AM

Originally Posted by Kanaric

..The reason why i'm posting it in the science forum is i'm wondering, what is in the water here?

IMO..

If you're talking about the water on base, I'd say it was the base's water. There are a bit different standards for military bases and their water supplies, piping, jointing, etc... Heck, Fort Bragg's hasn't been up to anyone's standards in a long time. It got so bad there that people simply stopped drinking it, especially families with kids, and it seemed that the bottled water companies had a temporary boom! I don't know how it is now. Rumor was they were trying to put more effort into correcting the problems. They issued apologetic alerts and such but, that doesn't mean anything when someone is worried about the water their kids are drinking. Cost priorities on base don't start with the plumbing and work their way up.

If not on base, it's probably due to the poster's above comments.

**Tiwaz** · November 02, 2009, 02:41 AM

Method of purification is also often responsible.

I live currently in Tampere, Finland. Local water comes mainly from surface water directly. This requires high amount of chlorine use in water treatment. Result is that there are some trace amounts left which can give off certain smell.

I originally lived in smaller town where water was provided through making artificial ground water. Namely they pumped water from lake on this big sand hill, let it seep down through it and have most unwanted things filtered out as it went down. Result was water which require little to no extra purification. And thus little to no trace chlorine.

**MrMofo** · November 02, 2009, 09:07 AM

Ive lived in places where there's a lot of sulphur or copper in the area and the water has a lot of mineralization, and smells like well, rotten eggs or blood haha.

**GrnEyedDvl** · November 02, 2009, 03:59 PM

Originally Posted by Kanaric

Where i'm from, chicago, the water is pretty much like bottled water. It doesn't really have a smell or taste to it at all other than what that the government puts in it.

Your tastebuds have obviously been ruined by the water in Chicago. I cannot stand the water in Chicago, my wife has family there and we have to visit them every year. They dont think its funny when I call the place Sickago. LA supposedly has the best tasting tap water. I will agree that the last time I was there I thought it was better than Denver water.

The reason why i'm posting it in the science forum is i'm wondering, what is in the water here?

The real answer is probably mineral content.

**Captain Jin** · November 03, 2009, 05:02 AM

Yeah, when I was posted in TwentyNine Palms, California that tap water was naaaasty. It tasted better if you put in the fridge... but damn.

In Prague the tap water is great. I heard something about the old pipes or something make for some sort of filter or something but it sounds like bs.