Bottled Water Service serving Cuenca

7 months after posting a question, it is time to answer it, which is okay since I am mostly talking to myself when I post on this forum anyway.



Phone: 2862450

The water service is:


Pure Agua

And the cost is......

Several years ago we switched to a water purification system. Rumor has it the plastic from the jug leaches into the water.

The first bottle is 9.75, which covers the cost of the bottle. After that I am not sure. I will update with exact amount when I get the next bottle delivered.

Boy, that's not cheap. Interested to see what the bottle deposit is and what the aqua actually costs.
Thanks

Bards, why the sad face? This could sway voting for Cuenca Ex-pat of the year.

fdmcg wrote:

Several years ago we switched to a water purification system. Rumor has it the plastic from the jug leaches into the water.

Is that one of those under the sink units? What do you figure it costs? Am I right in assuming it has a filter that must be replaced? Like, cost of filter, and life span of the filter?
Thanks

I should mention that the ceramic base is not included. I bought the base at Corral for 15 dollars.

Ha! That face reflects my sentiment when reading and commenting on the blogs.

Zen, as I recall the price here in Quito was about $2. Nards you might want to consider keeping a spare back-up to make sure you have fresh coffee each morning. Also, sorry about the Bards reference above.  My spell chech is still learning.

I use tap water for coffee. I boil it on the stove and then use a coffee press. The water out of the tap is pretty decent, but for drinking straight, I rather have the bottled.

I am pretty sure it will cost around 2 bucks here as well.

Zen, we purchased the system here and yes it has filters requiring annual replacement. (I have a financial background and determined the payback period is two years plus the convenience). I could change filters myself as it is very simple but the cost here approximates the cost in the US. I understand water quality in Cuenca is better than Quito. It surprises me how much water we use for coffee, drinking (no, not with scotch) and washing fresh vegetables. I assume the large volume drunk is due to the very low humidity.

Nards Barley wrote:

Ha! That face reflects my sentiment when reading and commenting on the blogs.

Nards, what would it take to turn that into a smiley face in 2013?

fdmcg wrote:

Zen, we purchased the system here and yes it has filters requiring annual replacement. (I have a financial background and determined the payback period is two years plus the convenience). I could change filters myself as it is very simple but the cost here approximates the cost in the US. I understand water quality in Cuenca is better than Quito. It surprises me how much water we use for coffee, drinking (no, not with scotch) and washing fresh vegetables. I assume the large volume drunk is due to the very low humidity.

Hey....
What do you have against Scotch? You don't have to boil it, and you can drink it right outa the bottle.You ever rinse your veggies in Scotch? You might develope a taste for Brussles drenched in Scotch. Viva La Scotch!!

Seriously,that pay back, along with the convenince factor sounds reasonable. My thought is it would be much simpler to have a strainer in the sink, and be able to use a pre spray attachment to rinse vegetables vs. having a water source where you would just drizzle it over them. More effective and uses less water I would think.

Zen, they sell a disinfectant here called Vitalin. Mix a few drops with purified water and then soak vegetables and fruit which you eat the skin such as apples, coliflower, peaches, etc and your done. Washing the fruit and vegetables in tap water defeats the goal.

fdmcg wrote:

Zen, they sell a disinfectant here called Vitalin. Mix a few drops with purified water and then soak vegetables and fruit which you eat the skin such as apples, coliflower, peaches, etc and your done. Washing the fruit and vegetables in tap water defeats the goal.

Sorry,
Guess I misunderstood. I thought you were saying your tap water was purified through a filtering system, and that would suffice. So, you evidently need a chemical to actually kill the cooties.
I stand informed. < BAG >

Need a chemical and take pills annually to kill the "cooties" that still get through.

Small price to pay.
I'd heard it was like quarterly for the pills. So you can do an annual cleansing, and you're good to go? I had heard that it is a combo of like 3 medications, that you take over a period of days? And, these are over the counter meds?
Stay Well, (he he he )

My wife is Ecuadorian and she is the one who introduced me to the pills. We take them annually, same medication taken over I believe three days. No prescription needed and they are inexpensive.

So, your wife, who is a local, has to take the meds too? Just wondered if locals build up a tolerance? It also sounds to me as if maybe the theory that " you can drink " the tap water in Cuenca is a false hood? I know personally, I am pretty chicken. Don't think I'd drink the tap water, but I did use it to brush teeth. ( course, I don't swallow it )
I didn't eat any of the " street food " when I was there. I have a pretty extensive back ground in food safety and food handling, and some of the things I saw when there was down right scary. I know, probably just as bad in a restuarant, but... you don't see it!

I met my wife Laura when I was in Peace Corps in Ecuador in '70-'71 and she was the country language coordinator. After 35 years in the USA she is now more "gringa" than Ecuadorian. We are both very conscious about food safety especially cross contamination and refrigeration.  Standards here are very inconsistent even in some of the best homes.

Intersting life journey you both have shared. Laura must have been very excited to have an opportunity to be near family again.
Hope to hook up next June or the very near future.
Stay Well
Neil

wait. I got confused. When did we go from water to pills? what pills?!

Loving Ecuador wrote:

wait. I got confused. When did we go from water to pills? what pills?!

I think it's the pills that confused you. ( I know the water didn't ) < BG >

Cha Cha
Neil

What exactly are these pills (names) and what do they do or prevent.  Also, does anyone know of any preventative medication to take before coming to Cuenca. Again, would appreciate brand names.
   I don't care about the cost of water.  I will either pay it or drink tap water.  Very helpful tip from ZenSPIKE about the Vitalin.  Is it available locally.  Thanks to all for the help.

We use Colufasa Nitazoxanida 500 mg as a general parisite killer.

I joined this thread late. For what it's worth, my wife & I drink the tap water in Cuenca and have done so since our arrival 2 1/2 years ago. We've never experienced any problems.