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How Safe is Kuwait’s Tap Water to Drink?

howsafeistapwater

A few days ago I posted a question asking if anybody drinks the tap water unfiltered and it got a lot of responses with the general consensus being that the water is fairly safe only if you use a filter. Well today I got invited to pass by the Water Resources Development Center in Shuwaikh to get a better idea on the subject and I left impressed.

Turns out Kuwait’s tap water is actually very safe to drink straight out the tap, so safe it’s currently close to getting an ISO certification. The Water Resources Development Center which is located behind KPC in Shuwaikh has two laboratories, a chemistry lab and a bacteriology lab. On a daily basis samples are collected from various institutions around Kuwait (schools, hospitals, mosques etc..) and delivered to the laboratories where tests are conducted. If the water is contaminated, the source of that water is closed down right away and only reopened once the problem has been fixed.

If the water you receive at home isn’t clean it’s because there might be a problem with your buildings pipes, boilers, storage tanks etc.. which is why it’s recommended to use a filter in that situation.

So there you have it, Kuwait’s tap water is absolutely safe to drink unless there is an issue with your building.

56 replies on “How Safe is Kuwait’s Tap Water to Drink?”

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The water is completely safe and up to standard, but the distribution pipes going to buildings and houses are already rusty and deteriorating. So once you open the tap, the water is considered contaminated.

In my building, Coolpex reduces TDS in water from above 100 mg/L to around 10 mg/L. Plus, I find Coolpex water to be more palatable even more so than bottled water. So no – no case of buyers remorse here at all.

On a similar subject, are Abraaj and Rawdatain the only two local water bottling companies with ISO certificates? Cuz looks like I’m only going to be getting water from these two companies.

On a related note, do you think those water bottles are kept away safe from the heat during transportation and storage? Been wondering how safe they’d be to drink.

When they mention ISO certificate… make sure to read the ISO code to understand what it refers to. For example… a food manufacturers can get iso certificate for their reporting or administrative tasks… not for their manufacturing process itself! Usually the ISO code is printed under the iso logo. just google it.

Are there any laws that require the building owners to fix the pipes and tanks to provide their tenants with clean safe drinking water?

Good to know that the tap water is safe but i used to drink it with a filter in the beginning when i came to kuwait but was frequently falling sick so I stopped drinking it and for more than 10 years i have been drinking bottled water, it suits my health.

Rawdatain is given to the soldiers and employees on Arifjan for free until the salt level was found to be extremely high so the military and contracting companies started buying bottled water which was not given out as freely as Rawdatain. The ice is made on base as they have 2 huge industrial size ice machines brought in from Iraq, I took a tour of the plant once. Most of the contractors buy Culligan water from the PX.

I stopped getting water from Aqua Cool after I read an article out of Saudi Arabia saying how bad delivered water had become because the plastic bottles with water were left on trucks in the sun.

“When exposed to direct sunlight, plastic bottles release a chemical known as bisphenol-A (BPA) into the water. The BPA is known to reduce sperm count and increase the risk of certain types of cancers. Nutritionist Dr. Rida Alaseef said consuming unhealthy water can be extremely damaging to the health and, in some cases, exasperate pre-existing conditions.”

I buy the big Aquafina bottles for my water dispenser from the grocery store although sometimes they are hard to find so I stock up on them when I find them.

The soldiers and contractors are still getting Rawdatain. As for any of the water companies here in Kuwait… when I worked for Sultan Center alot of the delivery trucks would just drop off the water and leave it in the sun even though it might take an hour to receive them. When I would tell the driver that he had to wait before unloading he would just insult me, download the water and take off to leave the merchandiser to finish the delivery. At home we drink from the faucet and have been for years. To date we have had no health issues.

Hi Mark,

Good to know tap water is safe to drink in Kuwait, and ministry do their basic Chemistry and Micro test from various institutions daily for testing.

Something to ponder on, when I came to Kuwait it was known fact that Kuwait (most GCC countries) tap water has really high levels of Bromine and based on WHO guidelines it is not advisable for consumption in such high dosages.

There are many other tests which are required to be done on quarterly or monthly basis to ensure the water is safe to drink, hopefully it is happening! Considering my experience of ill-health after drinking water which did not pass through RO filter or some other filter, I would STAY AWAY FROM Tap water, as I don’t TRUST the source!

Cheers
Chinz

actually .. kuwait now is using RO to provide water … along side with the old boilers complexes and water plants ,,, the RO is now functional and producing water ,, and is being tested to make sure it’s totally clean ,, by six months or a year ,, half of kuwait water is produced by RO method ( Reverse Osmosis ) … WE ARE DEVELOPING our methods ,,, believe it or not ,,, but the tap water is much cleaner than a lot of bottled water ,, and we are so close to get an ISO certification !!

Hi,

It is good to know, I will be happy if dangerous levels of chemicals are not in my water not much bothered about ISO certification 🙂

Have a nice day.

This is a source of pride not only for Kuwait and Kuwaitis but for all developing nations. I am more than positive that not one city in the US can make such a claim!!
Water is the most important resource… It is the source of life and for water in Kuwait to be so safe is a source of hope for other matters to follow…
“Ask not what your country can do for you,
Ask what you can do for your country”… JFK

I have lived in Kuwait for 13 years and i have always drunk the tap water without any problems, but what i would like to say is that virtually all domestic water is stored in tanks on the roof tops. How many of those tanks are leeched once a year,(disenfected) up there in the sun all day micro organisms love it, just a thought.

Exactly- council water is GTG, but how clean are them tanks on the roof??? Good work Kuwait and especially 248AM for publishing this. Next should be a push for roof tank sterilizing : )

That’s exactly what me and some 654453344 other people said!!!!!!
Well, at least know you finally know 🙂

Many experts feel 0.9 micron berkfield filter combined with UV filter is sufficient for safe drinking water( for complete protection against overhead dirty tanks/pipes). Hence I bought british berkfield filter from Lu&Lu ( not sure if its original though). Now I need a UV filter. Are there any brands of UV filter available out there ? where can I buy them & any idea what they cost ?

I remember being told that when I was a baby my mom used to boil tap water (filtered one ofcourse) and use it for the milk bottle which was recommended by a doctor at that time and being the perfect subside to expensive “baby water”. However you can’t just drink water from the shower or the sink you need something to remove the solid residues although its the same water but the pipelines affect the cleanness heavily.

I think someone should conduct a test and share it here

The only important thing is the checking the quality of tap in your kitchen. Are there private labs that do this and whats the cost ?

Basically what we have learned from this article is that Kuwaits water is very safe to drink. The issue of should you drink it or not depends on your homes piping and storage system and has nothing to do with the government.

So with a good filtration system installed in your home, you will save a hell of a lot of money every year drinking tap water, rather than buying bottles of water that most likely has spent numerous hours under the hot sun.

Thank you Mark for this informative article

Just a thought….
Water Authority makes sure water is safe to drink, but people gets water which is not safe to drink…..
Kuwait Municipality makes sure food stuffs are safe to consume, why cant Kuwait Municipality takes a small step along with the water authority to make sure all Kuwait residents gets safe water to drink.
Which I think they need to come and check building water system, if not safe, ask the concern building owner to get it in safe level.

if you are concerned about your home water .. the same place that mark went to ,, can send someone to take samples from your home ( i mean inside your house taps ) and it will be tested ,, companies acutely pays the ministry of water ( the place above in the post ) to check for there buildings every three or six months ,,, and these companies pay for these checks ( cause it’s not the government duty to do so ,,,but if you want it ,, you pay for it ) … not sure if small building can do so ,,, but i don’t see why not since companies can do ..

This is also a good lesson for how people deal with life in Kuwait. They automatically assume everything is shit when there’s an entire center dedicated to something. And then people will just go “La La it’s Kuwait it has to be bad”

i still think the water is not completely safe when it reaches you.

for eg.. lets say everything remains the same.. but instead of water it’s milk.

would you drink it? i thought so.. lol.
by the times it reaches your through the pipes n stuff it isnt as clean as it is suppose to be.

btw.. the coolpex guy took a glass of tap water put some device in it n it showed a higher number.. n said it not safe.. anyone know what the device is? lol

Mark – I am wondering, did the guy mention if the water in Kuwait has fluoride in in, for teeth? When we were in the US this past summer, our dentist asked, and I said I wasn’t sure. But based on my son’s teeth, he didn’t think there was so he gave my son some fluoride tablets.

I have been in Kuwait for 12 years and have been drinking filtered tap water for the last 8 years or so.

I urge you to do your research about fluoride because sdadly you had been mislead to believe its a good thing to use fluoride. It is very clear in the medical literature that fluoride is a potent endocrine disruptor. It is a very toxic substance. I’ll name a few disease that are linked to fluoride exposure.

Increased lead absorption
Disrupts synthesis of collagen
Hyperactivity and/or lethargy
Muscle disorders
Thyroid disease
Arthritis
Dementia
Bone fractures
Lowered thyroid function
Bone cancer (osteosarcoma)
Inactivates 62 enzymes and inhibits more than 100
Inhibited formation of antibodies
Genetic damage and cell death
Increased tumor and cancer rate
Disrupted immune system
Damaged sperm and increased infertility

How about that?

I am a dentist and I can confirm that this is not true. Fluoride is very small quantities is infact very safe. Flouridated water have been used for decades in many countries and it was very effective way to reduce caries.

Saldy, you are the misinformed person. Just because you are a dentist it doesnt mean you are credible because apparently most doctors and physicians are missguided when it comes to the human body. I do not think youre aware of metal toxicity and how dental fillings, flouride, snd other metals contribute directly to all chronic and degenerstive diseases. You just dont know that, its simple. Now I know that because i am a scientific researcher and I look at the literature and body of research we have piled in the last 100 years, which im pretty sure you dont do because if you had you wouldnt have “assured us” fluoride is safe. Fluoride is not safe it disrupts the endocrine system and it accumulates in the human body. There is no safe amount of fluoride. I may have forgotten but i believe 0.01 ppm is very toxic now keep in mind that 0.01 is very minute i mean its just 0.01 mg/l but even that amount is toxic. Now, i’ll make one thing very clear. The kind of fluoride that is allegedly safe is calcium fluoride and that occurs naturally in very small amounts and does not share the risks of its cousin SODIUM FLUORIDE which is the kind of fluoride used in toothpastes and mass-fluoridation. Actually, sodium fluoride believe it or not is a chemical warefare weapon as it is also an industry waste product if im not mistsken. Now again, i do not think you have been tought that. Go do your homework before you end up poising many children like most dentists do. If you do however think otherwise and decide to be arogant I hope you as a dentist get poisened by it just as much as you poisened other people. This is not hate, it is an assertive thought. On another note, i do hope you wont be arogant and become inlightened. – MMDH

Then What do you recommend for drinking water? Fluoride can be removed by reverse osmosis techniques but that also strips away other minerals and salt.

I am shocked!!!I thought the government would know better!! Why is our water fluoridated? Fluoride has no health benefits whatsoever. It damages health quite hazardously. Fluoride reduces the potency of the thyroid glands(read:hypothyroidism); calcifies the pineal gland, reduces androgenic hormone levels,namely testosterone; accelerates sexual maturation and lastly fluoride makes humans and other primates docile and obedient to suggestiveness. FLUORIDE CAN NOT AND WILL NOT PROTECT THEETH FROM CAVITIES. In fact, fluoride causes dental fluorosis. Why the hell would our government put that garbage of a chemical in our water supply?!!! I actually found it funny a while ago because ppl here are hypothyroid, have difficulty concentrating*ADHD) and effeminate (men).

Hi frds do you know coolpex even have a single certictes and also have no made in. Kuwait govermnt giveing 70 TDS water. When it flows to pipe line and flat tanks then the Tds comes to above 150. So we have to make it 50-70
And we want to Drink PH 6.5-8.5
So coolpex is useing only RO system. RO removes all Minerals from water.So product wise i suggest you guys to buy KENT Mineral RO. They useing Ro+UF+UV+TDS controler so its much better to drink and safe

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