How to Get Safe Drinking Water in Pakistan

Unless you are high in the Himalayas at a fresh glacial spring, most of the water you'll find outside of a sealed bottle in Pakistan is not suitable to drink. Here are some ways that you can ensure that you and your family always have safe drinking water and avoid getting sick.

Boil the Tap Water

For a household of two, our water bill has never been more than 400 rupees ($5) a month. Tap water is cheap, and you can boil it to make it more suitable for drinking. Although this method is the cheapest option, it may not be the best option. Boiling does not always remove all the impurities, and it takes quite a lot of time and work to boil enough water for your whole family. Most households that boil their water have their domestic help do the task, but if untrustworthy servants get lazy, you may be drinking unboiled water from the tap. Once my husband and I were having our water boiled, and my husband was still getting sick all the time. Then one day he caught one of the domestic helpers filling the bottle from the tap instead of boiling the water. You need servants you can trust to use this method, and if you have a very sensitive stomach you will probably still get sick. Water shortages can be expected in many cities, especially in Karachi, so you can not always count on having running tap water. In Lahore, this is generally not a problem.

Filter the Tap Water

Bring a good quality household size water filter from abroad when you move to Pakistan. Many foreign expatriates living in Pakistan rely on this method. You just need to fill the filter with tap water and let it drip down through. It does take some time for most filters to do their jobs, so you have to think ahead if you always want to have water available. Some families boil and filter their water, even water they will use for cooking. At these houses I can eat the food in peace and know that I will not get sick.

Buy Mineral Water

The most popular option for Pakistan's upper class is to have mineral water delivered on a weekly basis. Mineral water is not the strange fizzy drink you get in France, but just normal water that is safe to drink. Generally, you call a water delivery company and set up an account with them. You'll need to pay a security deposit for the number of bottles you want to keep at your house. For two people, we keep two bottles. Larger families will keep three to four bottles at a time, and they will pay a larger security deposit. Then you arrange to have the water delivered to you.

Three companies, among many, that do this are Nestle Jumbo Service, Atlantis Water, and Gourmet Water. Nestle is the most expensive with 5 gallon jugs going for 130 rupees ($1.60). Atlantis and Gourmet have much lower prices, but we use Nestle because my husband sees it as the most reliable brand.

We have faced some problems with delivery. Nestle has not been consistent with their days and time, and when there is a shortage they have just not come without any warning. When the Nestlewala doesn't come, then we have to go out and buy water, which is usually an errand we are not expecting to run. You can get smaller bottles at most small stores, large grocery stores, petrol stations, and pharmacies, and you can get the 5 gallon jugs at the Nestle Store in Phase I Commercial Area in Defence.

Our neighbors switched from Nestle to Atlantis and they are quite happy with the service. The only thing I have noticed is that sometimes the delivery man comes later in the evening. The plus side of using Gourmet is that they have lots of outlets where you can go and buy the jugs, making it much more convenient than Nestle's one store in the entire Defence area.

When you sign up for an account, you need to choose whether you want to buy a tap and stand or a large water cooler. The tap and stand is just a few hundred rupees, while you have to either rent or pay a large security on the water cooler. The water cooler is better if you want to keep large amounts of water cool without taking up room in your fridge. If you are a small family, you can probably keep your water cool in the fridge and get away with just buying the tap and stand.

Of all the options, mineral water is the most expensive. Filtering water and using mineral water are probably equal in safety terms, so it depends on if you're able to get a good quality filter or if you want to set up a delivery service to bring safe drinking water to you.