---
title: "Is no tap water for plants really true! What does everyone do instead?"
description: "Is no tap water for plants really true! What does everyone do instead?"
url: "https://getplanta.com/community/lZ7uAE3pQ86jnFGxrCwLrg/h0VqboYsQW-zQ0Azpn-vPg?language=nb"
community: "Anything about plants"
author: "Kalli"
published: "2024-11-21T02:54:43.646143Z"
language: "en"
image: "https://images.getplanta.com/v2/cloudinary/global_data/communities/everythingHousePlants.jpg"
---

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# Is no tap water for plants really true! What does everyone do instead?

_Lagt ut av Kalli den 2024-11-21_

Is no tap water for plants really true! What does everyone do instead?

## 13 kommentarer

### Gray kommenterte den 2024-11-21

I live in Maryland and use cold tap water. Lots of calcium in the water here. Even my plants that say they want “distilled” or other kinds of fancy water are totally fine with the tap. In my experience it’s about frequency of watering and paying attention to your plants response to the tap water that’ll tell you if it’s a problem or not. I don’t have the time for 13 different types of water, lol. And my plants don’t seem to mind!

### Megz kommenterte den 2024-11-21

I use tap. I love my plant babies so unless the instructions for the plant I buys says something specific I don’t go crazy. I have over 18 house plants and they all use tap and they are all thriving right now.

### Kalli kommenterte den 2024-11-21

That's a relief! I have noticed calcium buildup on some pots. Does that mean they need a new pot?

#### Gray svarte den 2024-11-21

Meh, depends. Some of mine have a calcium ring and it isn’t bothering them so I’m not letting it bother me. I usually only worry about it if my soil is suddenly really dry/old and not retaining water, and then I do a deep clean of the pot with new dirt. Living in Maryland, calcium is inevitable

#### Wolfen 🐺 svarte den 2024-11-21

I wouldn't worry about it too much. Plants need calcium, and overdosing isn’t something that could possibly burn the plant. You may want to break it up with a chopstick if it gets crusty though, so the soil isn't compacting.

### sunnydazd kommenterte den 2024-11-21

i think it depends on the quality of your tap water. i’ve always used tap water and haven’t had an issue

### Mullein kommenterte den 2024-11-21

It’s more of a consideration than a rule of thumb, I would say. Most common house plants will be pretty darn tolerant of any kind of tap water. But there are some types of plants that are sensitive to certain things in tap water

The most notorious example plant is probably Venus fly traps, which require water that has NO chlorine or mineral content (distilled water, RO/ID water, or collected rain water required). Some specific plants can be sensitive to chlorine or the water’s pH, but in general I’d say that you don’t have to worry about it. Unless you want to get into carnivorous plants or unusual plants that aren’t commercially cultivated

If you’re concerned about chlorine weakening your plants, you can leave the water in your watering can overnight and a lot of the chlorine will evaporate out of the water. Then it’ll be ready for use the next day

### Wolfen 🐺 kommenterte den 2024-11-21

Yes and no. Fluoride isn't good for plants... or people \*cough cough\*. Chlorine is also bad. Though you can simply pour your water jugs a day or two before watering and it will evaporate most of the chlorine. For my carnivorous plants I use Distilled (DI) water, as tap water will kill them. Everything else gets RO water. I have a tank less Simpure, that cost a little over $200 with a discount, and is $160 a year in filters. So depending on how many plants you have (i have over 200) just buying the $1.00 jugs of DI from the store may be more cost effective if you think they are sensitive to it. However most everyday houseplants will be perfectly fine with tap water. The other issue with tap water is it's higher PH, which most plants dislike, and some (usually more rare ones) will even die from. It's higher dissolved minerals is why the carnivorous can't deal with it. I have some plants if I'm in a rush get tap, but I have some $200+ plants that I would never, they get their perfectly catered fizz filtered drink 😆 🤣

### SavagePotato kommenterte den 2024-11-21

I strictly use distilled.

### Abbi kommenterte den 2024-11-21

I use filtered... I started because my monsteras and pepperomias were getting brown spots on their leaves and distorted leaves and I read that tap water could possibly cause that. I think it actually turned out to be a humidity issue, which I had really never thot of cuz I'm in Mississippi and it can get incredibly humid here. So ya idk if it was actually harming my plants or not but once I've started using filtered I might as well keep on.

### Hayley kommenterte den 2024-11-21

I use my faucet mounted filter because if I don't drink tap water, I'm not going to make my plants do it either 🤣

### Anna kommenterte den 2024-11-22

I collect rain water in large trays and keep it in buckets in the garage. I really only notice a difference with my marantas. They don’t get as crispy when I use rain water. When it’s wet out all my plants get rain water. But during the winter when I can’t collect as much rain, I ration it to just the marantas, stromanthe, and any plant that is giving me issues.

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