When does water go stale? Is it dangerous?

Question

If you keep water out in the open, in lets say a glass that's somewhat covered so dirt in the air can't fall into the glass, how long would it take for the water to go stale? Is stale water dangerous to drink?

I'm asking because I keep a coffee pot in my study, and it's loaded with ground coffee and already has water in it, ready to brew once I turn it on. How long can I keep it like this without worrying about the water going "bad" so it becomes dangerous to drink? Are we talking hours, or weeks?

Answer 1

Well I don't know if water goes stale, but unless your coffee pot has been put thru an autoclave to clean all of the germs out, it surely has a lot of bacteria growing in it with water sitting in there.  I wouldn't let the water sit there longer than overnight personally.

Answer 2

It's fine as long as no bacteria gets into it. If more than a  day or two  old be on the safe side and throw it out.

If you were on a island stranded somewhere It would be different.

Answer 3

I think what you are talking about the water going stale is when it starts to smell funky right?  That smell is mildew...it stinks and it definitely gives the water a funky taste to it.  Personally if I smell mildew in my water I would clean out the machine.  As far as bacteria and what not...you have to figure your running hot water through the machine, but your not boiling it so bacteria will still be in there.  They make chemicals to clean coffee and espresso machines out....maybe they should buy some.  Besides...you clean the coffee machines out and the coffee will turn out better tasting anyway!  Thats my two cents anyways.  Hope that helps.

Answer 4

first of all all water has dirt particles in it whether its sitting out or from a tap and secondly when you boil water for coffee it actually becomes cleaner thats why people who dont have clean water have to boil it first

Answer 5

n brief, the answer is: No, probably not.

    Despite the labels reminding consumers to drink up, there is virtually no evidence that drinking water beyond the expiration date has any health impact at all. The Food and Drug Administration considers bottled water to have an "indefinite shelf life." Even the bottled-water industry is hard-pressed to justify the labels.

However, sources inside and outside the industry agree that bottled water can taste "stale" if it's kept too long, possibly because of minerals that enter the water at some point.

So, if there's no health basis for expiration dates, why do bottlers bother with them at all? There's actually an explanation for that ... sort of:

    To some degree, the fact that bottled water carries expiration dates can be blamed on New Jersey, the only state that officially requires it. That regulation dates back to 1987, though it's not completely clear what prompted it. The New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services says only that: "The intent of the law was to protect the safety and quality of drinking water."

    The industry says that, given the New Jersey law, it's easier - and cheaper - for water companies to stamp dates on every bottle, whatever the destination, than to do it selectively. "That's why you'll see it, so you don't have a hodge-podge of labels going to different states," says Stephen Kay of the International Bottled Water Association, an industry trade group.

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Answer 6

water is safe to drink as long as bacteria or microbes are not getting into it.  The reason water tastes like it isn't as fresh, probably is because the O2(oxygen) has evaporated out of the glass.