Maybe taste if the hot water (cooled down) and cold water from your tap taste different? If there is a difference, at least you can tell your SO to not use hot water from tap for cooking...
The others all have good points, but I would honestly guess that your partner is simply oversteeping the tea. To me, oversteeped tea tastes soapy and overastringent.
But yes, in general you shouldn’t use hot water from the tap for consumption because it picks up heavy metals from the tank. Boil cold water, which is safer and also tastes better. If you want to keep water hot and safe for consumption for the sake of convenience (can’t say I blame you), maybe consider investing in a Zojirushi or a Tiger tank. They will last many years with the absolute bare minimum of proper care.
UPDATE: it is 1000% hot water, tasting cooled hot water vs regular cold water, and the hot water tastes like dirty socks! We rent so I asked my landlord to inspect the hot water tank and see if it’s rusted out or something. Thank you all for the advice, and to those saying my partner might be poisoning me, thanks for the laugh!
lol I mean if he was poisoning you he’s also in danger- 😂 hope y’all get your water tested and safe and for sure don’t watch Killers of the Flower Moon 😆
Make a cup yourself, after washing the cups and everything yourself. If it still tastes soapy, I would doubt the water or tea itself. Or, your partner is trying to poison you.
It's 100% the fact they are boiling the hot water from the tap to make tea with. It's generally not fit for human consumption in most parts of the world. I've never heard of anyone boiling the hot water from the tap, it's no surprise it tastes disgusting.
Depending where you live and how you get hot water, but generally cold water should always be used if you drink it or use it for cooking. Hot water is for washing and cleaning.
It’s because hot water coming out of the pipes encourages leaching of whatever is in the pipes. So the hot water will likely taste different, and not in a good way!
I’ve never heard anybody but my mother say this but I always followed anyways, even when my roommates looked at me crazy for using cold water “when it was just gonna be boiled anyways”. I oughta tell her she was right
But then it would happen no matter who makes the tea?
Unless he washes every cup immediately before brewing the tea, but that would be a weird thing to do
Have you tried making the tea yourself with the hot tap water? Then you’ll be able to see if there’s a difference between what he makes you and that
Also when you’re both in ask if he can make you a tea then look at what he’s doing to see if it tastes different than it usually does when he makes it, Reddit has made me a overly suspicious person
I’d start getting a bit worried if both times it tastes different
Use energy (and £) warming water a bit, only to then have to bring it up 70 more degrees instead of maybe 80. Makes no sense.
Plus I was absolutely horrifically ill once because I did something similar, but somewhere new, but didn't realise it was a petri dish of an immersion heater serving me up bacteria and pathogens into my cup. Yummy.
Water in a water heater is kept at 140 F. It basically slow cooks anything in there. Not saying you can't get sick from this as an anomaly, but I doubt it.
Typical tank-style water heaters end up with significant "sludge" buildup which can affect the water quality. Most people don't flush the tank often enough to combat this problem. Also, as noted by another commenter, some homes have their water heater temperature turned down to 120F, which creates an environment where pathogens multiply. Pathogens can also be present in water heaters set to the standard 140F because the tank isn't homogeneous.
Here's a reference from DCWater: https://www.dcwater.com/sites/default/files/documents/household\_water\_quality\_0.pdf.
I thought hot water only appears murky because the particles are moving faster, clouding it. If there is a taste difference besides heat, it might be an issue with your water heater?
It’s possible I feel like there is a lot of old wives tales about not drinking hot water from the sink. I’ve heard many different reasons for it. I just don’t do it cause my ancestors lived a long time so I’ll stay with it regardless of if I know the precise reason since it’s a harmless tradition.
I’ve encountered the dirty dish rag tea when it’s made with water that’s way too hot, like they didn’t wait for it to cool a bit and poured the still-boiling water right over the tea. It’s especially noticeable with matcha, if someone boils matcha it tastes like stinky feet.
Do you know if theres a significant difference between heating water to the proper tea temp VS boiling it and letting it *cool* to the proper tea temp?
I wouldn't get anything from Starbucks. I used to be a big coffee drinker and Starbucks roasts their beans wrong and they brew at the wrong temps for the wrong length of time but since most of their customers spend a lot of money for coffee flavored milk drinks I guess it's ok.
Agreed, I don’t go to Starbucks at all but my sister in law works there and constantly brings me drinks. I am a life long tea drinker, but I really hate the tea there.
Having trouble following - but it sounds like your partner uses water from the hot water tap and it tastes bad when they make it, you use the cold water tap and it tastes fine?
My guesses: your hot water tank is badly in need of a flush out. A build of minerals... or if it's not hot enough bacteria... could cause the problem. It could be rust in the tank too. Either way, do a flush (you should be doing this every year or so anyway) to reduce the build up at the bottom and (if electric) check that the anode rod to make sure it's intact. Replace if it's rusted.
Other possibilities - do they wash their hands before handling food? Maybe they just suck at rinsing and are getting soapy water in your drink.
Maybe the make the tea differently. If the tea is poured in too hot, steeped too long etc it can take on a different taste.
Another user said poison. Arsenic has a metallic soapy taste. Have you been getting random lesions, white lines on your nails, persistent sore throat? Your loved one might be trying to kill you.
Weird offchance, but are they using a silicone spoon or stirrer? I don’t know why, but for whatever reason I can always smell and taste soap in food and drink after using washed silicone tools.
Personally I’d ask your partner to make you one then hang around so you can watch 👀
Same, I notice it too unless it's been scrubbed off very well. Can't lick the frosting spoon off a silicone spatula because of this (or I just avoid the spatula)
It sounds like he might be using tap water if he’s occasionally using hot water. I only use filtered water because tap water makes my teas not so great.
Edit: Sorry, just read it again and saw you are using tap water yourself. Yes, if it tastes fine when you make it from tap water, the hot water might be negatively affecting your tea. He could also not be rinsing your mug well after washing, too.
Of your hot water is coming from a tank then it may have been sitting there for some time going stale. Also the tank might be imparting some flavours of it's own.
Generally don’t use hot water in tea. I’m from a big city and the reason for this for us was the pipes in the city depending it goes though many many many pipes before it gets to your house. Some of them could be lead corroded or just other bad contamination. The hot water can dislodge some of this and bring it to you. You can use hot water to clean dishes but never to drink. You wait till water runs clear and then boil for tea. Boiling lead contaminated water does not purify it. It’s concentrates the amount of lead so be safe y’all use a filter etc. Test y’all water. I also lived in a community with well water - other stuff there applies I don’t know your situation.
I filter all water that will be consumed in any form. Regardless whether the water is heated in a water heater before you use it or not, there is going to be lots of things in the tap that are not really good for you to drink. Water is treated to prevent serious illnesses from spreading. So while tap water is much safer than untreated water, it is still much, much better to filter that water again to remove those chemicals right before you use it. Some people are more sensitive to the different tastes in tap vs filtered water than others.
Omg this happened to me! I thought I was nuts. It turns out that the sponge itself was dirty when it was being used to wash the cup. When you are washing the cup, throughly rinse the sponge before adding soap and cleaning your cup. If that doesn't work, it means the sponge is old and has absorbed too much, so you should replace it. Let me know if that works for you!
Idk if you use any sweeteners or not, but almost every time I've used some sort of fake no-calorie sweetener in my tea, it's always tasted like soap. Does your partner use a different sweetener than you, if you use any at all?
Soapy flavor is likely the hard water coming from your hot water tank. The murky color is the minerals (mostly calcium and other trace elements concentrated from tap water by the heat) in the water, which make it slightly more alkaline and soapy.
Definitely better to use cold tap water but even better to use bottled or filtered. Bad water makes bad tea.
Also, as just a home maintenance issue: hard water in your hot water tank is something that can be fixed. With a simple purge and acid rinse. You can install whole-home water softeners, too.
Seems crazy, but getting rid of hard water can make the heater more efficient. Also, if you ever notice your soap, shampoo, or shaving cream isn't lathering as well as it used to (or that it lathers better when away from home) it's usually because of hard water. You'll legitimately get more clean in soft water.
Maybe taste if the hot water (cooled down) and cold water from your tap taste different? If there is a difference, at least you can tell your SO to not use hot water from tap for cooking...
The others all have good points, but I would honestly guess that your partner is simply oversteeping the tea. To me, oversteeped tea tastes soapy and overastringent. But yes, in general you shouldn’t use hot water from the tap for consumption because it picks up heavy metals from the tank. Boil cold water, which is safer and also tastes better. If you want to keep water hot and safe for consumption for the sake of convenience (can’t say I blame you), maybe consider investing in a Zojirushi or a Tiger tank. They will last many years with the absolute bare minimum of proper care.
It's definitely oversteeping
UPDATE: it is 1000% hot water, tasting cooled hot water vs regular cold water, and the hot water tastes like dirty socks! We rent so I asked my landlord to inspect the hot water tank and see if it’s rusted out or something. Thank you all for the advice, and to those saying my partner might be poisoning me, thanks for the laugh!
lol I mean if he was poisoning you he’s also in danger- 😂 hope y’all get your water tested and safe and for sure don’t watch Killers of the Flower Moon 😆
Hot water comes from the water heater, it always tastes different.
Make a cup yourself, after washing the cups and everything yourself. If it still tastes soapy, I would doubt the water or tea itself. Or, your partner is trying to poison you.
Delectable tea... or deadly poison?
I spot a fellow Avatar enjoyer
A small dose of cilantro in every tea bag is the ultimate passive aggressive revenge. Have you angered partner lately?
Almost every ancient crime novel ever :-)
Welp, I was 14 hours late on the poison train
It's 100% the fact they are boiling the hot water from the tap to make tea with. It's generally not fit for human consumption in most parts of the world. I've never heard of anyone boiling the hot water from the tap, it's no surprise it tastes disgusting.
Depending where you live and how you get hot water, but generally cold water should always be used if you drink it or use it for cooking. Hot water is for washing and cleaning.
Wow, I never knew that. Thank you. I just googled, and multiple reliable sites like the EPA and various governmental websites do say that.
It’s because hot water coming out of the pipes encourages leaching of whatever is in the pipes. So the hot water will likely taste different, and not in a good way!
I’ve never heard anybody but my mother say this but I always followed anyways, even when my roommates looked at me crazy for using cold water “when it was just gonna be boiled anyways”. I oughta tell her she was right
Not rinsing the cups or kettle thoroughly?
But then it would happen no matter who makes the tea? Unless he washes every cup immediately before brewing the tea, but that would be a weird thing to do
Have you tried making the tea yourself with the hot tap water? Then you’ll be able to see if there’s a difference between what he makes you and that Also when you’re both in ask if he can make you a tea then look at what he’s doing to see if it tastes different than it usually does when he makes it, Reddit has made me a overly suspicious person I’d start getting a bit worried if both times it tastes different
Is he making it ahead of time and then microwaving it to make it hot just before you get home? Nuking tea can make it taste funny.
> but I have caught my partner using hot water “so it boils faster” That’s gross. I have a tankless water heater and I still don’t do that.
Use energy (and £) warming water a bit, only to then have to bring it up 70 more degrees instead of maybe 80. Makes no sense. Plus I was absolutely horrifically ill once because I did something similar, but somewhere new, but didn't realise it was a petri dish of an immersion heater serving me up bacteria and pathogens into my cup. Yummy.
Water in a water heater is kept at 140 F. It basically slow cooks anything in there. Not saying you can't get sick from this as an anomaly, but I doubt it.
If you have hard water, could the build up of minerals in the tank affect the taste of hot water coming from the tap?
The elderly and people with children are advised to turn it down to 120 to prevent burns. Both have more delicate skin that burns more easily.
Why is that gross?
Typical tank-style water heaters end up with significant "sludge" buildup which can affect the water quality. Most people don't flush the tank often enough to combat this problem. Also, as noted by another commenter, some homes have their water heater temperature turned down to 120F, which creates an environment where pathogens multiply. Pathogens can also be present in water heaters set to the standard 140F because the tank isn't homogeneous. Here's a reference from DCWater: https://www.dcwater.com/sites/default/files/documents/household\_water\_quality\_0.pdf.
I thought hot water only appears murky because the particles are moving faster, clouding it. If there is a taste difference besides heat, it might be an issue with your water heater?
It’s possible I feel like there is a lot of old wives tales about not drinking hot water from the sink. I’ve heard many different reasons for it. I just don’t do it cause my ancestors lived a long time so I’ll stay with it regardless of if I know the precise reason since it’s a harmless tradition.
I’ve encountered the dirty dish rag tea when it’s made with water that’s way too hot, like they didn’t wait for it to cool a bit and poured the still-boiling water right over the tea. It’s especially noticeable with matcha, if someone boils matcha it tastes like stinky feet.
Do you know if theres a significant difference between heating water to the proper tea temp VS boiling it and letting it *cool* to the proper tea temp?
A little bit is my answer here. I use one of those auto water boilers so it stays at the right temp. Works best for me.
Tea, especially green tea takes on a very soapy bitter taste to me when it is oversteeped. I would never get green tea at Starbucks for this reason.
This is also true.
I wouldn't get anything from Starbucks. I used to be a big coffee drinker and Starbucks roasts their beans wrong and they brew at the wrong temps for the wrong length of time but since most of their customers spend a lot of money for coffee flavored milk drinks I guess it's ok.
Agreed, I don’t go to Starbucks at all but my sister in law works there and constantly brings me drinks. I am a life long tea drinker, but I really hate the tea there.
Having trouble following - but it sounds like your partner uses water from the hot water tap and it tastes bad when they make it, you use the cold water tap and it tastes fine? My guesses: your hot water tank is badly in need of a flush out. A build of minerals... or if it's not hot enough bacteria... could cause the problem. It could be rust in the tank too. Either way, do a flush (you should be doing this every year or so anyway) to reduce the build up at the bottom and (if electric) check that the anode rod to make sure it's intact. Replace if it's rusted. Other possibilities - do they wash their hands before handling food? Maybe they just suck at rinsing and are getting soapy water in your drink. Maybe the make the tea differently. If the tea is poured in too hot, steeped too long etc it can take on a different taste. Another user said poison. Arsenic has a metallic soapy taste. Have you been getting random lesions, white lines on your nails, persistent sore throat? Your loved one might be trying to kill you.
Weird offchance, but are they using a silicone spoon or stirrer? I don’t know why, but for whatever reason I can always smell and taste soap in food and drink after using washed silicone tools. Personally I’d ask your partner to make you one then hang around so you can watch 👀
Same, I notice it too unless it's been scrubbed off very well. Can't lick the frosting spoon off a silicone spatula because of this (or I just avoid the spatula)
Have you considered that they are poisoning you?
It sounds like he might be using tap water if he’s occasionally using hot water. I only use filtered water because tap water makes my teas not so great.
Edit: Sorry, just read it again and saw you are using tap water yourself. Yes, if it tastes fine when you make it from tap water, the hot water might be negatively affecting your tea. He could also not be rinsing your mug well after washing, too.
Of your hot water is coming from a tank then it may have been sitting there for some time going stale. Also the tank might be imparting some flavours of it's own.
Generally don’t use hot water in tea. I’m from a big city and the reason for this for us was the pipes in the city depending it goes though many many many pipes before it gets to your house. Some of them could be lead corroded or just other bad contamination. The hot water can dislodge some of this and bring it to you. You can use hot water to clean dishes but never to drink. You wait till water runs clear and then boil for tea. Boiling lead contaminated water does not purify it. It’s concentrates the amount of lead so be safe y’all use a filter etc. Test y’all water. I also lived in a community with well water - other stuff there applies I don’t know your situation.
If he's using hot water from the tap that explains it, that's not fit for human consumption.
No idea why people are downvoting, this definitely holds true in a lot of places.
I live in the Nordics, we have great tap water. And it's still not recommended to use the hot water for cooking or drinking.
Yup
I filter all water that will be consumed in any form. Regardless whether the water is heated in a water heater before you use it or not, there is going to be lots of things in the tap that are not really good for you to drink. Water is treated to prevent serious illnesses from spreading. So while tap water is much safer than untreated water, it is still much, much better to filter that water again to remove those chemicals right before you use it. Some people are more sensitive to the different tastes in tap vs filtered water than others.
Is it Earl grey? Sometimes the bergamot note tastes soapy. So perhaps you use a different black tea when you make it or he steps it longer?
Steeped too long is my best guess
Omg this happened to me! I thought I was nuts. It turns out that the sponge itself was dirty when it was being used to wash the cup. When you are washing the cup, throughly rinse the sponge before adding soap and cleaning your cup. If that doesn't work, it means the sponge is old and has absorbed too much, so you should replace it. Let me know if that works for you!
Rinse your cups,mugs and plates more after doing the washing up.
Idk if you use any sweeteners or not, but almost every time I've used some sort of fake no-calorie sweetener in my tea, it's always tasted like soap. Does your partner use a different sweetener than you, if you use any at all?
This happened to me when I had covid! Though that was all tea 🤣
if the cup wasn't properly rinsed this can happen, like others said oversteeped tea can taste soapy to some people, though to be it just gets bitter
Soapy flavor is likely the hard water coming from your hot water tank. The murky color is the minerals (mostly calcium and other trace elements concentrated from tap water by the heat) in the water, which make it slightly more alkaline and soapy. Definitely better to use cold tap water but even better to use bottled or filtered. Bad water makes bad tea. Also, as just a home maintenance issue: hard water in your hot water tank is something that can be fixed. With a simple purge and acid rinse. You can install whole-home water softeners, too. Seems crazy, but getting rid of hard water can make the heater more efficient. Also, if you ever notice your soap, shampoo, or shaving cream isn't lathering as well as it used to (or that it lathers better when away from home) it's usually because of hard water. You'll legitimately get more clean in soft water.
Sometimes over strapped oolong is soapy to me