Distilled Water vs Boiled Water: Are They the Same?

The water we drink daily is divided into many kinds. There are cooled boiled water, mineral water, soft water, and so on. There is also another kind of water, that is, distilled water. Distilled water is also called true pure water. In our daily life, most of us drink cooled boiled water, so what is the difference between distilled water and boiled water? Is boiled water the same as distilled water? Have you ever wondered the difference between boiling and distillation? Let us see the boiled water vs distilled water in detail.

Definition: Boiled Water VS Distilled Water

1. Cooled Boiled Water

is boiled water the same as distilled water

Boiled tap water refers to a type of water obtained after the water has been boiled and then naturally cooled. Raw water contains many bacteria and parasites that will make people sick. For example, typhoid fever, dysentery, cholera, enteritis, and other diseases. Drinking boiled water is advocated because after the water is boiled, it can burn the bacteria and parasites in the water. Boiling groundwater, tap water, well water, and river water can eliminate unclean components and kill bacteria in the water with high temperatures. At the same time, when the tap water is boiled for 3 to 5 minutes, the content of harmful substances such as nitrites and chlorides is the lowest, which is most suitable for us to drink.

2. Distilled Water

is distilled water same as boiled water

Distilled water, also known as pure water, is pure and clean water that is treated and does not contain impurities or bacteria. It is made by water that meets the sanitary standards of drinking water as raw water and then processed by electrodialyzer method, ion exchanger method, reverse osmosis technology, and distillation. Distilled water is sealed in a container and contains a small number of carbonated carbohydrates, is colorless and transparent, and can be drunk directly. Usually, when we steam rice and steam buns, the water droplets formed on the lid of the pot are distilled water.

After learn the concepts of the boiled water and distilled water, we can firstly get the answer to the question of is boiled water the same as distilled water. They are different kinds of water, and we can not  regard them as the same thing. Then let us move to the specific differences of the boiled water vs distilled water.

5 Differences Between Boiled Water and Distilled Water

boiled water vs distilled water

1. Different making methods | Boiled water vs Distilled water 

Distilled water is made by distillation or other multi-stage filtration processing; Boiling water is made by boiling though a tool such as a kettle or pot. Boiling water is just to heat our usual tap water to boiling, so some of the impurities such as calcium, magnesium, zinc, and so on will be removed, not the same concept as pure water. There are still a small number of impurities in the boiling water. The scale of the kettle is the accumulation of impurities after boiling the water.

2. Application difference | Boiled water vs Distilled water

boiled water vs distilled water

  • The application of boiled water 

For human health, the most ideal drink is cooled boiled water. After the boiling water is naturally cooled, the physical and chemical properties such as the density and conductivity of the water will change. The activity of organisms is 4-5 times higher than that of natural water, similar to water in living cell membranes. Therefore, boiled tap water is easily absorbed by the body through the cell membrane, promotes metabolism, increases the content of hemoglobin in the blood, and improves immune function. If you drink boiled water regularly, you can also prevent colds, laryngitis, and certain skin diseases. Of course, the source of cold boiled water must be a high-quality water source. To ensure the water quality, you can install a water purifier for your family.

  • The application of distilled water
is distilled water and boiled water the same

Distilled water has non-conductive properties and can be used for stable machine operation and prolong the service life of electrical appliances; In the pharmaceutical industry, distilled water has a low permeability effect. Therefore, rinse the surgical wound with distilled water to make the tumor cells that may remain on the wound absorb water and expand, rupture, necrosis, and lose activity, so as to avoid the tumor growing on the wound; Some chemistry experiments in schools require distilled water because distilled water has no electrolytes, no free ions, or no impurities. 

3. Different trace elements | Boiled water vs Distilled water 

Is distilled water and boiled water the same? No, the trace element content of the distilled water and boiled water is different. Distilled water is made to remove harmful substances and microorganisms from the water, but it also removes potassium, calcium, magnesium, and other minerals needed by the human body. The production process of boiling water removes harmful substances such as bacteria but preserves potassium, calcium, magnesium, and other minerals needed by the human body. Therefore, the trace elements such as potassium, calcium, and magnesium contained in boiled water are higher than those in distilled water. Distilled water contains no mineral ions while boiling water contains mineral ions. If there is a white trace, this water is the boiled water. 

4. Is distilled water and boiled water the same? No, they taste differently.

Tap water cannot be drunk directly because there will still be some bacterial viruses in the water, disinfection by-product residual chlorine, and other substances harmful to the human body. When boiled, it kills most of the bacteria and viruses in the water, so it can be drunk. However, because residual chlorine or some residual heavy metal substances cannot be removed by boiling, the taste of boiled water are relatively poor, which is why sometimes the kettle is scaly, and the boiled water is more astringent. Whereas, distilled water is colorless and odorless. Because after the impurities and inorganic salts are filtered out after the distillation of ordinary water, only the substance composed of hydrogen and oxygen is obtained. If you want to have a better taste of your drinking water, you can consider to have a reverse osmosis system.

SimPure Reverse Osmosis Water Filtration Systems

5. Is cooled boiled water the same as distilled water? No, they look differently

The transparency of the distilled water and boiled water is different. Distilled water has relatively high transparency due to the removal of a large number of impurities in the water; The transparency of boiling water is lower than that of distilled water. In some areas, the water quality is relatively hard, and there will be a lot of scales.

To be concluded, the answer to the question of Is boiled water the same as distilled water is definitely no. They are totally different types of water and each has its own features. So when it comes to is boiled tap water the same as distilled water, we should compare distilled water and boiled water from different points of view.