Anyone sail on BA post 7/15 water policy?

[cruising_baby]

I am curious too! Leaving on 8/14, and the hubs LOVES his Arizona green tea. Was debating packing 4 bottles with our toiletries. Any info would be helpful! And on a side note, the bottles of Aquafina that they sell in the "water package" are at least a little each if not more, not the 16 ounce ones you get at home.

 

 

I'm going to pack a case of water (not 24 pack but smaller) and a few bottles of coke in a duffle bag and see what happens. I will let you know next Sunday how it turns out :) .. Since apparently no one has bothered to do this since 7/15

 

I was thinking the other day when I was printing out cruise docs that if it weren't for CC forum I wouldn't know about the new policy, and I know the other 3000 passengers aren't all on here...

 

 

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Edited July 31, 2016 by cruising_baby

[Love.II.Cruise]

They use two methods. Both remove all of the salt. One is pressurized steam distillation and the other is reverse osmosis. Both remove virtually all of the salt, along with other minerals. The process basically ends with distilled water. They then actually have to harden it a bit from running through a calcium bed to reduce the aggressive nature of distilled water.

 

You will find more sodium in your bottled water then in what the ship produces.

 

Well posted. If you are still concerned bring a filtered water bottle rather than a case of water.

Edited July 31, 2016 by Love.II.Cruise

[RDC1]

We were on a private behind the scenes tour of the engine control room on the Sky a few months back. The Chief said that they never run their water plants (sky does 3 and 4 nights out of Miami). Cheaper and easier to bunker water. Just a data point. Said that NCL ships out of Miami bunker water (didn't get down to how many days of water they bunker). Just said that he bunkers 100% of his water from shore sources.

 

Considering that it is that short of a cruise out of Miami I would not doubt that they might bunker it. I suspect that they would pay next to nothing out of that port, probably included in their contract there.

 

Ask the question on a longer cruise in the caribbean, such as a week or more and see what the answer is.

 

Now I guess you are saying miami municipal water must not be very good.

 

On a recent cruise 31 days around south america the engineering officer indicated that they make all of they water on that run due to the suspect quality in most of the ports. He said the same thing about most of the Caribbean island ports as well.

[Quilting_Cruiser]

I'm going to pack a case of water (not 24 pack but smaller) and a few bottles of coke in a duffle bag and see what happens. I will let you know next Sunday how it turns out :) .. Since apparently no one has bothered to do this since 7/15

 

I was thinking the other day when I was printing out cruise docs that if it weren't for CC forum I wouldn't know about the new policy, and I know the other 3000 passengers aren't all on here...

 

 

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I just printed my cruise docs on Friday, and the new beverage policy is on the first page of them (not that most people will bother to read it).

[Bra_BE2014]

I'm still waiting for responses to those who had tried and succeeded or not (after 7/15)

 

Me too! I think checking in the water and soda will not be a problem, since the porters are not going to open every bag to see if you have any.

 

But won't they all be X-rayed before been delivered to the rooms? Guessing the naughty room will have more bags with water then bags with wine and booze :-)

[maggieworkman]

Well posted. If you are still concerned bring a filtered water bottle rather than a case of water.

 

Typical activated carbon filters will not remove the sodium, however, if that is what the person is concerned about. For example, a Brita bottle will only remove chlorine. A Brita pitcher will remove a few more things (copper, cadmium, mercury).

 

https://www.brita.com/why-brita/what-we-filter/

 

Maggie

[swedish weave]

We were on a private behind the scenes tour of the engine control room on the Sky a few months back. The Chief said that they never run their water plants (sky does 3 and 4 nights out of Miami). Cheaper and easier to bunker water. Just a data point. Said that NCL ships out of Miami bunker water (didn't get down to how many days of water they bunker). Just said that he bunkers 100% of his water from shore sources.

 

Three and four day trips are a lot different than the Grand Princess example I cited ( and you disputed) which makes trips to Hawaii with four or five sea days in a row.

 

Let no facts go unchallenged !!! lol

[BirdTravels]

I'm probably going to try and pack a six pack of Diet Coke in the checked bags. If they take it, they take it. It's worth a shot. Maybe the port people don't give a hoot either way, who knows?

 

They don't take it. Your bag is confiscated and taken to the "naughty room" in security where you will spend part of your first night in the ship claiming it.

[Lorey2007]

I'm going to pack a case of water (not 24 pack but smaller) and a few bottles of coke in a duffle bag and see what happens. I will let you know next Sunday how it turns out :) .. Since apparently no one has bothered to do this since 7/15

 

I was thinking the other day when I was printing out cruise docs that if it weren't for CC forum I wouldn't know about the new policy, and I know the other 3000 passengers aren't all on here...

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

I'll be anxiously waiting to see what happened please don"t forget to post here.

[cruising_baby]

I just read 2 new reviews on the BA and they both said negative things regarding bringing on beverages (as in not permitted).

 

 

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[Quilting_Cruiser]

I just read 2 new reviews on the BA and they both said negative things regarding bringing on beverages (as in not permitted).

 

 

Are you saying they tried to bring it on and couldn't or they just commented that it's not allowed??

[NLH Arizona]

I just read 2 new reviews on the BA and they both said negative things regarding bringing on beverages (as in not permitted).

 

 

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Is it that they are upset by the policy or did they try to bring water/soda on and were forbidden to do so or did they see folks creating a scene because they couldn't bring water/soda on?

 

Went through a number of reviews and saw only two and here were their comments:

 

1. We called the cruise line and asked that due to a medical necessity would they make an exception and allow us to carry on a case of diet lipton green tea. sorry no exceptions !...... i don't drink not a drop, and soda is not on the list of choice beverages. so when i arrived in bermuda i had to sneak a couple bottles of water & a couple bottles of mio.

 

2. It was a rough start from the time they announced that bottled water would no longer be permitted to be brought on the ship. This left a bad taste in my mouth since wine is still allowed at $15 per bottle corkage fee. A bottle of water runs about $6 on the ship (You want to talk about gouging )

Edited August 2, 2016 by NLH Arizona

[CruisinHarvey]

Cost money to run and maintain the water plants. Just because they can desalinate doesn't mean that they do.

 

 

Princess, for example: "Fresh water comes from two different sources: produced water (seawater that is either evaporated and re-condensed or produced by a reverse osmosis plant and treated with minerals and chlorine); or bunkered water, which is purchased from port communities and stored in designated potable water holding tanks. We bunker water from ports where we know water is plentiful, high in quality and costs less than the fuel needed to produce water onboard."

 

Most all of the water they use is processed on the ship. Every HAL cruise I've on, they give you a cruise log at the end of your cruise including where you went, at what times, average cruise speed, etc.etc. It includes how many gallons of water were used and how many gallons they made. They always make more than was used. As an example on our last cruise the potable water production was 1700 tons/day(450,000 gallons). Potable water consumption was 750 tons per/day(200,000 gallons) So, unless you're suggesting they're not telling the truth, I believe they are always creating potable water. But I'll be sure to ask the engineer on our Escape cruise in a couple of weeks, and get back to you.

[Annmeat]

The modern cruise ships can make a lot of desalinated water. The Grand Princess for example has storage tank capacity of 500,000 gallons for water.

 

 

https://plantaspurificadoras65.wordpress.com/2012/03/08/how-cruise-ships-make-fresh-water/

 

I have obtained a Brita , Pur, and Zero pitchers with extra filters and am trying to decide which I will take on my next cruise. Any suggestions ??

 

Didn't you get permission to carry?

[HokiePoq]

I'm probably going to try and pack a six pack of Diet Coke in the checked bags. If they take it, they take it. It's worth a shot. Maybe the port people don't give a hoot either way, who knows?

 

 

Come back and let us know how this goes. I am a Diet Coke addict...don't drink coffee...and sailing where only Pepsi products are sold is tough without the ability to carry on as I've done on all my NCL cruises in the past. DH tells people he's searched for Diet Coke all over the world for me....which he has.

[swedish weave]

Why are you bringing a filter if you received a waiver? I didn't suggest that I was answering the question.

 

If you presented your question to NCL (as I did) You would not need to ask me. Try it, you may get a surprise.

 

AND -- I have not suggested that I would answer YOUR question.

Edited August 2, 2016 by swedish weave

[EllieinNJ]

I really wish someone would answer the OP's question about any experience in bringing on water and soda. You would think that a 1000+ thread with so many irate posters would generate some trying to do so.

[daffodiliaz]

It's probably not a good idea to broadcast if water/soda were allowed. NCL could see it here on CC and make extra sure it doesn't happen for future cruisers.

[vince_g]

I'm going to pack a case of water (not 24 pack but smaller) and a few bottles of coke in a duffle bag and see what happens. I will let you know next Sunday how it turns out :) .. Since apparently no one has bothered to do this since 7/15

 

I was thinking the other day when I was printing out cruise docs that if it weren't for CC forum I wouldn't know about the new policy, and I know the other 3000 passengers aren't all on here...

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

 

Did you manage to get your water and soda onboard?

[NLH Arizona]

I really wish someone would answer the OP's question about any experience in bringing on water and soda. You would think that a 1000+ thread with so many irate posters would generate some trying to do so.

I'm guess that most read their cruise documents, that someone has said that they could not bring water or soda onboard, or if anyone tried it, they were probably embarrassed to admit it, since it is written on their cruise documents or folks were just blowing smoke when they posted that they were taking their water onboard and no one could stop them.

[swedish weave]

I notice that many of the NCL "defenders" are referring to this policy as "water and soda policy" but if I read it correctly, it cover other liquid items (beverages).

 

Is this correct, or do you have some info I haven't received ???

Edited August 3, 2016 by swedish weave

[don't-use-real-name]

We were on a private behind the scenes tour of the engine control room on the Sky a few months back. The Chief said that they never run their water plants (sky does 3 and 4 nights out of Miami). Cheaper and easier to bunker water. Just a data point. Said that NCL ships out of Miami bunker water (didn't get down to how many days of water they bunker). Just said that he bunkers 100% of his water from shore sources.

 

So where is this bunker water ?

Does the ship just pull up to a fire hydrant on the boulevard and hose it into

the bunker tanks ?

To fill the bunker tanks on some ships would empty a city water tower leaving

no water for the local fire department to fight fires and put the community in

dire straights during a drought.

Or just maybe during a rain storm all the scuppers are used to drain the

rain water into those bunkers ?

Certainly the cruise lines DO NOT do what the astronauts do in space to

recycle the precious water - tankering water at 8 pounds per gallon would

be terribly expensive - YES 8 pounds per gallon folks - there is no such thing

as LIGHT water or diet water !

 

So where is this bunker water ?

[BirdTravels]

So where is this bunker water ?

Does the ship just pull up to a fire hydrant on the boulevard and hose it into the bunker tanks ? Pretty much' date=' shore water connections.[/color']

To fill the bunker tanks on some ships would empty a city water tower leaving no water for the local fire department to fight fires and put the community in

dire straights during a drought. Ah, no.

Or just maybe during a rain storm all the scuppers are used to drain the rain water into those bunkers ? Ah, no

Certainly the cruise lines DO NOT do what the astronauts do in space to recycle the precious water Kinda of, see below

- tankering water at 8 pounds per gallon would be terribly expensive - YES 8 pounds per gallon folks - there is no such thing as LIGHT water or diet water ! Cheaper to buy than make onboard.

 

So where is this bunker water ?

 

Princess: Fresh water comes from two different sources: produced water (seawater that is either evaporated and re-condensed or produced by a reverse osmosis plant and treated with minerals and chlorine); or bunkered water, which is purchased from port communities and stored in designated potable water holding tanks. We bunker water from ports where we know water is plentiful, high in quality and costs less than the fuel needed to produce water onboard.

 

Royal Caribbean: Bunkering. We acquire water from local sources at our ports of call. This is known as “bunkering.” Capturing condensation - The condensation from air conditioning systems is collected for such uses as machinery operation and doing laundry (almost astronaut).

 

Carnival: Shipboard potable water (drinking, bathing, whirlpools, etc.) either comes from a shoreside water treatment plant or is generated on board from seawater via Reverse Osmosis systems or Evaporators.

Edited August 4, 2016 by BirdTravels

[chengkp75]

So where is this bunker water ?

Does the ship just pull up to a fire hydrant on the boulevard and hose it into

the bunker tanks ?

To fill the bunker tanks on some ships would empty a city water tower leaving

no water for the local fire department to fight fires and put the community in

dire straights during a drought.

Or just maybe during a rain storm all the scuppers are used to drain the

rain water into those bunkers ?

Certainly the cruise lines DO NOT do what the astronauts do in space to

recycle the precious water - tankering water at 8 pounds per gallon would

be terribly expensive - YES 8 pounds per gallon folks - there is no such thing

as LIGHT water or diet water !

 

So where is this bunker water ?

 

Okay' date=' a few answers about making water on ships.

 

Flash evaporators boil the sea water in a vacuum, so that it boils at around 120-140*F, and then recondense it into distilled water. This process is relatively cheap to operate, since the heat source is the "waste heat" generated by the diesel engines, that would be otherwise sent overboard to warm the seas. If the ship is running at a pretty good clip, the heat from 3 engines will drive one of the evaporators, for pennies per ton of water.

 

Reverse osmosis watermakers use quite a lot of electricity to make water (relatively speaking), but can be used when the ship is not steaming along at high speed generating loads of waste heat. This method does require a lot of electricity, but compared to the A/C and propulsion load it is very minor. RO units do, however, require a lot of maintenance, so this method is more costly than evaporators.

 

The statement that it is cheaper to buy water than produce it is very often incorrect, depending on the port where the water is purchased, and the overall condition of the water making equipment onboard and the ship's itinerary.

 

Ships do routinely "bunker" water from shore. The amount is based on the ship's itinerary, since the water making equipment cannot be operated within 20 miles of shore, so the more time the ship stays in port, the less time it has to make water. Since the Sky has been mentioned, and since I have personal experience on her, I will use her plant for an example. The Sky has two 600 ton/day evaporators, and two 200 ton/day reverse osmosis watermakers. That's a total generating capacity of 1600 tons/day, and you balance that against her typical water usage of 700-800 tons/day, and you say she would never need to bunker water from shore. But, looking at her 3 day itinerary, she is at sea only 60% of the time, so she can only generate 60% of 1600 tons/day (980 tons/day, average), and since she sails at slow speeds to reach her nearby ports, she probably couldn't run but one evaporator and the RO units, so you are down to 610 tons/day or a shortage that must be made up in port.

 

So, where does the water come from? It comes from hydrants in Miami, which are on the main city water supply, just like all the homes and businesses in Miami. The ship pays for water by the ton, but it does not deplete the city's water towers (if they use towers, which are continually refilled). The main difference to regular Miami city water is that the hydrants used to supply water to the ships must be tested, at the hydrant, monthly to meet USPH and EPA water quality standards. Water is taken on using fire hoses, that are specially marked and used only for potable water use. These hoses are sanitized before each use, and have little "sawhorses" to keep the connections off the ground. You may have seen these during embarkation, they are hoses painted with a blue band at each end.

 

The water bunkered from shore is chlorinated to 4-5ppm before it goes into the storage tanks. It must also be kept segregated from use onboard until a coliform bacteria test is done, which takes 18-24 hours, so added to the cost of the water there is the necessity of keeping it out of use for a day until it is proven safe.

 

And ships do carry a lot of heavy water around. The Sky, again, has potable water tankage (8 tanks) totalling 2500 tons.

 

In Hawaii, when the Sky was the Aloha, we ran two 2.5" fire hoses the whole time in Honolulu, and one hose all the time in all other docked ports. So, we were loading water the whole time in port, and never ran the towns/cities out of water.

 

And yes, as Bird posted about RCI, nearly all ships capture the condensation from the A/C system (on the Sky this was [b']100-200 tons/day[/b] for use in the laundry and for use in the engine room. In truly humid conditions, we had to pump some of this condensation overboard as it was excess to our needs.

[chengkp75]

Going back a few pages, I'll answer a few more things.

 

If you believe the chlorine is causing your water retention in the water, use the water from the drink dispensers, dining venues, or bars, as these machines have carbon filters that remove the chlorine to prevent scaling of the equipment.

 

Water produced by evaporation will have 1ppm of sodium or less. Water produced by reverse osmosis has 20ppm or less sodium, which is the limit for those on sodium restricted diets. By contrast Miami Dade county reports that for 2015, their water had an average of 53ppm and NYC had test results ranging from 9 to 63ppm. The RO unit is designed to dump (switch the discharge of "permeate" or fresh water from the ship's system to overboard when the sodium level exceeds 20ppm.

 

Homes that have water softeners, and residents who need a reduced sodium diet (water softeners use salt to regenerate the softening agent), will be told to install a reverse osmosis unit to remove the sodium.

 

While I don't want to get into the whole water retention debate again, both chlorine and added exercise (like walking around the ship and up/down many flights of stairs) can cause water retention that can last for days.