With many different ways to get water through fontains, bottle refilling stations, cold water dispensers, and bottled water from vending machines , Harrisites are never short of water. But is the quantity worth the quality? Recently, we ranked all of the water at Townsend Harris High School based on five categories: speed, amount of time to fill a cup, location access, taste and refreshment.
- Sixth Floor Bottle Machine
Although the location of the bottle filling station is convenient to those with classes on the sixth floor, we noticed a white cloudy substance at the surface of the water. Not only that, but the water took a very long time to come out at a disappointing 29 seconds. The bottle machine kept stopping and was clearly the worst in terms of speed. Regardless of the experience of seeing the white cloudy substance at the top of the water, we conducted a blind taste test on all the waters and ultimately found that the taste of this particular water was just as disappointing. The water was lukewarm, detracting from its refreshingness, and its taste was redolent of that of shower water. It truly tasted awful (in comparison to the others), and we both deemed it as the worst water source in the school.
Speed: 0/10
How Long Did It Take To Fill Cup (Stopwatch): 29s
Location Access (How Easy Is It To Get To?): 4/10
Taste: 0/10
Refreshing (Cold): 0/10
Overall: 4/40
- Third Floor Water Fountain
The water from this water fountain took just a few seconds longer to flow out compared to the other fountains in THHS, but was on the slower end of the spectrum as it took 6.88 seconds. In terms of location, it’s very convenient for many students to get to because it is on the third floor, with easy access from the library, Zen Den, and guidance offices. But, compared to the bottle machine on the same floor which ranked much higher, the temperature of the water was a disappointing 5/10. It was lukewarm even after letting it flow for a couple seconds. The water itself had a stale, old-bottled water taste to it. The most disappointing part about the fountain however was the fact that only the shorter fountain setting worked and the flow was too low. This is unfortunately not inclusive to the taller Harrisites.
Speed: 2/10
How Long Did It Take To Fill Cup (Stopwatch) 6.88s
Location Access (How Easy Is It To Get To?): 9/10
Taste: 4/10
Refreshing (Cold): 5 /10
Overall: 20/40
- Fourth Floor Bottle Machine
The flow from this machine was terrible, and it stopped after 32 seconds. It took a total of 34 seconds to finally fill our tiny cup. The water was around the same temperature as the gym and third floor water fountain. The taste was only slightly better than other fountains. For students on the fourth floor rushing to fill their bottles for water between classes, this is a no-go place because of how slow it is. But, it wasn’t as bad as the previously ranked water sources.
Speed: 1/10
How Long Did It Take To Fill Cup (Stopwatch) 34s
Location Access (How Easy Is It To Get To?): 9/10
Taste: 6/10
Refreshing (Cold): 5/10
Overall: 21/40
- Gym Water Fountains
The flow from this water fountain was incredible. It fits the needs of the thirsty students in their physical education classes perfectly as the water came out the quickest out of all the water sources we tried. But, the target audience is only truly students in their phys ed classes because it’s located inside the gym and underneath the tall bleachers. In terms of taste and refreshingness however, it didn’t stand out very much.
Speed: 10/10
How Long Did It Take To Fill Cup (Stopwatch) 2s
Location Access (How Easy Is It To Get To?): 2/10
Taste: 5/10
Refreshing (Cold): 5/10
Overall: 22/40
- Fifth Floor Water Fountain
The upper fountain setting was at an extremely low height and seemed low on water, but the stream from the fountain at the bottom flowed fairly well (not fast, not slow). The water was refreshing because it was on the colder side, but the taste wasn’t that good. It tasted like a downgraded version of the average supermarket water brand. Nevertheless, located on the fifth floor, it is accessible to most students taking classes on the upper floors.
Speed: 4/10
How Long Did It Take To Fill Cup (Stopwatch) 4 seconds
Location Access (How Easy Is It To Get To?): 6/10
Taste: 5 /10
Refreshing (Cold): 7 /10
^upper one is super low on water, stream on bottom is good
Overall: 22/40
- Fourth Floor Water Fountain
At first try, we felt that the water in the cups we poured was one of the coldest. However, the upper fountain had food on it, so we had to take water from the lower fountain which was at an uncomfortable height for a majority of students. Additionally, one of the fountains did not work. The speed that the water came out was fairly slow compared to other water sources. The water had a neutral taste, nothing remarkable, and it was fairly cold. It did not taste bad, but we had to give it a low ranking because of how slow it was.
Speed: 2/10
How Long Did It Take To Fill Cup (Stopwatch) 3.33s
Location Access (How Easy Is It To Get To?): 9/10
Taste: 6/10
Refreshing (Cold): 6/10
Overall: 23/40
- Fifth Floor Bottle Machine
Many students at THHS love this bottle refilling machine as it is the fastest stream out of the bottle refilling stations, taking only 3.25 seconds to refill. However the taste was mediocre. It was thick compared to the other waters and was not refreshing. Its speed, however, stands out the most. This bottle refilling station is located on the 5th floor and is convenient to students who frequent the floor. It is still much better than the 6th. If you could get past the taste, it is a solid water to drink every day.
Speed: 10/10
How Long Did It Take To Fill Cup (Stopwatch) 3.25s
Location Access (How Easy Is It To Get To?): 6/10
Taste: 4/10
Refreshing (Cold): 3/10
Overall: 23/40
- Sixth Floor Water Fountain
This was the most surprising for us. After blind taste testing all of the waters, it was clear to us that the 6th floor water fountain was very above average. It only took 4.3 seconds to fill up a cup, however points were deducted as the stream itself on both fountains were low. This is ultimately a problem with many of the water fountains at THHS.
Speed: 6/10
How Long Did It Take To Fill Cup (Stopwatch) 4.30s
Location Access (How Easy Is It To Get To?): 4/10
Taste: 7/10
Refreshing (Cold): 7/10
Overall: 24/40
- Third Floor Bottle Machine
This one’s a bit puzzling to us. The 3rd floor water bottle refilling station is very slow. This is a huge problem in the bottle refilling stations at THHS. We filled up the small plastic cups found in the cafeteria and yet it still took 22.06 seconds to fill up. Imagine a full water bottle. It would take students countless minutes to refill their bottles. Regardless, we thought the water was good and tasted like bottled water at slightly above room temperature. It is also accessible being that it is located on the 3rd floor. It is the middle ground floor for students, and even though there are no classes there, most students pass by the 3rd floor at multiple points during the day.
Speed: 3/10
How Long Did It Take To Fill Cup (Stopwatch) 22.06s
Location Access (How Easy Is It To Get To?): 9/10
Taste: 8/10
Refreshing (Cold): 6 /10
Overall: 26/40
- Vending Machine Water (Aquafina)
This is one of the best, however it has one of the biggest cons on this list. Even though vending machine water is impeccably cold, it is the only water that you must pay for. Being $2, we feel the refreshment is not worth the price. As high school students, it is not affordable for students to buy $2 water everyday and is more of a luxury for many. This water was very cold, yet it had a slight taste. We wouldn’t call the taste perfect, but it was near it. If you can afford to buy it during the day or are looking for something really refreshing to quench a violent thirst, buy it and you won’t regret it.
Speed: 7/10
Location Access (How Easy Is It To Get To?): 2/10
Taste: 10/10
Refreshing (Cold): 10 /10
Overall: 29/40
- Cafeteria Water Machine
This one is no surprise really. The best ranked water at THHS is the cafeteria “bucket” water. With the water machine being continually spun, the water is cold and refreshing achieving a 10/10 in that category. It also is the fastest, only taking 2 seconds to fill up the plastic cup provided. However, being the best water, it does have its downfalls. Location is a big issue because unless you have lunch or any free band, you would have to go out of your way to get this water. We love this water and know it is a THHS fan favorite with it being left nearly empty by the time lunch ends and having to be refilled almost every band.
Category Rankings:
Speed: 10/10
How Long Did It Take To Fill Cup (Stopwatch) 2s
Location Access (How Easy Is It To Get To?): 2/10
Taste: 9/10
Refreshing (Cold): 10 /10
Overall: 31/40
Ultimately, the overall speed of the bottle refilling machines was disappointing and the cloudiness of the water in the sixth floor station was unsettling. The fountains themselves height flow is way too low and deter many students from wanting to drink water out of these facilities. Watch out for the sixth floor bottle machine and third floor water fountain as they were overall the worst waters in THHS. Even though the cafeteria water machine and bottled water were solid choices for first and second place, the fifth and third floor bottle machines are great choices to satiate Harrisites’ thirst. Surprisingly the sixth floor water fountain was overall the best fountain in THHS. Drink up Harrisites.
Photos By: Jessica Sandoval & Emma Joa
