Thread: Distilled water vs. Tap water?

Hello,
I was wondering if there is any difference using distilled water vs. regular tap water when honing? Is there/would there be a reaction on the water stones or straight razor blade over time using distilled instead of regular tap water? I'm not a chemist, but the other day, it got me thinking.
Sorry if this question has been asked and answered before, I tried to find it through searching on the forum section.
Thank you.

Depends on the content of your water. Your water might have extra salts or chlorine which could assist oxidization of your razor, but nothing I can think of would affect the stones themselves except they could get water spots

Unless you have really nasty water, tap water should be fine. Sometimes small particles can come with water out of the tap, so if you have ever noticed that, then filtered water, such as from a Brit pitcher, would take care of that.

I don't think that distilled water would harm your hones. Ultra-pure water can cause damage to some materials by causing ionic leaching, but I don't think that you are at any risk of that from regular distilled water, as it is far from pure.

In a nutshell, I think that distilled water is unnecessary overkill unless you have really bad tap water.

+1 to above really

Distilled water should be fine, deionised water *could* potentially leach mineral content from the stones over time.
Brita (or other commercially available) filtered water would probably be a good idea, just in case some corrosion detaches itself from your pipework.

I never noticed difference.
Using Distilled water is just unnecessary extra effort IMHO.

For the finest possible finish, use distilled water. It squeezes out that extra sharpness. Forget searching for that ultra finisher, its all in the h20.

I've noticed that Perrier, slightly chilled, with a drop of Gray Poupon for a slurry, increases the sharpness of my edges.

Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

I've noticed that Perrier, slightly chilled, with a drop of Gray Poupon for a slurry, increases the sharpness of my edges.

Is the magic in the bubbles? Perhaps it induces a lifting effect? Lynn always says to just go with the weight of the blade at and after the 8k, so maybe LESS than the weight of the blade, due to the bubbles, will give me that ultra edge I keep misguidedly seeking in my hones.
Of course, the mustard makes sense too. The slightly corrosive nature of the mustard will bring down that edge faster than honing alone, and we all know that more expensive hones work better, so more expensive mustards should work the same way.


Thanks for the tips Jimmy!

Originally Posted by Utopian

I
Thanks for the tips Jimmy!

Kidding aside, welcome to SRP to the original poster. I've never used anything but tap water. One tip I would share is to handle natural stones by the edges. This is something I read on a website where a fellow sells J-nats. It had never occurred to me but oil, dirt, sweat, whatever will transfer to the stone's surface and be absorbed to an extent. Since reading that I always handle my naturals, and my synthetics, for that matter, by the edges.

Originally Posted by Scipio

For the finest possible finish, use distilled water. It squeezes out that extra sharpness. Forget searching for that ultra finisher, its all in the h20.

+1, My water is imported from a Glacier. It gives the edge, that extra added something....

Seriosly, Save the distilled water for your car battery...