We live in the US, in an old house and generally the tap isn't good. But, in combination with the old pipes, it was gross. I have a friend who is a pipe fitter, and he told me "Poison kills you quickly. Bad pipes do it slowly." So, we got a Berkey Walter Filter [1] and it's great. They are heavy duty and apparently it even alkalizes the water.
[1] https://www.berkeyfilters.com/