U.S. public drinking water is regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Bottled water filling machine falls under the Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as a food product. Consumer beliefs that bottled water is safer than tap water continue to fuel the billion-dollar-a-year bottled water industry. With several recalls between 2000 and 2009, and isolated instances of illness possibly from vending machine bottled water, the public is beginning to question current industry standards.

The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) conducted an extensive review of bottled water, tap water and a safety standards comparison. The study concluded that bottled water is not necessarily safer or cleaner. In fact, some bottled water, the NRDC stated, was simply tap water put into a bottle by water filling machines. The majority of bottled water ended up being safe, but quality was low in some brands, posing health risks to those with weakened immune systems.

A second problem is the plastic bottle itself. Research is being done on phthalates, a chemical known to upset hormone levels. Bottled water equipment manufacturer stored for as little as 10 weeks, one study found, showed that phthalates had leached from the plastic into the water. For low-turnover vending machines, bottled water could stay unsold over a long period of time.

In accordance with the present invention, a water dispenser is provided which is effectively sealed from ambient pollutants and contaminants. The dispenser does not use a reservoir to seal the inverted water supply bottle. Air is allowed to directly enter the water bottle through an air filter. The water exits the water supply bottle directly into a closed water conduit equipped with a dispensing valve from which the water is dispensed. A check valve is provided to prevent air from entering the water supply bottle through the dispensing valve. Also, a check valve can be used to stop water from reaching the air filter and to stop the flow of water through the air filter if the bottle is cracked or has a pin hole leak that will allow air to enter the inverted water supply bottle.

Simply looking at bottled water cannot expose low quality or contamination. Only a few states in the United States enforce strict standards on filling machines . According to the NRDC, a label saying, "from a community water system" or "from a municipal source" is mostly likely tap water. Until bottled water companies are further mandated to disclose information, there is no way of recognizing storage length or quality levels.
According to Joshua Sharfstein, Principal Deputy Commissioner of Food and Drugs at the FDA, which is part of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the FDA regulates bottled water following specific codes. However, they have not adopted all EPA regulations that apply to public drinking water. Sharfstein states that an increased number of consumer calls to the FDA with questions about bottled water safety have led to a review of the FDA's mandates.