As 2024 comes to an end, we reflect on the thoughts that matter most to us, such as winter break plans, or perhaps holiday gift giving. And as I was trying to think of a Voices article idea over a sip of water from the water fountain, a weird idea popped into my head: “What is the best water fountain in the school?” Thus, the inception of this article.

There are five water fountains in the WT Upper School buildings: Ground floor (by the math rooms), main floor (by the main office, left of the library), second floor (just left of the bathrooms and near the staircase), and the two fountains in the Davis Center. But not all water fountains are created equal; there is a clear ranking that is well-known to those who frequently find themselves in need of hydration.

The definitive ranking of fountains is as followed:

5th Place:

Upper School Ground Floor — 4/10

This water fountain comes in at last due to its unpleasant lukewarm nature and frankly weird taste. I do not think I have ever had a refreshing sip of water from this fountain, which is why it is ranked so low.

4th Place: 

Upper School Main Floor — 6/10

This water fountain comes in at 4th because of its inconsistency. Sometimes the water is cold and refreshing, while others it is room temperature and has a funny taste. Going to this water fountain is spinning the roulette wheel, and hoping you get lucky. Also, the bottle filler is not very big so if you have a big water bottle or mug, then you have to do the “slant filling method”, which often makes a mess. 

3rd Place:

Davis Center Upper Floor — 7/10

This bottle filler is pretty good. When you need to refill your water bottle in the middle of class, it does the job, and has pretty decent water. The limiting factors of this fountain is that it is only fills up bottles, stops after a certain amount of time, and is in a tight corner. Everyone with a big water bottle knows the struggle of squeezing behind the chair and holding your water bottle at a slant under the sensor, for it to randomly stop filling, making you do the awkward back and forth motion with the bottle to make water start flowing again. If you happened to forget your water bottle, you have to go downstairs and use the drinking fountain, which makes this one inconvenient at times.

2nd Place:

Upper School 2nd Floor — 8/10

This water fountain is the best fountain in the Upper School building and produces consistent results. The water is cold (sometimes even too cold), but is nonetheless very refreshing. The bottle filler is a bit small so people with big bottles may have to do the “slant method,” but taking a sip of this water is very worth the possible annoyance.

1st Place:

Davis Center Ground Floor — 9.5/10

This water fountain is WT’s best and produces good water, very consistently. Going to this water fountain may be out of the way for some, but is very worth it. It is the least used water fountain in the school, but is definitely the sleeper pick when it comes to water fountains.