Water is a natural fluid.
Obtaining
Water itself cannot be obtained as an item no matter what, but can be retrieved with a bucket.
Natural generation
A typical lake of water.
Water naturally generates in the Overworld in oceans, lakes, rivers, springs, and village and desert wells.
Behavior
Players in water take 5 times the normal amount of time to mine blocks while grounded, or 25 times ungrounded.
Spreading
Water spreads across surfaces in a slightly more realistic way but cannot spread on top of another water block. Water source blocks create a spring which generates flowing or falling water. When a spring is destroyed, all flowing water created from it will slowly dry up. If there is a hole six blocks or fewer from the point of origin, the water will tend to flow in that direction. Source blocks and falling water that has landed on a solid block will always flow in at least one direction unless restricted. Water will travel a distance of 7 blocks (8 counting the source block) with the counter resetting to 0 every time it lands on a lower level. If a block next to a water source block is destroyed, the water will immediately flow in that direction unless there was a block beneath the destroyed block. If a block next to water is updated, it re-calculates its flow.
Spreading water will extinguish fire and wash out plants, snow, torches, carpets, tripwire, rails, redstone and cobweb it flows into, dropping them as items.
Source blocks
A 2×2 infinite water source. Water can be taken from any corner.
A 3×1 infinite water source.
The water source blocks can appear horizontally and orthogonally next to 2 or more other source blocks, on top of solid blocks or other water source blocks. This is the principle the infinite water generators work on.
Dispensers with an empty bucket can suck in the water source in front of them when activated, filling that bucket with water.
In snowy biomes, water source blocks have a chance to turn into ice. They also appear when ice melts (except in the Nether). Ice will revert to water when broken if there is a block underneath the ice block.
Current
The current in a water block determines both what direction it will appear from its texture to be flowing, and what direction an entity such as a player or boat will float from that block.
The horizontal current in a water block is based on a vector sum of the flows to and from that block from its 4 horizontal neighbors. For example, if a block receives water from the north and sends it both south and east, but borders a solid block on its west edge, then the current in that block will be south-southeast, because 2 southward flows (in and out) are combined with only 1 eastward flow (out). Thus, 16 horizontal directions are possible. If a branch in a channel is 2 blocks wide at its entrance, then entities will float into it rather than continuing in a straight line.
Water with a current pushes mobs at a speed of about 1.39 meters per second, or 25 blocks every 18 seconds.
Light
Under water, with and without the respiration enchantment.
Water reduces light by 2 for every block, in addition to normal dispersion, so visibility lowers as the water gets deeper.
There are three ways of increasing underwater visibility; using a helmet with Respiration enchantment, or using potions of Night Vision or Water Breathing.
Water and lava
Usage
Water buckets
Water bucket is a variation of buckets that is filled with water.
To fill a bucket with water, use it on a water source block. The block is consumed in the process. Using the full bucket on a solid block will place a water source against to its pressed side. In the Nether, however, the water will evaporate.
When activated, dispensers can let water flow out of water buckets (making a water source block), turning them into empty buckets.
Cauldrons are filled from water buckets.
Data values
ID
Water/ID
Water spends most of its time as stationary, rather than 'flowing' – regardless of its level, or whether it contains a current downwards or to the side. When specifically triggered by a block update, water will change to 'flowing', update its level, then change back to stationary. Water springs are generated as flowing, and oceans, lakes and rivers are generated as stationary. This happens before most types of generated structure are created, and the main cause of water "glitches" is that generated structures do not trigger a block update to let water flow into them.
Block data
If bit 0x8 is set, this liquid is "falling" and only spreads downward. At this level, the lower bits are essentially ignored, since this block is then at its highest fluid level.
The lower three bits are the fluid block's level. 0x0 is the highest fluid level (not necessarily filling the block - this depends on the neighboring fluid blocks above each upper corner of the block). Data values increase as the fluid level of the block drops: 0x1 is next highest, 0x2 lower, on through 0x7, the lowest fluid level. Along a line on a flat plane, water drops one level per meter from the source.
Block state
| Name | Default value | Allowed values | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| level | 0
| 0123456789101112131415 |
If bit 0x8 is set, this fluid is "falling" and spreads only downward. At this level, the lower bits are essentially ignored, since this block is then at its highest fluid level. This level is equal to the falling water above, equal to 8 plus the level of the non-falling lava above it. The lower three bits are the fluid block's level. 0 is the highest fluid level (not necessarily filling the block - this depends on the neighboring fluid blocks above each upper corner of the block). Data values increase as the fluid level of the block drops: 1 is the next highest, 2 lower, on through 7, the lowest fluid level. Along a line on a flat plane, water drops one level per meter. |
Bedrock Edition:
Water and flowing water
| Name | Metadata Bits | Default value | Allowed values | Values for Metadata Bits |
Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| liquid_depth | 0x10x20x40x8 | 0
| 0123456789101112131415 | 0123456789101112131415 |
If bit 0x8 is set, this fluid is "falling" and spreads only downward. At this level, the lower bits are essentially ignored, since this block is then at its highest fluid level. This level is equal to the falling water above, equal to 8 plus the level of the non-falling lava above it. The lower three bits are the fluid block's level. 0 is the highest fluid level (not necessarily filling the block - this depends on the neighboring fluid blocks above each upper corner of the block). Data values increase as the fluid level of the block drops: 1 is the next highest, 2 lower, on through 7, the lowest fluid level. Along a line on a flat plane, water drops one level per meter. |
Videos
- Note: The video states that "Infinite water sources are found all over the world in shallower areas." Ever since the 1.5 update, this is no longer the case — water source blocks form even if there isn't a solid block under them, as long as there is a water source block under it, meaning even deep bodies of water can be used as infinite water sources.
Water/video
Infinite Water Source/video
History
| pre-classic | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| rd-161348 | |||||
| c | |||||
| 0.0.12a | Added water. | ||||
| 0.0.19a | The texture for water was changed, adding animation. | ||||
| Sponges added, which remove water. | |||||
| i | |||||
| January 13, 2010 | There is now finite water. | ||||
| Oceans now have infinite water. | |||||
| Water no longer moves on the surface on its own. | |||||
| Water now has a 2/3 probability to evaporate and a 1/3 probability to copy. | |||||
| January 22, 2010 | Water now spawns in level generation as springs and lakes. | ||||
| inf | |||||
| June 15, 2010 | Buckets can be used to place water. | ||||
| a | |||||
| 1.2.6 | Lakes were added. | ||||
| b | |||||
| 1.5 | Dropped items in flowing water now move faster. | ||||
| 1.6 | Rain and snow no longer fall through water. | ||||
| 1.8 | Because of the change in how land is generated, if a player is in a world that was made pre-1.8 and travels into new chunks, there's a chance that a very, very large ocean may be formed as the ocean biome. There will also be a one-block-high drop in sea level along the discontinuity between the old and new chunks with the old chunks being higher. | ||||
| Water can be found in the farms and wells of villages. | |||||
| Two biomes were added that are almost all water: ocean and river. | |||||
| r | |||||
| 1.0.0 | Beta 1.9-pre4 | Respiration and Aqua Affinity enchantments added, which allow more breathing time in water and normal digging speed in water (without it, blocks take longer to break). | |||
| ? | One-block ceilings of opaque blocks immediately below water will have a "leak" particle effect (as with lava), alerting the player that digging that block will unleash a torrent of water. Glass or any other transparent block is exempt from this. | ||||
| 1.3.1 | 12w15a | Dispensers were given the ability to shoot out the liquids inside water buckets. They could also suck up the liquids if activated again. | |||
| 12w17a | Removed ability to bring water (using ice) into the Nether. | ||||
| 1.4.2 | 12w38a | Changed sound when jumping and swimming in water. | |||
| The sound of flowing water is now continuous | |||||
| The water overlay is a more saturated blue | |||||
| 1.4.4 | 1.4.3-pre | Changed falling damage rule. Players and mobs do not die from great heights in shallow water.[1] | |||
| 1.5 | 13w02a | The texture of water is now accessible. Before, the texture was hidden in the code and not accessible by any normal bases. | |||
| 13w03a | Water source blocks form even if there isn't a solid block under them. | ||||
| 13w04a | Flowing water in creative mode no longer slows you down when flying. | ||||
| 1.6.1 | 13w17a | Water lakes don't generate in deserts anymore. | |||
| 1.7.2 | 13w36a | Water pools now generate in the new desert M biome. | |||
| Oceans are much smaller. | |||||
| 13w41a | Water, ice and portals are now visible through each other. | ||||
| 1.8 | 14w25a | Block IDs 8 (flowing water) and 9 (still water) were removed from the /give command.
| |||
| Now shows a water bucket as the icon when water is used as a layer in superflat. | |||||
| pa | |||||
| 0.1.0 | Added water. | ||||
| 0.7.0 | Added water buckets. | ||||
| 0.9.0 | build 1 | Added water dripping particles. | |||
| Lakes were added. | |||||
| Water can be found in the farms and wells of villages. | |||||
| Two biomes were added that are almost all water: ocean and river. | |||||
| Water pools now generate in the new desert M biome. | |||||
| 0.10.0 | build 1 | Added smooth lighting for water. | |||
| Water uses a gray-brown coloration in swamps. | |||||
| Flowing water can push entities. | |||||
| build 7 | Running water now has sounds. | ||||
| Legacy Console Edition | |||||
| TU1 | Added water. | ||||
| TU9 | Dispensers were given the ability to shoot out the liquids inside water buckets. They could also suck up the liquids if activated again, but a bug prevented the empty bucket being filled. | ||||
| Pi Edition | |||||
| 0.1.1 | Added water. | ||||
Issues
Issues relating to "Water" are maintained on the bug tracker. Report issues there.
Trivia
- While underwater, the player's FOV (field of vision) is lowered by 10 to simulate light refraction.
- The old water texture can still be found in the assets and is used in the game if you are underwater.
Gallery
- Animation Water.gif
The default water animation as it appears since the Redstone Update.
- 2011-09-23 09.35.29.png
A "leaky" roof. Notice the particles dripping from the block.
- 2013-04-14 03.56.25.png
A geyser. A vertical column of falling water left behind after a large TNT explosion with no apparent source.
Water flowing into a cave.
These bubbles appear above the hunger bar when the player's head is in water, and when all the bubbles pop, a heart of damage is dealt every second until the air is refilled.
- Das Waterfall.png
A naturally occurring waterfall.
The image that appears when you are underwater. (uses the old water texture. For more info, see Trivia)
References




