How to Choose a Home Water Filtering System
Filtering your own water at home is an easy way to get great-tasting purified water, without the waste or cost of buying bottled. But which purification method is best? Do water filtration pitchers really work as well as undersink or whole-house models? How do you know what the system is filtering out … and what exactly should you be filtering out, anyway?
The following five steps will help you pick the water filtration system that best fits your needs. Learn how to find out what contaminants are in your water, how the most common types of filtration systems work, including their pros and cons, and how to track down a water filter that is certified, so you know it does exactly what it claims to do.
1. Find out what’s in your water. Before you choose a filtration system, you need to know what it is you are looking to remove. You can get a copy of your area’s annual water quality report from your water utility. You can also go a step further and test the water yourself, either using an at-home test kit (available at most home improvement stores) or getting in touch with your water utility to find a local lab. At the very least, you want to know if your water contains lead, but any additional information you can gather would be helpful.
2. Figure out what type of filter you need. Activated carbon filters, the type found in many water pitcher filters and undersink models, can remove heavy metals (like copper, mercury and lead), chlorine, pesticides, parasites (like giardia) and some VOCs. Other contaminants must be removed using a different type of purification system — perchlorates (the chemicals used in dry cleaning) can be removed only by reverse osmosis, and arsenic must be removed through distillation. NSF International, an independent, accredited organization that helps set standards for water safety and tests and certifies systems, has a comprehensive chart that specifies the type of filter you’ll need to remove the contaminants in your water.
How the most common methods work:
Carbon filter: Activated carbon is found in pour-through water filtration pitchers and in many undersink filtration systems. Carbon filters work by trapping contaminants in the pores of the positively charged, highly absorbent filter.
Reverse osmosis: A reverse osmosis system reverses the natural flow of water, passing the water through a semipermeable membrane. Be aware that this method does waste water.
Distillation: Distillers heat water to the boiling point, then collect the steam as it condenses, leaving contaminants behind. Some contaminants that can convert to gas form will still remain in the water after distillation — you can combine a distiller with a carbon filter for better results.
Continue reading How to Choose a Home Water Filtering System
The following five steps will help you pick the water filtration system that best fits your needs. Learn how to find out what contaminants are in your water, how the most common types of filtration systems work, including their pros and cons, and how to track down a water filter that is certified, so you know it does exactly what it claims to do.
1. Find out what’s in your water. Before you choose a filtration system, you need to know what it is you are looking to remove. You can get a copy of your area’s annual water quality report from your water utility. You can also go a step further and test the water yourself, either using an at-home test kit (available at most home improvement stores) or getting in touch with your water utility to find a local lab. At the very least, you want to know if your water contains lead, but any additional information you can gather would be helpful.
2. Figure out what type of filter you need. Activated carbon filters, the type found in many water pitcher filters and undersink models, can remove heavy metals (like copper, mercury and lead), chlorine, pesticides, parasites (like giardia) and some VOCs. Other contaminants must be removed using a different type of purification system — perchlorates (the chemicals used in dry cleaning) can be removed only by reverse osmosis, and arsenic must be removed through distillation. NSF International, an independent, accredited organization that helps set standards for water safety and tests and certifies systems, has a comprehensive chart that specifies the type of filter you’ll need to remove the contaminants in your water.
How the most common methods work:
Carbon filter: Activated carbon is found in pour-through water filtration pitchers and in many undersink filtration systems. Carbon filters work by trapping contaminants in the pores of the positively charged, highly absorbent filter.
Reverse osmosis: A reverse osmosis system reverses the natural flow of water, passing the water through a semipermeable membrane. Be aware that this method does waste water.
Distillation: Distillers heat water to the boiling point, then collect the steam as it condenses, leaving contaminants behind. Some contaminants that can convert to gas form will still remain in the water after distillation — you can combine a distiller with a carbon filter for better results.
Continue reading How to Choose a Home Water Filtering System
