Water Filters

I am writing this article, not to promote any brand or particular water filter,but to hopefully give the average consumer enough valid information so they canmake an educated buying choice when shopping for a water filter.

It is estimated that 80 percent of home owners in the United States have used orare currently using a water filter. Many, I am sure, have purchased a filter that is virtually ineffective and probably costing them an arm and leg in replacement filter costs.

I have been involved in the water filtration industry for a number of years. I have yet to find a water filter that produces PURE WATER! I am seeing more false advertising as of late than I have ever seen before. Just last night forinstance, while watching television I noticed two different advertisements for the latest and greatest water filters. They both claimed to produce pure water! Neither one even mentioned being certified by the National Sanitation Foundation. No water filter removes all of any contaminant, what a water filter actually does is reduce contaminants.

There are hundreds of water filter manufacturers in the U.S. today, producing thousands of different water filtration products. Only a handful produce a water filter that is highly effective as far as contaminant reduction and cost efficiency.

There is no point in purchasing an ineffective water filter. The old concept, you get what you pay for, still holds true. Cheap water filters do very little as far as contaminant reduction and soak the consumer when it comes to replacementfilters. Most high quality water filters effectively reduce a vast number of contaminants to a high degree. The filter labeling should indicate which contaminants the filter will reduce.

The labeling should also indicate the capacity rating, A high quality filter will save you money in the long run. Filter life expectancy and capacity rating determine how many actual gallons the filter is capable of producing. For example, a filter that will produce 500 gallons or more as compared to one that produces only 100 gallons is far more cost efficient.

Recently, while shopping at a local discount store, I took a look at the water filters they had to offer. They had a number of cheap filters that would do little,if anything as far as contaminant reduction. Most of these inferior filters are only capable of reducing chlorine, lead, and particulate matter. Some may go sofar as reducing bacterial cysts depending upon the micron rating and possibly afew other contaminants. None of the cheap filters are very effective on an overall basis.

Most of these filters cost less than $50.00. One particular filter that comes tomind had a $45.00 price tag. Replacement filters for this filter cost $8.50 each.The capacity rating for this filter is 100 gallons. That amounts to 8.5 cents pergallon. This particular filter only reduces lead and chlorine according to thepackaging.

Here, my husband and I use approximately 3 to 4 gallons of water per day for drinking, coffee, iced tea, cooking, and watering our 2 dogs. Considering the amount of filtered water we use, I would have to change the filter every 25 days. That is 14 replacement filters a year! At $8.50 each, the annual cost would amount to $119.00. The initial cost of the water filter plus the 1 year of replacement filters would result in an total cost of approximately $165.00 for the first year. In just 2 years I would spend more money than I would purchasing a much better quality system that would effectively reduce a vast number of contaminants and provide much better, and healthier drinking water.

The drinking water filtration system we use is rated at 1200 gallons. It is hiddenout of the way under the sink and has an independent faucet mounted on the sink, not hanging off my faucet. It is one of the highest quality systems on the market, reduces a very wide range of contaminants and is NSF Certified. I have had this filter for a number of years. If I remember correctly, the initial cost of the system was $320.00. Once a year I change the filter at a cost of $59.95. That amounts to only 5 cents pergallon of quality drinking water.

Obviously, dollar for dollar, the real value is in the quality system.

So, how do we determine a water filter’s capability? When reading the label, checkto see if the filter is NSF Certified. Never buy a filter that is not NSF Certified.Manufacturers of quality filters have their filters certified by NSF and are proudto advertise their certification on the labeling.

Only if a water filtration device is NSF Certified can a consumer be certain thatthe product meets strict standards for performance. Tested to NSF Standards doesnot mean NSF Certified. Any water filter that claims to be tested to NSF Standardshas not actually been tested and certified by NSF. Here again, this is a primeexample of these companies misleading the consumer.

NSF tests and certifies water filters to do what the manufacturer claims. Not onlythat, they also monitor the manufacturing process by doing spot checks. NSF willcome to the factory unannounced and monitor the manufacturing process.

Consumers can go to the NSF website and view the actual certification which willshow exactly what contaminants the filter will reduce, indicate the percentage ofreduction and will also indicate the filter life expectancy. The NSF website is www.nsf.org, just click on consumer and search water treatment devices.

Water purification and water filtration are two different things altogether. Waterpurification is the introduction of chlorine or other chemical agent that killsbacteria in water.

Infared lighting can also be considered to be water purification as its sole purposeis to destroy bacteria. Water filtration is exactly that, a water filter of some type.

Another thing to look for when shopping for a water filter is which technology isbest for you.

Avoid loose carbon filters as they allow air to be present within the carbon and are nothing but a bacteria factory.

Most mixed media filters can be effective on a few specific contaminants, but do not reduce a wide range of contaminants.

Distillation is a process in which the water is heated to the point of steaming.The steam passes from the container it is heated to another container as the steam cools.Distillation is highly effective on removing minerals and salts, but is somewhat limited on removal of chemical contaminants as many chemicals evaporate right along with the water.

I have found, many people are confused as to the capabilities of reverse osmosis. Reverse osmosis is a process where the water passes through a membrane which will notallow certain contaminants to pass. Reverse osmosis can do an effective job on barium, radium, cadmium, copper, fluoride, perchlorate, minerals, salts and a few other contaminants but is not effective on a wide range. Many reverse osmosis units include additional types of filtration technologies. Some of these are very effective depending on the other additional types of filters used. This type of water filtration system is usually identified as 3, 4, or 5 stage system.

What I recommend to the average consumer is the solid carbon block filter or the solidcarbon block coupled with reverse osmosis. A high quality solid carbon block that filtersto less than 1 micron is very effective on a wide range of contaminants and does not allowoxygen to be present within the carbon filter therefore bacteria cannot be allowed to passthrough or be produced within the filter carbon. The solid carbon block alone will not reduce healthy minerals.

For maximum contaminant reduction, consider a drinking water filtration system using reverse osmosis technology coupled with a solid carbon block but keep in mind it doesremove the healthy minerals.

In conclusion, always compare the NSF Certification when shopping for a water filter andavoid the dishonest tactics of unscrupulous advertisers.

Armed with this information you are now a savvy water filtration shopper!

I hope this article helps in your pursuit of a drinking water filtration system. If youwould like more information on drinking water or water filters please see my site at www.supremedrinkingwatersolutions.com