Water For Health

Posts Tagged ‘Reverse Osmosis’

The best drinking water filters provide us with the best quality water we can get. The best drinking water filter can improve our life, enhance our performance and increase our energy levels by providing what our bodies crave…99.99% pure drinking water.

70% of our body weight is water. We have to replace and replenish that water on a regular basis or face illness. Each person should consume gallons of water every day, but many do not, because their water doesn’t taste fresh or it smells like chlorine. Good drinking water filters will put the joy back into drinking water.

Pure drinking water is important in more ways than one, the water that we take in may contain bacteria that can cause diarrhea, which can be life threatening to small children, the elderly and anyone with a compromised immune system. Chlorine is added to the water at the treatment facility to remove bacteria…to disinfect the water.

But, some bacteria are resistant to chlorine. Cryptosporidium cysts, for example, are not killed by chlorine. Only a drinking water filter with a micron particle stage can stop cryptosporidium at the cyst stage and protect your family’s health.

The average drinking water filter is carbon based. Carbon activated drinking water filters remove chlorine and chemicals, but other stages are needed to remove different things. It all really depends on what’s in your water and without laboratory testing, the only safe thing to do is buy a drinking water filter that can address all of the problems that “could” be in your water.

Some drinking water filters (like reverse osmosis and distillation) remove trace minerals that are good for your health. The best drinking water filters “balance” the mineral content, instead. So, in areas where high mineral content or “hard” water is a problem, hard minerals are replaced with “softer minerals”. A drinking water filter that has a ion exchange stage is the right choice for well balanced mineral content.

Drinking water filters have been around for a long time. In India they had a crude drinking water filter that was used for ages. It consisted of a big round clay pot. The impurities would be absorbed by the clay and the remaining water tasted sweet and refreshing. With modern science we have perfected the technology and now can filter a number of things that are not good for us, but some drinking water filters are stuck in the dark ages.

Chlorine removal is just one thing that a drinking water filter can do to improve our water. Some companies stop there. Other drinking water filters go the extra mile by reducing harmful pollutants like pesticides and herbicides. Remember, anything that goes down the drain or on the ground eventually ends up in the ground water and our drinking water reservoirs

We use thousands of chemicals every day, thoughtlessly. Industries have spills, as do gas stations and repair shops. We have our grass treated with pesticides. We use herbicides to kill weeds. We wash medicines down the drain. All of this stuff ends up in the drinking water.

It is important to be careful about what you flush down the drain or pour on the ground, but you have to realize that other people may not be so careful. The only way to protect your family is by investing in good drinking water filters for every tap in the house.

All the doctors and nutritionists, all the diets and the fitness instructors tell us to drink as much water as possible, the minimum of liquid consumed during a day being at least 2 liters. And then we hear from the environmentalists and other government organizations that water is contaminated with all kind of bacteria.

The thing that makes drinking water safe is the water filter. Drinking water filters are available now in many forms and using different technologies. The main goal of the drinking water filter is to make the tap water or almost any other type of water safe for drinking.

There are several types of drinking water filters. Some of them are portable ones like for example the water pitcher filters while others need to be attached to the water pipe. Each of them comes with pros and cons and because of the large variety of drinking water filters available on the market it is important to decide the kind of water filter you want.

It’s not only that there are drinking water filters available on the market, but also shower filters systems and whole house water filter systems. The drinking water filter is by far the most popular one and is available as portable filter, counter top filter, under counter filter, and faucet mounted filter.

The most popular ones are the charcoal water filters, the ceramic water filters, the reverse osmosis filters and the Ultraviolet water filters. All the filtering systems have cartridges and filters that need to be replaced from time to time, and need to be cleaned.

As in any other market there are several manufacturers, but you are the one that should decide which one is the best for you. If you want to have purified water in your entire house than obviously the best choice is a whole house water filter system. However these systems are somewhat expensive and their maintenance is not very easy either. Nonetheless with such a system you will have purified water in the entire house because the filter system is connected to the pipe before it enters the house.

The cost of a drinking water filter ranges from inexpensive to pricey, but again it depends on the technology used and the amount of water that can be purified. A small water filter will probably be enough to supply your house with drinking water, but more and more people like to have the water they cook with purified too.

Counter top and under counter water filters seem to be good both at giving enough purified water to drink and cook as needed. And while the counter top water filter is easier to install and does not require extra plumbing work, it is usually cheaper than the under the counter water filter.

So if you have enough space on the counter and you only want to have drinking and cooking water, you can definitely choose a counter top water filter. The main disadvantage of a drinking water filter is that you need a filter for each faucet where you want to have drinking water.

Many water filter manufacturers and salespeople are misleading the consumer by making false performance claims. Claiming to produce chemical free or contaminant free drinking water is nothing short of false advertising. 

Many manufacturers are making these claims when the truth is very few water filters do anything more than improve the aesthetic value – taste, smell, and appearance of the water produced. Many claim to remove contamination from drinking water. The fact is NO water filter removes any contaminant entirely or produces pure water – H2O… 

High quality water filters reduce contaminants to safer levels. Cheaper systems such as most faucet mount or pitcher type filters reduce chlorine and possibly reduce some small degree of chemical contaminants but allow the vast majority of contamination to flow right thru the filter, including bacterial cysts depending upon the micron rating of the filter. 

Performance is one of the key factors in comparing any water filter. The effectiveness of any drinking water treatment device is measured by the performance of its filter. Most consumers, at no fault of their own, have no idea as far as how to compare filter performance. Hopefully the following information will help. 

NSF International sets the standards – Industry standards for drinking water systems that can reduce harmful contaminants were first established in 1982 by NSF International. NSF tests water filters at the manufacturer’s request. NSF tests and certifies drinking water treatment devices to the standard appropriate for the technology of the product. For water filtration devices, NSF may certify the product to improve the aesthetics of the water (Standard 42), the health effects of the water ( Standard 53) or both. In addition NSF has developed testing standards for Reverse Osmosis and Distillation systems. 

NSF certifies that the product meets the contaminant reduction claims of the manufacturer or adding anything harmful to the water. NSF also certifies the advertising, literature, and labeling of the product by the manufacturer is not misleading in any way. Reputable manufacturers pay thousands of dollars to have the rigorous NSF testing performed. NSF proves all claims made by the manufacturer to be true including filter life expectancy. 

Manufacturer’s are proud to announce and advertise their products are NSF Certified. If they are certified, it will be displayed on the packaging or any literature concerning the product. One thing to look out for when it comes to claims of manufacturers, products that are certified will state certified – not meets the standards of NSF or meets NSF certification standards. It will be clearly stated – NSF Certified.  This goes for standard type water filters and reverse osmosis units also…

 

So, how can the average consumer compare performance? It is easy to compare the performance of any water purification product. Simply go to the NSF website, www.nsf.org and request the certification of the product. The certification will show exactly what the product in question is tested and certified to do. The certification will show in detail, which contaminants are reduced and to what degree. They will also verify claims of filter life expectancy. 

NSF Certification is important. Never purchase any water filter that is not NSF Certified. By carefully reviewing NSF Listings, consumers can determine the specific contaminants that the drinking water system is certified to reduce. Some systems are certified to reduce only one or two contaminants , and some are certified to reduce just a few, while others have been NSF tested and certified to reduce many contaminants of aesthetic and health concern under Standards 42, 53, and 58. Filters certified to conform to material requirements only are those that have been tested to confirm that the filter does not add any harmful substances to the water.

 

Quality filters save money – Another key factor to look at is filter life expectancy, as replacement filters can be expensive. Amazing as it may seem, the high quality and more costly water purification products are usually less expensive in the long run because of the fact the filters last longer requiring fewer filter replacements. Also look at the micron rating of the filter. Bacterial Cysts, which can cause illness when consumed, can be as small as 1 micron. To be safe, always look for a filter which is rated to less than 1 micron. 

Read More Articles Concerning Drinking Water, Water Filters, Reverse Osmosis, Tap Water, Bottled Water, Home Water Filtration, Water Contamination, Water Purification, and the Florida Aquifer @ 

http://www.supremedrinkingwatersolutions.com 

Patti Wilson

Water Filtration Consultant

St Augustine Florida

904 522 0524

email:   patti@supremedrinkingwatersolutions.com