Do you know which residential water filter you really need?
Before making a correct decision you need to understand what you want to achieve with your water filter. The following is a guide to help you choose the right water filters from the many filters on the market.
Activated carbon water filters
These water filters adsorb organic contaminants ... those that that cause taste and smell problems in your tap water. Some designs of water filters can remove chlorination by products, cleaning solvents, and some pesticides.Activated carbon water filter canisters must be replaced periodically. Activated carbon water filters are not good for removing metals such as lead and copper.
Ion Exchange residential water filters ... these are the ones commonly used on feed water systems to boilers. They remove minerals from your water, particularly calcium and magnesium. They are effective for water softening filtration type purposes. Some ion exchange softening units can remove radium and barium from water and those ion exchange water filters that use activated alumina are used to remove fluoride and arsenic from water. These units need to be regenerated periodically using common salt which reverses the process. These units have problems when a lot of iron is present.
Reverse osmosis residential water filter units remove a diverse list of contaminants, more than other systems including those associated with smell and taste . Of special importance is that reverse osmosis water filters can remove nitrates, sodium, and other dissolved inorganic compounds, as well as organic compounds especially when mixed with activated carbon in the water filter canister. Excessive levels of nitrates in drinking water can cause blue baby syndrome, which can be fatal without immediate medical attention ... reference EPA publications.
Distillation units boil water and then condense the steam produced to create distilled water.
Boiling water if often done where microbial contamination is suspected. Remember however that boiling if it is prolonged can reduces the volume of water thus concentrating those contaminants killed by the temperature of boiling water. This includes nitrates and pesticides.
Choosing Your Residential Water Filters In General ...
No one residential water filter unit or design can remove everything. You may decide to use more than a single type of residential water filter in your home. You must stick to recommended levels of use and replacement for your chosen water filters.
Which residential waters filters? How to choose your home water filter.