Home water filtration systems should be made mandatory in every household today, because depending on tap water blindly is not the best course of action. It’s true that the water management and treatment system in the United States really does supply healthy, drinkable water to our homes for the most part, but that’s not applicable everywhere.
There have been so many reports of waterborne infections hospitalizing or even killing people in the US, that we should not be drinking or using unfiltered water from any source today. If you have not yet installed a home water filtration system, it is time you got to know about the options at your disposal.
Activated Carbon Filters
Carbon filters are effective in filtering out sediment, silt, dust and other large impurities, but they may not be able to filter out smaller microbes. However, activated carbon filters are exceptionally good at filtering out chlorine and other chemicals that might harm us.
Reverse Osmosis Filters
Reverse osmosis filtration systems force water through a semi-permeable membrane in relative high pressure, so most of the contaminants do not make it through to the other side. The best reverse osmosis filters are capable of filtering out impurities and microbes as small as .001 microns. In addition to the main reverse osmosis system, good filters also come with a prefilter and a postfilter, placing the semipermeable membrane in between the two.
UV Filters
UV filters are exceptional in eliminating germs, but they may not be much use in filtering out sediments, particles, etc. This is why they should be coupled with activated carbon filters for maximum benefit. Despite using ultraviolet radiation to kill or disintegrate germs, UV filters are the most ecofriendly water filtration systems today.
Alkaline Filters or Water Ionizers
In these systems, the water passes over electrically charged plates to trigger electrolysis, which in turn, separates the electrolyzed water into one acidic and one alkaline stream. The soft water (alkaline) stream is better for our skin, which is why you will find ionizing filters in bathrooms quite commonly.
Infrared filters try to achieve the same result as well, but they are generally not as effective as electrolysis filters. Nevertheless, infrared filters can also soften hard water to some degree, using light and heat. In between the two alkaline filters, the electrolysis filters are likely going to produce better results though.
Inline Filters
Inline filters come in many sizes and may utilize any of the filtration systems that we have already discussed. These are generally attached to the main water supply pipe in a kitchen, or specific appliances such as the dishwasher. Be sure to go through all your options and only choose the right in line filter system that can fulfill your needs.
While there might be a few other industrial grade water filtration systems that we did not mention here, these are the most popular, as well as the best options that we have when choosing the right water filtration systems for our homes.
