Benefits of a Water Filter System For Your Home
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Posted July 12, 2019
Did you know that 64 million Americans have unsafe drinking water? Filtering tap water was once a luxury, but now it is an accessory. There are too many contaminants in our water from factories and underground pollution. Learn more about water filter systems for your home below.
No matter how good your tap or well water may seem, there’s some level of contaminants in it. Some of these are man-made, while others are from natural surroundings. Rivers and lakes are often some of the best natural water sources, yet they still get contaminated by polluters, acid rain, and storm runoff.
Because of these factors, many homeowners are turning to whole home filtration systems. They’re known as POE, point of entry filters, that filters the main water line. You should consider installing one of these filters, as outlined in this comprehensive guide.
Do you really know what’s in your water? Let’s find out.
Foreign Contaminants in Our Water
There are various biological, chemical, and environmental contaminants in our water. Your water supply picks up these foreign bodies along the way in the supply and pipes. The farther it has to go the higher the likelihood of containing more than one of the following:
Biological
There are major disease-causing pathogens that can lurk in your water supply. E. coli, norovirus, and Giardia are common and dangerous water-borne pathogens.
Organic and Inorganic Chemicals
Nitrates, lead, arsenic, glyphosate, trichloroethylene, and tetrachloroethylene, and other chemicals cause cancer and other serious illnesses. Runoff from landscaping and agricultural pesticides, herbicides, insecticides, and fungicides contain these compounds and many unknown.
Heavy metals and radiation poisoning are two big problems, especially near rural areas. Arsenic, lead, uranium, barium, and chromium all pose serious health risks.
Hard Water
Even if your water doesn’t test for the most dangerous of foreign contaminants, you may still need a water filter system for your home. Hard water buildup of calcium deposits affects water pressure and overall quality of water. Limescale deposits get all over your shower surfaces and ruin shower-heads.
Benefits of Whole Home Water Filtration Systems
The greatest reason to buy a water filtration system is to support your family’s well being. Entire house filtration sifts through high levels of chlorine, minerals, and synthetic substances that can be found in the water. Chlorine is added to water supplies in controlled settings, yet concentrated amounts can happen. Even safe levels of chlorine can have unfortunate reactions, for example, drying out the skin.
A viable home filtration system decreases the chlorine exposure while drinking, washing, and breathing. Less chlorine dispersed at sinks and showers. That makes your skin, hair, and allergies better in the house.
Top of the line water filtration utilizes propelled water filtration through different stages. They can expel more than 30 hazardous contaminants from your home’s water supply. Entire house filtration requires next to zero support, and the systems have a long life, averaging 5 to 10 years.
Since whole house filtration doesn’t require monitoring or upkeep, they are a strong home investment. These systems will increase the value of your home, especially in rural areas.
Potential Drawbacks
Whole-house water filtration systems will, in general, cost more than point of use filtration solutions. Brita pitches and in-sink filtration systems are a fraction of the cost of a POE system. They also aren’t very accessible to the average DIYer.
Calling an expert to install a home water filtration system for your home is required if you want to save time and money. If the system is incorrectly installed, it could cause major plumbing problems. Remember, this is a long-term investment, not a shortcut or a solution to buying bottled water.
Discover the Point of Entry for Your Water Supply
It’s essential to know the nature of your water supply first. Learn what contaminants you have before choosing and buying a POE solution for your home. Call your neighborhood water provider or complete your very own tests. You could also contact an expert, like one of Hiller’s project managers for a free water filtration consultation.
Make sure you’re mindful what explicit issues your water has and what you need to eliminate. Whole home water filter systems aren’t a blanket solution for all types of contaminants. In fact, the more specialized the water filter for your home is, the cheaper it will cost to install.
Don’t Go Cheap
A whole house filtration system is not something you want to pinch pennies with. Cheaper models may only filter out large particle contaminants. What this means is that your filter is unable to filter out chemicals, only rust and sediments.
The water may look clear to the naked eye, but it will still contain chlorine and possibly deadly toxins.
On the other hand, paying for expensive reverse osmosis filters could result in a similar problem. These filters are too good at what they do in that they take out all the valuable minerals from the water. These minerals contribute to our health and hydration and give the water a balanced flavor.
Water that has been stripped of minerals will take on flavor profiles of the container it’s in. Also, reverse osmosis systems can only produce 50 gallons of filtered water a day, while a standard carbon whole-house water filter solution can do 18 gallons per minute.
Fluoride and Other Concerns
Chlorine requires an activated charcoal filter for removal. Fluoride requires an activated aluminum cartridge or ion exchange system. The same goes for perchlorates and nitrates.
As you can see, they all require a different filter to remove successfully. Your average filtered pitcher won’t have all of these capabilities. Fluoride is a hot topic for this reason.
Some families prefer not to drink or get exposed to fluoridated water from their tap. Only a whole house system can efficiently and thoroughly protect everyone from exposure. Remember, many contaminants are absorbed through inhalation.
When water runs through the tap or the shower, water droplets become airborne. The mist is inhaled and quickly absorbed through the body. Legionnaire’s disease in Flint, MI is one example of an invisible and deadly airborne contaminant.
Chemical Leftovers
Cities use chlorine to treat water and kill off bacteria, like those that cause Legionnaire’s disease. This treated water retains some of the chlorine as it reaches your home. There are regulations in place to prevent unsafe levels from being consumed, but no one knows the long-term impact.
Rather than taking your chances, you should take the precautions needed to guarantee safe drinking. Chlorine is especially harmful to young children and babies. They are more susceptible to cancers and deficiencies.
Hard Water Challenges
It’s worth emphasizing the need for a home filtration system when combating hard water. These mineral deposits not only make your clothes feel rough, but they also ruin plumbing. Over time, your faucets will fail, drains will clog, and grime will cover surfaces.
Hard water isn’t particularly good for your health, either. Excessive consumption of calcium, magnesium, and sediment taxes the liver and kidneys. Severe hard water can lead to kidney stones.
Taking a bath or shower in hard water is bad for your skin. It clogs your pores and contributes to dandruff problems. Not to mention, scale buildup on the shower door is a daily battle.
That makes it harder to conserve water in the Summer when it’s crucial. You’re practically forced to use commercial cleaners on any tiles or exposed laminate. DIY home solutions don’t get things quite as clean beyond average cleanings. There’s only so much that vinegar and lemon juice can do.
Choosing the Best Water Filter System for your Home
Undesirable synthetics, minerals, pesticides, lead, and even rust can be found in numerous city water supplies. Contingent upon your nearby supply, you may have decent, drinkable water, yet taste awful. Maybe it causes dry or chafed skin after you wash. In certain spots, the water in your home is totally undrinkable, not reasonable for showering and not clean enough to wash fabrics in.
If you’re ready for a new filtration system, you’ll need to look for the pros and cons. The first step is knowing what is contaminating your water. Then, you will begin your search for specialized filtering.
Compare the capabilities of a Point of Entry filter and a Point of Use filter. Note the volume and efficiency of filtration. How long does it take to filter your water through each system?
How effective is each system at filtering specific foreign contaminants? How expensive is it to purchase and maintain the filtration system? Ensure that whatever system you decide upon that it is NSF or FDA certified.
Without these certifications, you won’t know if your water is being filtered without running independent tests. We recommend getting your water tested every year, regardless.
Top Performers
Plumber’s Choice Water solutions consistently rank among the best home water filtration solutions. They offer many water filtration solutions, such as whole-house water filter carbon systems, Flow-Tech anti-scale systems and more. Their CX Carbon Whole-House Water Filter handles 18 gallons per minute.
You can also find the Reverse Osmosis Revolution Whole House 3-Stage Water Filtration System. As we mentioned previously, this system is costly, both in time and money. It might not provide the best value if you have other alternatives.
Possibly you have more elevated amounts of rust yet no issues with chlorine. At that point, you could utilize two rust-filter channels to completely clean your water. This is an advantage over the all-in-one filters out there.
The best whole house water filter for your situation should come down to health concerns. Always err on the side of caution, don’t forgo certain filters just because your water tests low. These ppm (parts per million) measurements aren’t an exact science.
Installing a Water Filtration System
These consumer-grade filtration systems that you can buy online or at a store are self-serviceable. You need some basic plumbing knowledge to get the job done. If you’ve never messed with plumbing before, leave it to the professionals.
The basic steps to installing a whole home filtration system are as follows:
- Shutoff your main water valve and drain any excess water.
- Choose a common location for your water filter that is easy to access.
- Use a pipe cutter to make your cut.
- Place a compression nut and the included fittings for the filtration system.
- If it isn’t supplied, use Teflon tape to secure these fittings.
- Rotate the filter so that your intake and outflow ports are facing opposite.
- Check to make sure the inlet valve on the filter is off.
- Turn the main valve on your water back on, then turn inlet valve on.
- Let the water run for a while to make sure there are no leaks.
That’s the basic premise for all home water filter systems. Hiring a professional to install your filter is ideal, as incorrect installation could become a costly repair.
Protect Your Home and Family
Whole home water filtration systems are a worthwhile investment, for some a requirement. The news is filled with stories of home, business, and school contamination. These stories increase in frequency as more independent testing is performed.
If you live in a rural part of Tennessee you should contact us as soon as possible. We can take care of your home’s filtration needs and guarantee a cleaner, safer water. We have decades of experience in plumbing and servicing the greater TN area.
Request an appointment with us at your convenience and we’ll get back to you with an honest, no-nonsense consultation and quote.
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