Friday, August 13, 2010

Best Faucet Water Filter - 3 Things to Look Out For



If you are like me, you probably will spend a bunch of time searching the internet for the best faucet water filter. I don't blame you, when I went looking for a faucet filter I was amazed at the quality and cost differences I found. So I thought it would be good to give you a head start and recap the top 3 things to look out for when looking for the best faucet water filter.

#1 - Checkout what contaminates get removed

I was surprised to find out that not all filters are created equal. I reviewed products from 10 different faucet filter companies. On each companies websites they have listed all the different contaminates their filters will remove. I was expecting them to be all very similar but was I wrong. The range of contaminates that each product removes is astounding, even though the faucet water filter prices are all about the same. Some units only remove the basics like chlorine and lead. While the best faucet water filters also remove up to 10 other contaminates from Cysts to Benzene.

#2 - Effectiveness of the Filter

Here's another area I was shocked to find out was an issue. You can take two filters that on the surface remove the same contaminates but their effectiveness will vary wildly. For example lets looks at an element that would seem simple to filter out, Chlorine. I looked at the top 10 filters and the percent of effective removal ranged from 75% to 99%. Pretty shocking, I fact this kind of range holds true for all the different contaminates one would like removed from their drinking water.

#3 - Cost per Gallon

A faucet filter can be a significant investment, so you'll want to check out the cost to operate one. There are a couple of cost measurements you will find quoted, they are "cost per 1000 gallons" and "cost per gallon". These two measures gives us a benchmark that we can compare the on-going cost of different water filters. Here again the costs are at both ends of the spectrum, and they don't seem to correlate with the effectiveness or numbers of contaminates removed. I found on a "cost per gallon" basis a range of 9.8 to 25 cents per gallon. This means some filters cost almost 3 times more to operate but they don't always provide 3 times cleaner water.

It's now up to you, I've given you 3 specific things to look at to help you decide on the best faucet water filter. Take these 3 faucet filter tips and start you own research, you will be amazed at the difference between each of the water filters you research. I'm sure this will help lead you to to the best faucet water filter for you.

By Charles Welf

Sunday, July 18, 2010

Reverse Osmosis Water Filters Cleanse Drinking Water More Thoroughly



Water purification is a superb necessity because the majority of our water supplies are polluted with detrimental bacteria that creates our unsafe and smelly water. This can result in several illnesses in our bodies, which can be very grave to treat. There are many types of water purification and one useful way is using a water filter. Among the popular water filter is reverse osmosis.

Reverse osmosis is a kind of water filter that purifies your drinking water by obstructing those unnecessary substances before getting through your water faucet, providing you with clean water. This kind of water filter includes a semi permeable membrane that operates as a filter. When water gets through the membrane, the ones that are bigger in particles are obstructed from moving across the membrane. Thus, contaminants that are bigger in material than water is not granted to pass through.

Though that procedure for water filtration could be useful, there are disadvantages behind such process. Several pollutants have infinitesimal particles that could move across this membrane. Thus, the entire purification method may not be hundred percent successful. An instance is chlorine. It is recognized to sanitize our waters but there could be components in chlorine that could result in critical conditions in the body and will be able to go through the semi permeable membrane of the reverse osmosis.

One more drawback of reverse osmosis is its inclination to prevent even beneficial minerals of water. Since reverse osmosis blocks particles that are larger than the water particles, tendency is that it can also block those minerals that are larger than water in form. It then will not provide you with healthy water.

Seeing the deficiencies of reverse osmosis, it is often more appropriate to use a carbon filter to be sure that you can have the safest water. One really useful carbon filter is the Berkey. Even though it is not really the same as reverse osmosis, it has its own excellent advantages that a reverse osmosis cannot deliver. One is the whole filtration of pollutants inspite of its size. It finds those contaminants and does not allow entrance through the filter. Not only that, Berkey carbon filter does not block off minerals to pass through hence can offer the healthiest water.

Making sure that you have the most useful equipment is vital in choosing what to purchase when in need of something. One thing to remember before deciding on a product is to first know its pros and cons and form alternatives. Then compare the two products and choose the most beneficial. Berkey is one of the leading brands regularly selected by lots of people because of its devotion to supply the most reliable service in water filtration.
By Janice K. Wilson

Thursday, July 8, 2010

Why You Need a Water Filter



The purity of water should be a top priority but in many places untreated or partially treated water is dumped into our waterways daily. The cost of upgrading to process and treat is something that many big cities can't or won't commit to. Who pays? Us, not in money, but with our health. The entire eco system and everything that feeds from it is also greatly affected. The sad part is we become the filtering system when we consume this water, not only that, we cook with it and we bathe in it.

There are very dangerous chemicals in tap water that are not removed at municipal treatment plants, not in lethal amounts, but toxic they are, even in small amounts. One ounce of pure PCB'S is enough to kill 1000 people. I'm talking about chlorine, weed killers, traces of prescription drugs, lead, gasoline additives, industrial solvents, pesticides, herbicides, THM's, VOC's and others. When you look at that list is it no wonder cancer and other degenerative disease is killing people?

Some people would say that is just over reaction or speculation, the facts show otherwise. Many studies and many deaths later have removed any doubt. Disease starts at the cell level, when you consider that there are 30 trillion cells that make up a human body all it takes for cancer to develop is to deform a few of these cells.

Some of these cells can become compromised and toxic directly from ingested toxins as found in water, food, skin care products and in the air we breathe. Immune systems that are weak cannot defend against compromised cells from toxins and the groundwork is laid for many disorders and disease to develop, it all starts from small amounts over a period of time.

Take Chlorine for example. According to the U.S. Council of Environmental Quality, "Cancer risk among people using chlorinated water is as much as 93% higher than among those whose water does not contain chlorine". Chlorine a very dangerous toxic chemical. It is used in very small amounts to treat water against bacteria and even in such small amounts cells can become very toxic. Chlorine, once known as mustard gas, was used as a weapon and killed thousands of troops in the first world war.
By Robert Dixon

Wednesday, June 23, 2010


There many types of liquid filters out there. Naturally, with all of these liquid filters, there has to be water filter ratings. Liquid filter ratings rate water filters on everything from the look of the water filter to how well it actually filters the water. The liquid filter ratings you want to look at depend on the type of water filtration system you want. Some water come in the form of a jug which you can fill and place in the refrigerator or take with you. Some water filtering come on in a bottle form for people who want filtered water on their jog or in their car. There are filtration systems that can go on your kitchen sink, on your whole house or ones that can assist large groups of people in getting clean drinking water.

When looking at hydro filter ratings, you want to look at the system's ability to actually filter out the things you wish it to filter out. Some types only focus on taste, and therefore may not filter out tiny microbes or viruses. Other types of filters may be built for water that is truly unsafe to drink, and not standard tap water, so this type may be more expensive and more sophisticated than you need. If you are looking for a system that can filter the water for the entire house, or several places in the house, you will want to look at water for house systems. Liquid are often written by the users of the products, so you will get an honest reaction out of the consumer.


By David Cassell

Shower Head Water Filter - Is Your Health Being Threatened by Taking Showers in Contaminated Water?

It's unbelievable. Public water sources that we're all showering in are filled with thousands of toxic chemicals. It's making us sick and damaging our skin and hair. Luckily, you can remove these contaminants by adding a shower head water filter.

One of the major problems with public water is the chlorine that's added to it. It's not uncommon to have tap water that has more chlorine in it than what's considered safe for swimming pools. It does a good job killing bacteria but has damaging side effects to our health.

Why is chlorine so bad for your skin and hair? Well, it strips away the moisture and natural oils from your skin and hair leaving it dried out and very unhealthy.

Removing chlorine will have more positive health benefits than just improving the health of your hair and skin. Studies have shown that showering in chlorinated water can dramatically increase the risk of getting various types of cancer.

Chlorine and other chemicals in your shower water are absorbed through your skin. Taking a ten minute shower will result in as much chemicals entering your body as drinking a gallon of contaminated tap water.

The steam from your shower is also filled with the chemicals that are in your tap water. When you breathe in the steam, your lungs are filling up with these toxins. This can lead to serious respiratory problems and aggravate any allergies you may have.

Without a shower head filter, you're exposing yourself to thousands of chemicals every day. But, you can easily remove this unhealthy part of your daily routine by taking one simple action.

You can safe guard yourself from these chemicals by installing a shower head water filter. When you first install one, you'll see a difference immediately. With purified shower water, your hair will be softer and your skin won't be so dried out.

The best type of water purifier for your shower uses multi phase carbon filters. These filters will remove over 99% of the chlorine and other chemicals in your shower water. With the right shower head water filter, you'll never have to worry about these toxins again.

You may want to consider a filter on other taps in your home as well. As you can imagine, drinking contaminated water is harmful to your health too.


By Mark LeBreton

Top 10 Benefits of Home Water Filter Systems

Are you in the market to buy a home water filter for the first time or if you are thinking of replacing the one you already have? After you read through this list of benefits, you will absolutely be persuaded that filtering your own drinking water offers incredible amount of benefits in terms of savings, health, or environmental concerns.

1. Healthy Drinking Water - You would not have to worry about the quality of your water because you will have complete control. You will not depend on bottled water which may have been packaged from a municipal treatment plant somewhere. Maybe you've tested your water and have identified the exact contamination problem in it helping you to buy the best filtration system.

2. Helping the Environment -When you drink water from your own water filter and reduce dependence on bottled water, you will be helping to reduce the amount of empty plastic on the streets which eventually pollute water ways, and affect drinking water supply.

3. Money Savings - There is tremendous amount of savings benefits when you filter your drinking water in your own house. For instance, a replacement filter for a good countertop unit that costs just $59.95 and lasts up to 12 months (or up to 750 gallons of filtered water) will save you money over packs of bottled water or rental water. With the $59.95 for annual replacement filter cartridge, you will drink continuous clean and quality water. With a reusable water bottle, you can carry your filtered water to gym, office, biking, or hiking. You save money, and help the environment.

4. Emergency Preparedness - You cannot envisage when your town or city will issue water advisory for any kind of water problems. Pipe breaks, oil spills, sewage spills, earthquakes, hurricanes, or storms that overwhelm wastewater treatment plants could result drinking water contamination. One of the groups that benefit the most during these emergencies is the bottled water company while your wallet is depleted due to events you did not prepare or budget for. A water filter or purifier will save you money during these emergencies.

5. Bacteria Re-growth - In the distribution pipes could contaminate water as it travels from the treatment plant to homes and other points of use.

6. Water Hardness - Hard water may not be unhealthy to drink but it's bad for your plumbing systems, bath tub, and appliances.

7. Plumbing Systems Leaching Chemicals - House plumbing may leach chemicals into water within the house plumbing systems.

8. Showering and Allergic Problems - Excess residual chlorine can leave your hair dry and brittle and make your skin flaky and itchy after shower. The odor can also cause negative reactions in children, the elderly, and people that are sensitive to chlorine smell. A good shower head filter is the best way to reduce or eliminate any allergic reaction to chlorine in your shower water.

9. Cancer-Causing Chemicals - Most drinking water contains disinfection byproducts (DBPs). Excessive chlorine residual in the finished water could result of in the formation of DBPs such as Trihalomethanes (THMs or TTHMs), Bromoform, Bromodichloromethane, Dibromochloromethane. EPA listed cancer, liver, kidney and reproductive and developmental problems in humans as some health problems that may result from DBPs.

10. President Obama's Cancer Panel - The president's panel recommended water filters for homes to reduce the risk of cancer-causing chemicals. The Panel concluded that "individuals and families have many opportunities to reduce or eliminate chemical exposures. For example, filtering home tap water or well water can decrease exposure to numerous known or suspected carcinogens or endocrine-disrupting chemicals."

Many consumers have decided long time ago to buy a home filtration system before the government thinks it's the best thing to do. So, it's the time you and your family begins to enjoy the health and economic benefits in water filters. More benefits are derived when you choose a filtration system that has been tested and certified by a third-party organization, like the NSF, for reduction of a wide variety of harmful chemicals. More beneficial to choose a filter by a company that offers excellent warranty, has had years of experience in home filter system, or offering great incentives that will make it easy to purchase your first or replacement treatment unit.



By Dare Adelugba

Discover Why You Need a Household Water Filter to Remove Chemicals You're Currently Drinking

If you're like me, you want to be sure that your drinking safe, healthy water. Recent studies have uncovered that most public water sources have over 2000 chemicals in it. The only way to know that your tap water is pure and free of these chemicals is to install a household water filter.

Without a household water filter, you've been drinking chemicals like chlorine, pesticides, pharmaceutical drugs, gasoline and many other toxins. Many of these are carcinogens that will lead to all sorts of health problems. It amazing how adding small kitchen sink water filters can safe guard you and your family from so much harm.

Chlorine is pretty much in all public water. It does a good job killing bacteria however it has some bad side effects. When it comes in contact with bacteria, a new chemical is formed called trihalomethane. This chemical has been proven to dramatically increase the risk of getting cancer.

When you shower in on chlorinated water, the steam will be filled with chloroform. If you notice you get a little dizzy or light headed when showering, it may be from the effects of chloroform. This chemical can also cause respiratory problems and seriously aggravate allergies.

Parasites have become a serious problem with public water systems. Overtime, some have become immune to the effect of chlorination. The right household water filter can also remove these parasites.

The best tap water purifiers on the market use multi phase carbon filters. These will remove chlorine, parasites, and 99.9% of all the other thousands of chemicals you currently have in your water.

Some people decide to install a whole house purification system rather than just sink water filters. This way, every tap in your home will have pure water.


By Mark LeBreton

how to chose your water filter ?

Water filters are available in a huge and sometimes confusing range of types and prices. The technical terms used are sometimes confusing and before making a major purchase you should satisfy yourself that the water filter has a large enough capacity to handle all your drinking water needs.

Home Water Filters vary from simple jug or bottle filters with a basic charcoal filter up to serious water processing filters that will produce crystal clear water of far higher quality than municipal tap water.

Cost is a major factor of course but there are some outstanding bargains in home water filters.

Remembering your budget, think about how much you spend every week on bottled water. Bottled water comes in either 2 litre or 5 litre plastic bottles and according to which plastic the bottler uses can have a strong taste from the plastic material. Many brands of bottled water are just bottled tap water. Municipal tap water normally contains various chemicals and possibly micro-organisms

The average family drinks from 30 to 40 litres of water every week and that works out at over $1500 a year! That is for basic supermarket bottled water â€" Fancy imported water would double or treble that cost. That would buy a pretty fancy tapwater filter.

Here is a breakdown of the different kinds of water filter available:

Jug type water filters - commonly the Brita is the most popular and is a good choice as it comes with a good filter cartridge. It is possible to use cheaper supermarket cartridges but these often leave an after taste and do not last as long. There is a counter top model which uses the same Brita filter and has a larger reservoir for filtered water/Filters last around 2 months. Most jug type filters are designed to fit into a refrigerator door. Lids on this type of filter are sometimes fragile.
Cartridges are widely available.

Refrigerator Filters - these are plumbed into a refrigerator.This is an easy to use filter that needs to be change every 6 months. Main advantage is that cold drinking water is always available on tap

Under sink water filters. These are plumbed in to your kitchen faucet and provide clean water on tap. They have the disadvantage of not removing micro-organisms. Should be changed every 2 or 3 months, Cost around $30 for new cartridge. Some units have a charcoal and a ceramic cartridge and the charcoal cartridge needs changing regularly. The Ceramic cartridge needs cleaning and can normally be reused.

Multi stage filters. These are usually a multi part filter system which may have three different filters. These are usually pumped systems so they need an electricity supply. First is a sand or gravel filter that removes organic matter (peat etc) next is a charcoal filter which cleans larger particles and is followed by a ceramic filter that filters out many micro-organisms. A refinement to this type of filter is a UV (Ultra Violet) filter that kills microbiological creatures like Giardia and Cryptosporidium which are the two main causes of stomach upsets from the water supply. Multi stage filters are basically similar to the filters used to filter water in aquariums for tropical fish but are on a larger scale. They can also be fitted as under counter units.

A further advanced filter is called the reverse osmosis filter. Although this filter produces excellent quality water, but the process is rather slow and can take a time to process enough for a large family.

Whole House Water filters are much larger but work on the same basis as multi stage water filters. They are correspondingly more expensive and many whole house water systems are designed for different house sizes. These will filter all water coming into your house and can also be incorporated with a rainwater collection system to cut down your water costs and needs. Think about how many bathrooms, toilets and water dependent machines you own (dishwasher, washing machine etc)when making your decision.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Keith_Jones