Tag: water filtration system

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Water Filters Vs. Water Softeners – Which Do You Need?

Depending on where you live, your drinking water may need some type of filtration, but which is right for you? Do you need a water filter or a water softener? What if you need both? How do you know which one is right for you? Well, to answer these questions, let’s take a look at what water filters and water softeners do, then you can decide on the best solution for you and your family’s water filtration needs:

Water Softeners

So, what exactly does a water softener do and why do you need it? Well, simply, they soften hard water. Hard water is full of minerals and deposits such as calcium and magnesium. Although no harm will come to you from hard water, it’s nightmare for cleaning showers, tubs and causes problems for pipes and plumbing fixtures. By using a water softener, you will break down the hardness or materials in the water. Different softeners use different methods including: ion, electrical and magnetics. It’s best to get your water tested to find out for sure, if you have hard water. Then decide on what method works best for you.

Water Filters

Without purifying our drinking water, you could consume things that contribute to disease and illness. To prevent this, most water treatment facilities employ chemicals such as chlorine to treat the water. This, however, introduces new problems for us. I mean, you would you want to drink something that resembles the water in a swimming pool? I didn’t think so. So counter this, there’s water filters. Basically, water filters take out all the bad things in your water like the chlorine and other chemicals – leaving you with clean tasting and smelling drinking water. The most common filter is a carbon-based filter – it can remove the majority of chemicals in your water.

What’s Best For Your Water?

For many a water filter is all they will ever need. For others, a water softener plus water filter is a requirement. Remember how we said to test your water? Well, if you find out you have hard water, it’s best to get yourself a combination filter and softener to clean out the impurities in your drinking water. Otherwise, stick with a single water filter for your water purification needs.

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Water Pollution Plagues America

It’s easy to relegate thoughts of bacteria-laden streams, rivers contaminated with heavy metals, and otherwise polluted water sources to so-called “third-world” countries and developing nations. But the truth is that the same problems that afflict these parts of the globe are very present right here in the United States. What’s more, these water sources are not just in rural America; the problem affects major cities around the country, including our nation’s capital. The Potomac river is perhaps one of the best examples of a polluted major water source. Estimated to provide drinking water to two million people in the capital region, the Potomac and its tributaries have fallen victim to years of disregard by Washington-area residents. The problem stems from urban runoff, neglectful farmers, and land development efforts. Still another example of a polluted American waterway is none other than the “mighty” Mississippi. Flowing from Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico, the water of the Mississippi picks up all sorts of pollutants along the way, and by way of its tributaries, transports them through more than 31 states, affecting millions of people. So what is to be done about this modern-day plague? Residences protect themselves with point of use systems that employ a number of technologies, including reverse osmosis and UV filtration. Businesses on the other hand, generally incorporate application-specific technologies such as those for coffee and ice filtration. Regardless of your specific water concern, it’s important to inform yourself about the quality of your drinking water – it may not be as clean as you think.

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Revolutionary Personal Water Filtration

Over 1.2 billion people around the globe don’t have access to potable water. Many of them live in the continent of Africa. So it should come as no surprise that a solution to this problem might come from an inventor who lives there. Meet Dr. Eugene Cloete. A microbiologist by training, Cloete is currently the Dean of Natural Sciences at the University of Stellenbosch, just outside Cape Town, South Africa. In addition to his teaching ability, Dr. Cloete apparently has a knack for invention. With nine patents to his name, the first of which he earned at the age of 23, Eugene has adopted a way of thinking different than that of most peoples’. “[creativity is] like reading and writing,” said Cloete, “the more you use it, the better you get.” With much of South Africa’s tap water riddled with disease-causing bacteria, heavy metals, and pesticide residue, something needed to be done. In short, Dr. Cloete has invented a disposable filter, which looks very similar to a tea bag, to filter water as it is poured from a bottle. Each filter is capable of ridding bacteria, heavy metals, and harmful chemicals from about 15 liters of water before it needs to be thrown away. Cloete, an expert on inhibiting growth of bacterial slime, says he came up with the idea while on a faculty tour of his current department. He happened to notice a tea bag sitting on the break room counter when he started to explore the idea. It wasn’t until he watched a presentation at the university during which a student demonstrated how to spin nanofibers – filaments finer than human hair – that he figured out how to do it. He combined this technology with both that of the anti-bacterial membranes he had already been working on, and the traditional water filtration component activated carbon to yield the filter. Since announcing the invention in July, Dr. Cloete and his team of two post-doctoral colleges have received hundreds of inquiries from excited philanthropists, aid organizations, and retailers. This little tea bag is sure to save lives.

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Nylon Filter Housings Offer Economical Alternative

Traditionally, water filter housings to be used in high-temperature applications needed to be constructed of stainless or carbon steel. They were difficult and costly to produce, they were subject to oxidization (the result of years of exposure to chemicals and reaction-catalyzing temperatures), and they would retain heat even hours after the water supply had been shut off, making maintenance time consuming. In recent years however, an alternative to these costly housings has arrived: the nylon filter. Actually composed of a glass-reinforced nylon, these filter housings are more than capable of performing the same tasks of their now-outdated steel counterparts, housing standard high-temperature sediment and carbon filter cartridges with ease. Not only are nylon filter housings cheaper to purchase and maintain, but many models can withstand the same high temperatures as traditional steel housings – in most cases, Nylon filters are also ideally suited to industrial applications. Though they should not be used with ketones, an excellent chemical compatibility allows glass-reinforced nylon filter housings to handle organic solvents, sea water, alcohol, petroleum, and vegetable oils. New developments continue to be made in filtration systems each year, making purchase, maintenance, and repair easier and more cost effective than ever.

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Point of Entry Filters (POE) vs. Point of Use Filters (POU)

In many commercial applications, several water filters, including those which are dedicated to specific pieces of machinery, are needed. In these cases, individual filters, known as “point of use” (POU) water filters are located inline just before the water is dispersed or enters the machinery for which the water is intended. As POU filters are usually application specific, they can be tailored to the needs of the user, and are often used in place of a generic reverse osmosis system. This fact makes a standard POU water filter easier to maintain, but usually more expensive. Because of this, it behooves the business owner to take measures against the premature degradation of the POU water filter. The easiest way to accomplish this is to install a “point of entry” (POE) water filter. POE water filters perform water filtration for the entire commercial water service. They are responsible for purifying the water supply to all faucets, pieces of machinery, and toilets. The advantage of this approach to water filtration is first that only one system must be purchased for an entire service, and second, that it greatly improves the life of any other filters present down-line. The most popular POE filters used are either sediment prefilters, or carbon filters.

  • Sediment filters are responsible for removing sediment that can clog softeners, prematurely foul carbon filters, or ruin the down-line plumbing. In addition, they reduce TDS (total dissolved solids) or many other harmful chemicals like nitrate, nitrites, etc.
  • Carbon filters are effective for certain trouble water conditions such as bad taste or odor.

Still other POE filters are designed as an entire system. These units typically employ a four-stage filtration process. The first stage of filtration removes sediment in the water that may clog the filter, reducing its effectiveness. The second stage uses a chemical process called water atomization to alter the molecular structure of chlorine and turn it into the harmless molecule, zinc chloride. The third and fourth stages of filtration involve activated carbon filters to filter pesticides, and other harmful chemicals. By removing chlorine and other harmful chemicals at the point-of-entry, the whole service is provided with cleaner, healthier water at a reduced cost to the business owner. Pre-filters are typically much less expensive than down-line, application specific filters, making their replacement cheaper than that of the filters the POE filter is saving.

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Which Water Filter is Right for You?

Deciding on a water filtration system for your home or business can be daunting. There are numerous types of filters, each of which is manufactured by each different brand, totaling thousands of options for anyone looking to choose between them. We at Filter Pure Systems, Inc. have recognized this, and prepared a short preparatory question and answer guide to help you make your decision. The first and most important question to ask yourself when determining which filter to purchase is: “What do I need my water filter to do?” While the answer to this question may seem obvious enough, it’s likely not. Granted yes, at the end of the day, you want your filter to “filter” your water, but there’s much more to consider. Am I purchasing a water filtration system for my home or business? Water purifiers “run the gamut” of design. Generally speaking, units designed for commercial applications are larger than residential designs and are more expensive to maintain. In addition, they generally have specific applications not required in a residential setting. As a result, they are capable of handling more frequent use, satisfying the highest level of commercial demands. It’s advisable for these, among other, reasons to consider going commercial when purchasing a water filtration system. Such systems include the drinking water QL2-OW200L system, ice machine Insurice Single-i2000(2) system or fountain QC7I Single- MC2 system. Do I have a specific application for my water filtration system in mind?   It is important to determine exactly what your water filter it will be responsible for doing, before buying it, for two main reasons. First, if you have a specific application in mind, it may be necessary to purchase a unit designed to address this concern. Some water filtration units have built-in water softeners or de-mineralizers designed to yield a specific quality of water. This is desirable for many commercial settings, especially where the water is being used to make beverages such as coffee and soda espresso. Second, it may be that narrowing down the use of your unit will greatly reduce both upfront and ongoing costs. Generally speaking, the smaller demand put on your filtration system, the lower the cost of maintenance. If you decide that your system need only be used for part of your water supply, you are very likely to save money. How much water do I need, and how fast?   While this is typically only a concern in commercial applications, it may also be a useful question in residential applications where the filter is responsible for purifying the entire home’s water supply. Filters have their limits. Only a predetermined amount of water can successfully be processed by a unit in a given amount of time. This measurement is called “flow” or “flux.” While units with lower flow may be less expensive, they may require a little patience on the part of their user. Units with greater capacity for flow can provide more water in a shorter period of time, but are generally more expensive. There are many questions to ask yourself when considering a water filtration unit. If you would like help making your decision, or have already decided, give Filter Pure Systems, Inc. a call at 1-800-942-7873.

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Realizing the Benefits of UV Sterilization

Ultraviolet water sterilization is a process by which the threat of microorganisms and other biological contaminants, which are present in municipal water supplies and private sources (like wells), can be effectively nullified through exposure to a specialized ultraviolet bulb. How does it work? Sterilization systems which employ ultraviolet radiation operate on a few simple principles. First, a UV source, which is usually as simple as a specialized light bulb, is placed inside a reflective quartz sleeve. This sleeve is placed over a flow chamber which exposes all water passing through the system to a unique, specially determined germicidal wavelength of 254 nanometers. Continue reading Realizing the Benefits of UV Sterilization

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Get Green with Home Water Filtration

Once considered costly and cumbersome, residential water filtrations systems are now affordable and environmentally friendly options. Over time, they help homeowners save money and protect the environment, giving people a greater ability to “go green.” Invest in Long-Term Water Quality Everyone wants the safest and purest drinking water for their families. As a result, many households consistently spend large quantities of money on bottled water. They want the assurance that they are putting clean, healthy water into their bodies. Yet buying bottled water isn’t enough. Families still cook, clean, and bathe with tap water. Why spend so much money on bottled water, when it doesn’t even completely protect from contamination? Instead, a residential water filtration system removes contaminants from the entire water supply, rather than just from drinking water. A home water filter system offers consumers an excellent opportunity to reduce bottled water expenses and ensure the highest-quality water: Continue reading Get Green with Home Water Filtration