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How Do Water Filters Work and Which Are the Best?

Every house should have a water filter. Although we might want to, we simply cannot trust any urban center’s water supply. Whether we like it or not, pollutants and contaminants make their way into our drinking water, leading to health issues and complications.

The solution to this is a water filter, which is a special device designed to remove anything that might deal harm to the human body. Wrapping your head around water filters, however, can be difficult if you’re not used to the terminology.

Here’s a short guide to water filters as well as one of our suggested brands.

What Is a Water Filter?

A water filter is a physical barrier that can trap any debris or bacteria present in a connected source of water. They are known to improve the smell and odor of water as well as help remove any pollutants.

There are several types of water filters depending on your need, such as small units that can effectively filter sinks or hoses with minimal setup or whole-house filters that manage all your water supply.

The effectiveness of water filters is determined by their micron rating. Mechanical filters can range anywhere between 0.5 microns, which can remove minuscule parasites such as Cryptosporidium and Giardia, commonly found in feces, to 100 microns, which usually filter beach sand.

Take a look at the small list of the most common home water systems we’ve prepared below.

Sediment Filtration

The sediment filtration system is used across the globe in almost all sectors and is by far the most common. It has the basic job of removing large sediments such as limescale, sand, rust, or silt.

The efficiency of a sediment filter is determined by its micron rating, which typically ranges from 1 to 100. The lower the microns, the tighter the pores of the filter, making it less likely for any particle to get past them. Conversely, a higher micron rating means smaller particles might pass through.

A sediment filter can be used for your whole house’s water supply or it can be used together with other systems if you want a more complex setup. All in all, a sediment filter easily serves the needs of a basic family unit.

Chemical Filtration

The chemical filtration system is more specialized than its sediment counterpart, instead aiming to remove harmful chemicals and contaminants from your water supply. This involves passing the water through an active substance that is able to absorb or remove contaminants.

There are several types of chemical filters, such as granular activated carbon filters (known as GAC) or catalytic carbon filters. GAC is adsorptive instead of absorptive, which means that the chemicals will stick to it instead of seeping in or through.

Our recommendation for a solid range of systems and brands is to check out the Water eStore chemical removal filters.

Ion Filtration

The ion filtration system is able to turn “hard water” soft. This is done by removing the magnesium and calcium ions present in hard water and replacing them with sodium and hydrogen ions instead.

What this does is that it removes hard minerals present in water, which not only improves the taste but also reduces trace residues of limescale. The filtration happens through a series of beads that are able to facilitate the exchange of ions.

Reverse Osmosis

Reverse osmosis is the process in which a partially permeable membrane separates unwanted ions and other particles from the water. This is not the most desirable type of filtration system for a house, as it removes essential nutrients and healthy minerals from the water.

Always Filter Your Water

It’s easier to trust in the water you filtered yourself rather than your community’s water supply. While all water is passed through an extensive filtration process at various plants across the country, it is contaminated yet again as it passes through the pipes that are connected to your sink.

Therefore, think about the future. Your kidneys aren’t going to last forever!

Jeff Campbell