Choosing the Best Water Filter for Healthy, Clear Water

A water filter for removing impurities from water is very useful. The water purification is done using either a chemical process, a biological process or a fine physical barrier. Uses for water filters include cleaning water for drinking, irrigation, swimming pools and aquariums.

Why Filter Your Water?

Water is essential to life and a water filter for filtering drinking water is something that a lot of people choose to use. Unfortunately all water sources including wells, rivers, lakes, glaciers and municipal water systems contain a level of contamination. This contamination can include man-made materials and their byproducts, natural minerals and biological agents like viruses, cysts and bacteria.

Most of these contaminants occur at a low level but even low level exposure has been found to cause illnesses such as cancer and liver damage. Chlorine and fluoride, which are commonly used to treat supplies of municipal water, can adversely affect your health.

Using a water filter for water purification is more cost effective that buying bottled water. A family of four spends over a thousand dollars a year on bottled water. A water filter is more economical and also gives better, healthier results. Bottled water is not much safer than tap water and can still contain higher levels of bacteria than desirable.

Types of Water Softeners

If you want a water filter for softening your drinking water, you can choose from manual, timer and meter models. Water softeners featuring timers mean that you can set the timer for the softener to generate, using eight pounds of salt every time. Timer regenerated water softeners are normally cheaper but they use a lot of salt.

Meter regenerated water softeners measure how much water is used and you can set the control according to water hardness, how many people live in the house and how many grains per softener you want to use. These water softeners usually run in the night and do not use a lot of salt.

Water softeners without a meter or timer are known as manual regeneration models and these are good for people who cannot put their unit near a drain. A garden hose is attached and the water drains only when regeneration occurs. A water softener with a large capacity is useful to reduce regeneration time.

Choosing a Water Purifier

Water purification is useful for all household water, not just drinking water. The water used for filling a bathtub, brushing your teeth, washing vegetables or washing clothes might also be contaminated with low levels of viruses, bacteria, toxic metals, parasites, algae and fungi. A water purifier can improve the appearance, flavor, scent and safety of your water.

A water filter for purification might use water filtration, reverse osmosis, water softening, UV light, carbon treatment, molecule stripping, deionization or ultra-filtration, depending on the model. You can also choose from pitcher-based, shower-bound and faucet-mounted water purifiers and those which fit under countertops.

If you are looking for a water filter for removing all impurities from your water, it would be a mistake to buy a cheap one from a department store because these models usually only remove the chlorine and none of the other undesirable things that tap water contains. Popular water filter brands include Aquasana, Aqua-Pure, Brita, Culligan, eSpring, Kenmore, GE, Everpure and PUR. There are different water filters to choose from, depending on your budget, the size of your family and more, so you should take your time in choosing the best water filter for your needs.

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