What Type of Drinking Water System Works Best?

When you pause to consider what is in our drinking water, you may wish to invest in a drinking water system for your household. Water that comes out of the ground, or out of reservoirs contains many contaminants that could make you sick, or worse! Water treatment facilities take out some of these contaminants, but not all. And because the water still has to travel to get to your house, it is impossible for remote treatment facilities to remove all contaminants from your water.

There are many home-based systems to improve the quality of your tap water, so your question may be what drinking water system you should invest in. Another very important question you need to consider is what the most effective type of drinking water system is.

There are many types of drinking water systems on the market. The most common are reverse osmosis, distillation and filtration systems. Which should you choose? You'll probably want to base your decision on both effectiveness and cost.

Reverse osmosis systems are not effective at removing certain types of contaminants, such as chlorine, and the related compounds Trihalomethanes (THMs), and Haloacetic acids (HAAs). These three contaminants are found in virtually all water supplies, because of the common use of chlorine as a disinfectant. Chlorine reacts with organic compounds to produce THMs and HAAs, all three of which are considered by the EPA to increase your risk of getting cancer. So if you want to improve your drinking water there is no point in buying a system that does not remove these compounds.

Both reverse osmosis and distillation have another disadvantage in that they de-mineralize water. Many minerals in water are important to our nutrition. Removing them from your drinking water can adversely affect your health!

A filtration drinking water system tends to be much more affordable than either a reverse osmosis or a distillation system. Filtration, particularly with carbon filters, is effective at removing chlorine, THMs, HAAs, and other contaminants, including lead, arsenic and many harmful organic compounds. Yet they leave the trace minerals that are essential for our health in the water, unlike reverse osmosis and distillation drinking water systems.

There are various types of filtration systems you can choose from. You are probably most concerned with drinking what is in our water. Point-of-use filters are a great place to start because they fit easily onto your kitchen faucet.

However, when you consider what is in our water, you will realize that you may also want to purchase a shower filter. The chlorine, THMs and HAAs in tap water evaporate at a lower temperature than water. When you take a shower these contaminants are concentrated in the steam, and you breathe them in. The best way to avoid this is to use a shower filter.

A whole-house water filter system can be used instead of a showerhead and drinking water system. That way the water coming out of all your taps is purified. You will never need to worry about getting a drink out of a bathroom tap again.

So depending on your level of concern about what is in our drinking water, you may wish to choose a whole house, shower and/or drinking water system. Ensuring your health by using water purified with a filtered water system makes a lot of sense for your health and for your budget.



By John Collins
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/1450331