Reverse Osmosis Filter

Manufacturers of reverse osmosis units make grandiose claims on their abilities and necessity. Manufacturers and advertising claims weave tales of water from the most putrid of sources converted from sludge into refreshing and pure drinking liquids by being run through reverse osmosis water filtration systems.

The reality is quite different. Portable reverse osmosis units were originally designed for military use. In outlying and rural areas, portable reverse osmosis water filtrations systems can be used to draw water of questionable quality from sources such as oceans, rivers, stagnant ponds and pools or even mud holes.

The water would then be run through another series of filters to make it drinkable by removing chemicals, such as chlorine, used to disinfect the water, microscopic parasites, such as cryptosporidium, that are resistant to chlorine, and finally additional steps to improve the taste of the water. Of course, if you have access to a public water source, only the final steps are necessary.

In other words, reverse osmosis water filtration systems were designed to be used in large treatment facilities as an initial step in the effort to provide clean drinking water. In homes with a reliable source of drinking water, reverse osmosis units are a wasteful and an unnecessary expense.

Now, when we say "reliable", we are not talking about all of the things that can still be found in tap water, even after running through the best water treatment facilities. We are talking about water that is not "biologically contaminated". There is no raw sewage in it, no mud, no dirt particles, no trash, no algae and no "bugs" swimming about. Most of those things are taken care of by the reverse osmosis water filtration systems used at the treatment facility.

The contaminants that are found in public tap water and, in many cases, well water are invisible chemicals, toxic heavy metals and microscopic cysts. You can't see them and more than 200 of these very chemical agents have been linked to cancer and heart disease.

Only by using activated carbon and micron filtration can you block these substances.
You might want to have your water tested by an independent laboratory. You may be surprised to learn what's in there, particularly if you are already using something like whole house reverse osmosis water filtration systems. In that case, you probably thought you were safe.

There are many other disadvantages to reverse osmosis units. The least expensive reverse osmosis filtration systems for the whole house start at $10,000 and will do nothing to public water, except maybe remove what few natural minerals are still left after the treatment facilities get through with it.

As part of the reverse osmosis units extensive maintenance requirements, they require chlorine be run through the system to clean it. Algae can grow in the tiny pores of the membranes used in reverse osmosis water filtration systems.

The source water is forced through that membrane under high pressure and much of the source water is lost. Without the membranes reverse osmosis units are completely ineffective and the membranes are expensive to replace. So, in order to protect the membranes from rot and increase their life, plus kill bacteria and other living things that can grow on it, you've got to use the chlorine. Then, of course, in order to remove the chlorine, you'll need activated carbon filters on all your taps and probably your shower heads.

The smallest reverse osmosis water filtration systems are larger than a water heater and must be installed by a plumber. There just isn't anything about reverse osmosis units that makes good sense for in-home use.