Why You Need a Water Filtration System

You’ve had a long and beautiful day at the beach, and can’t wait for that shower to rinse off all the sand and suntan lotion! You turn on the water, wait till it gets that nice warm temperature, and you’re in!!  Feels great, but what’s not so great are the chemicals released during this shower…Let me explain!

Most of us utilize municipal water in our every day lives, water that has been treated with chlorine to eliminate bacteria and kill microbes, a good thing right? Yes, but the major problem with chlorination is the potential formation of hazardous, chlorinated, organic chemicals (trihalomethanes). A warm shower releases these cancer causing agents into the air we breathe.  In a U.S News and World Report dated July 29, 1991, the following was stated regarding this issue.

“Studies indicate the suspect chemicals can also be inhaled and absorbed through the skin during showering and bathing. Ironically, even the chlorine widely used to disinfect water produces Carcinogenic traces. Though 7 out of 10 Americans drink chlorinated water, its safety over the long term is uncertain.”

Now, being thirsty after your day at the beach, you reach for the bottle of drinking water that you have in the fridge. This water tastes better than the chlorinated water from your tap, so you buy it right? Have you ever considered what is in that bottle of water, and the resources required bringing it to you?

Well here we go…The plain truth is that most bottled water is little more than tap water in a bottle. City tap water is required to meet standards that include testing for contamination, if surface water is utilized it must be filtered and disinfected, and city water systems must issue annual “right to know” reports informing consumers what is in their water.  Not so with bottled water.  And then there are the global ramifications of bottled water.  Here are some facts:  Over 60,000,000 plastic bottles a day are disposed of in U.S. landfills from bottled water use. Other than the direct impact of 30 billion plastic bottles a year being disposed of, bottled water negatively impacts our environment in many other ways.  17 million barrels of oil are used each year to produce the 30 billion plastic bottles producing 2.5 billion tons of carbon dioxide pollution.  Then there are the transportation costs, with distribution of these 30 billion bottles, the total barrels of oil consumed is around 50 million, the equivalent to run 3 million cars for a year!!

Whew! Isn’t there something better?  Yes, here is where a total house filter comes into play. With a standard whole house water filter, water enters your home via pipes, and into the carbon filter. The activated carbon can help with the  removal/reduction of many volatile organic chemicals (VOC), pesticides, and herbicides, as well as chlorine, benzene, trihalomethane compounds, radon, solvents and hundreds of other man-made chemicals found in tap water before it enters your home. It is difficult to find exact statistics on the reduction/elimination of these substances as the carbon filter’s ability to filter is affected by a few factors; the amount of carbon in the unit, frequency of backwashing, filter replacement, and the flow rate. But there is no question that a filter leaves you with better tasting drinking water from every faucet (no need to buy the bottled water) and a reduction in exposure to chemicals from showering!

The process of installing a whole house water system is a bit more involved than putting in a faucet or shower filter.  Because the device impacts your home’s plumbing system, installation must be completed in compliance with the plumbing codes of your state and municipality.  Therefore, it is important to enlist the services of a licensed plumber to handle installing your whole house water filter which can be done in within a few short hours. After a brief flushing period performed by your plumber, you have “pure water on tap” from every fixture!

So the next time you reach for that bottled water, or take that nice warm shower, think of what you could be doing instead to help yourself and the environment as well!!

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