Hi all,
I hope you are all having a great start to the new year.
I am interested in having filtered drinking water from my mains water supply. I suppose the cheapest would be a jug filter like the Brita model but I’ve also seen more complicated systems based on reverse osmosis, such as this one:
which whilst dearer, are not terribly expensive and would have a relatively short pay-back period when compared to the alternative of purchasing bottled mineral water at the supermarket, I guess? Not to mention avoiding all the plastic bottle waste. I like the idea of having the dedicated tap/faucet for drinking water, positioned beside the kitchen sink.
And so, a few questions:
Do you have any experience in this regard and what advice would you offer?
Do you think a system like the one I’ve linked to would significantly improve a mains water supply? Or do I need something more complicated/more expensive?
Would you advice me to buy such a system in the UK for fitting in France?
Or can you recommend a similarly priced / spec’ed system that I can buy in France.
What are you trying to remove, taste and chlorine etc just require activated charcoal with a sediment filter first. Reverse osmosis removes pretty much every dissolved mineral etc and its not deemed a good thing to drink. If its hardness then a softner cartridge is a good idea but again drinking softened water is not such a good idea although from my pool work there are areas of France with very soft water already.
I use RO to purify water for lab work instead of distillation. While it’s more energy efficient than a still, it does waste a lot of water and to work effectively requires holding tanks, clean down procedures and careful maintenance.
Corona’s question is relevant - what is it you are trying to remove?
Hi Corona & Ancient_Mariner, Thanks for your replies. I’ve only been at the house for a day last month, my first day there. The water had been turned off at the stop-cock for several months. When it was turned on, it ran brown - close to burnt ochre in colour - for several minutes - rust? - with the colour diminishing until the water appeared (almost) clean. There was a slightly musty earthy smell from it. I didn’t taste it, I had brought a supply of mineral water with me as I wasn’t sure if the mains supply could be turned on, on that day.
So I guess I want to remove impurities and any bad odour and to feel confident that the water is not only safe but also healthy to drink, if that’s possible. I want to be able to make a cuppa without scum on the top or any nasty tastes.
Regarding hard water, I’m not sure yet if the water is hard or soft (mains water, south of Deux Sevres), I guess time and the inside of my kettle will let me know.
So, what would you recommend folks?
A standard 2 stage should be fine, the first will remove rust, sediment etc and the 2nd stage activated charcoal will remove pesticides, chlorine etc
I prefer a clear container as you can see then if the 1st stage is getting dirty.
Unless your tap water is very hard and you want to reduce the effects of limescale, I wouldn’t recommend a cartridge-type filter plumbed in. It’s not recommended to use the end result for drinking, so you’d need a separate tap for mains water for cooking/drinking. That defeats the whole object If you just want ‘improved’ water for making drinks, then a jug-type filter would be your best bet.
FWIW we see this rusty water at our place in the Morvan too, only visiting a few times each year. After a minute it runs clear and tastes like local water. It’s not hard like the water in the Thames valley.
Thanks, Corona, is there a model you would recommend?
Likewise Houpla, thanks, what model do you recommend? Are you thinking Brita?
To be honest, unless I get a doctor’s recommendation to do otherwise, I’ll not attempt to alter the calcium content/hardness of the mains water. I DO have a kidney condition but, as I understand it, water hardness is not a real issue provided I drink enough water/keep hydrated/flush toxins etc. out of the kidney and bladder etc.
Thanks Ancient_Mariner. I’ll be there in about 10 days and I’ll let it run to see if it improves - and taste it this time. However, I think I’d still like to do some sort of filtration. I had a reaction to mains water in the UK and noticed an improvement when I changed to drinking bottles ‘natural’ mineral water. A filter of some sort would help me with all the plastic bottle waste.
The filters work fine , we use them at work but not my idea of reverse osmosis which is 60 bar through a membrane so just a marketing name really, its just water going through 5 separate filters that make it taste good . I had one big carbon filter for years that i used for drinking and cooking but this was when a 5 filter set was about €300. Filter changes at work we do annually but they get a lot of use.
If you turn your water mains off always run a tap for a few minutes to clear the pipes, nothing wrong with a bit of discoloured water if its been stood in the pipe a while. As you are paying for the water it should be drinkable anyway straight out the tap.
There are kitchen taps available that are 3 function hot, cold and drinking if you don’t fancy making a hole in your work top.
What are people using as a source of carbon for this second filtration? Bought in small packets from filtration suppliers the carbon works out very expensive but I wonder if other proposed sources are safe.
Not sure what ours does, it is like your picture but just a single filter. I think its just for impurities (bits?). I do like the separate little tap though, it is always cold without running a bit of water through like you often need to do with the main tap.
They are combination filters, no problem with them its just OP mentioned some silt and rust which could quickly clog a single filter. A two stage just means you can change the cheaper 1st stage filter protecting the more expensive carbon filters.
We used Drydens AFM as a pre filter for a reverse osmosis unit to make that RO unit last longer so its a common setup where needed.
If you just want ‘improved’ water for making drinks, then a jug-type filter would be your best bet.