An RO water purifier is considered to be the safest option for clean and healthy drinking water in our homes today. In many instances it's an overkill and not really required but that is another discussion. In this post we will talk about how to choose the best RO water purifier system for your home. We will talk about the important features and functionality that a good RO water purifier should have.
Let's start with the filtration technology that it uses. And RO water purifier uses reverse osmosis to remove the contaminants from the water. This includes bacteria and parasites, as well as dissolved salts and minerals.
Another reason for using UV with RO is that sometimes the membrane of reverse osmosis system can develop a small tear which you might will not be aware of. So the additional ultraviolet production takes care of a situation where some bacteria might be getting through the membrane. The only way to tell if the reverse osmosis membrane has developed a tear is if the amount of water that is discarded seems to decrease. If the membrane is working fine it should discard a the stipulated amount of water in ratio to water that it purifies.
I have had a personal experience with a lot of companies who sell RO water purifiers and while they give you an estimate figure for the water that gets discarded, the actual real life quality is nowhere near the claim that they make. As long as it is not on paper and as long as the company does not claim it officially, it is more likely to be an inaccurate number that the salesman has come up with to make the customer feel more comfortable in buying the RO water purifier. Water wastage is a concern in the minds of many consumers and the environment conscious consumer hesitates in wasting a lot of water.
On the other hand there are companies that clearly and specifically tell you that they their purifiers are designed to retain more than 50% of the water that is filtered. Which means to say that for every 1 L purified less than 1 L of water will be discarded. However, make it a point to check the fine print with this claim as well because it might only apply to certain conditions and quality of water such as water with within a certain range of TDS.
Admittedly, the reports are not very clear as to whether the minerals and salts in water play an important part in the overall health of a person because of the very low amounts in which they actually exist. We know that most of our minerals and vitamins come from our food rather than a water.
There are various opinions about what TDS is considered healthy and you can read more about that here in this article. Even the world health organisation does not have any real data about what a healthy TDS in water should be. All that they list as information is that anything below 300 is good to drink from an aesthetic point of you. Which means that they are talking about how the water tastes rather than whether it is healthy or not.
However, it is definitely a good idea to be taking some natural minerals and salts in the water as it is naturally meant to contain. The better and advanced RO water purifiers come with a re-mineralisation cartridge that adds the essential salts back to the water and ensure that the TDS level is not very low. Currently, the reverse osmosis water purifier that I am using in my home gives me a TDS of between 70 and 90 after the re-mineralisation process.
Read more about how and when to service your reverse osmosis water purifier.
FILTRATION PROCESS
Let's start with the filtration technology that it uses. And RO water purifier uses reverse osmosis to remove the contaminants from the water. This includes bacteria and parasites, as well as dissolved salts and minerals.
Reverse Osmosis
Reverse osmosis is a process by which the water is forcefully pushed across a membrane which has very tiny pores in it. These pores are so small that mostly only the water molecules can pass through it and everything else that is dissolved in it gets caught and filtered out.Sediment Filter and Activated Charcoal
However, you need other filtration technologies to work together with the reverse osmosis process to give you safest drinking water. To begin with The RO water purifier should have a sediment filter to catch all the bigger dissolved impurities such as dust, silt and rust. Then it should have an activated charcoal filter as well to absorb the bad order, bad taste, chlorine, dissolved gases and as well as volatile compounds. Active charcoal is also very effective in catching impurities.Ultraviolet Purification
Several advanced RO water purification systems also use the ultraviolet purifying system because it is highly effective in killing the bacteria and parasites in the water. This is done to be doubly sure that the water does not contain any pathogens.Another reason for using UV with RO is that sometimes the membrane of reverse osmosis system can develop a small tear which you might will not be aware of. So the additional ultraviolet production takes care of a situation where some bacteria might be getting through the membrane. The only way to tell if the reverse osmosis membrane has developed a tear is if the amount of water that is discarded seems to decrease. If the membrane is working fine it should discard a the stipulated amount of water in ratio to water that it purifies.
WATER RECOVERY
The second important thing that you need to watch out for is how much water does the reverse osmosis water purifier discards for every litre of water that it purifies. I suggest that you go for a company that gives you a specific figure for this. And I don't mean just the word of the salesman. It should be something that they officially mention in the specifications, brochure or advertisement of the product.I have had a personal experience with a lot of companies who sell RO water purifiers and while they give you an estimate figure for the water that gets discarded, the actual real life quality is nowhere near the claim that they make. As long as it is not on paper and as long as the company does not claim it officially, it is more likely to be an inaccurate number that the salesman has come up with to make the customer feel more comfortable in buying the RO water purifier. Water wastage is a concern in the minds of many consumers and the environment conscious consumer hesitates in wasting a lot of water.
On the other hand there are companies that clearly and specifically tell you that they their purifiers are designed to retain more than 50% of the water that is filtered. Which means to say that for every 1 L purified less than 1 L of water will be discarded. However, make it a point to check the fine print with this claim as well because it might only apply to certain conditions and quality of water such as water with within a certain range of TDS.
RE-MINERALIIZATION
The third point is that you should choose a reverse osmosis water purifier that re-mineralises the water. Like I mentioned earlier the reverse osmosis process is very effective in removing anything that is in the water apart from the water molecules. This includes the salts and the minerals that actually make the water healthier for you to drink. So an RO water purifier ends up reducing the amount of calcium and magnesium and other minerals which are good for you.Admittedly, the reports are not very clear as to whether the minerals and salts in water play an important part in the overall health of a person because of the very low amounts in which they actually exist. We know that most of our minerals and vitamins come from our food rather than a water.
There are various opinions about what TDS is considered healthy and you can read more about that here in this article. Even the world health organisation does not have any real data about what a healthy TDS in water should be. All that they list as information is that anything below 300 is good to drink from an aesthetic point of you. Which means that they are talking about how the water tastes rather than whether it is healthy or not.
However, it is definitely a good idea to be taking some natural minerals and salts in the water as it is naturally meant to contain. The better and advanced RO water purifiers come with a re-mineralisation cartridge that adds the essential salts back to the water and ensure that the TDS level is not very low. Currently, the reverse osmosis water purifier that I am using in my home gives me a TDS of between 70 and 90 after the re-mineralisation process.
SERVICE AND MAINTENANCE EXPENSE
The final thing that you need to look at before you purchase the RO water purifier is the service and how expensive is it to maintain it. The membrane of the RO water purifier will most likely be the most expensive part and will need to be replaced every 6000 L or so depending upon the brand that you buy. Other exhaustible include the sediment filter, activated charcoal, re-mineralisation cartridge etc. So while purchasing do ask the salesman about the annual cost of maintaining your RO water purifier.Read more about how and when to service your reverse osmosis water purifier.
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