whole home water filters

[masraum]

OK, you see the title. What should I look for, what are good brands, what will balance cost with quality, etc....

I'd like to clean everything out of the water and not have to change the filter very often. We've got 4 folks in the house, the wife and me, and the two early 20s kids. We drink a lot of water and take plenty of showers. So I suspect we use a fair amount of water.

I suspect we'll need a 2 or 3 stage filter with activated charcoal, but I'm not sure what are the better brands.

Thanks

[928ram]

Saw a unit at Lowe's, by Whirlpool, seems to work like a pool sand filter in that it's a permanant media and self-cleans on a timer. Drop in flow is minimal and no filters to replace, should be good enough for whole house and maybe an under-sink reverse osmosis for drinking water?

[masraum]

I thought that sand would only clean particulate contaminates, but not necessarily chemicals.

[Jandrews]

I would skip the typical retail residential units. I have a commercial grade Osmonics whole house ion-exchange softener and a three-stage Reverse Osmosis drinking water system. It is amazing, and we couldn't live without it. I don't know the cost, as my buddy is a dealer and he installed mine for cost - somewhere around $900 eight years ago. Retail is probably triple that, but it would be worth it. Our water is silky to bath / wash in, and delicious to drink. Very low maintenance.

Also, I use Potassium Chloride instead of Sodium salt. There are mixed opinions on this, but generally the Potassium is considered to be a better choice. At least that is what my engineer buddy says.

Good luck. Check Osmonics.com for some ideas.


JA

[Evans, Marv]

Steve,
I will be having to make a decision on a whole house filter also. But at this point don't know much more than you about it, because I haven't had the time to research it.
First, you should know what you have in your water that should be filtered out or corrected - like hard water. You can get your water tested by a lab that tests well water. I had the water from my recently drilled well water tested. It costs around $75 for bacteria & nitrates. I paid $220 for a test that tested for levels of metals (17), inorganic chemicals, pH, organic chemicals, hardness, and VOCs. I was surprised to find out low levels of things like Ethylbenzene, Toluene, Dichloroethylene, etc. were common. Kind of scarry.
After you find out what's there, you can start researching what equipment you need to eliminate it. I know I am going to start with a big charcoal filter right from the pump.

[masraum]

I have city water, so determining what's in the water should be easy. I think they test and post the results on the city web site. I'll assume they tested on a good day.

My mother has a well in the panhandle of Florida. She had her water tested. Apparently it's some of the best water available. Apparently because of the sandy soil that the water runs through it is very, very clean. She still filters to keep the sand from getting to the house.

I may look into getting mine tested just to make sure.

[masraum]

Originally posted by Jandrews
I would skip the typical retail residential units. I have a commercial grade Osmonics whole house ion-exchange softener and a three-stage Reverse Osmosis drinking water system.

-- stuff snipped for brevity --

Good luck. Check Osmonics.com for some ideas.


JA

JA, thanks, good info. I'll check them out.

[jluetjen]

We've got a Culligan 3 stage filter and it works great. How often you replace the filter depends on how much stuff is in your water. You'll know when it needs to be changed (if you don't do it yearly) because the flow rate will start to drop. We've had ours in for a couple of years (downstream of a softener and neutralizer) with no issues. I've got the replacement filters down stairs, but I just haven't put them in yet.

[azasadny]

GE makes some nice filtration systems for the home water supply.

[Tim Hancock]

Originally posted by masraum
I have city water, so determining what's in the water should be easy. I think they test and post the results on the city web site.

If you have city water, why do you need additional filtering? We get our water from our pond so we obviously have to filter (charcoal system, multiple filters, bleach system, water softener plus under sink osmosis for drinking).

[cairns]

We have a Culligan that works great too but the Osmonics sounds interesting and I would have looked at it had I known.

[masraum]

Originally posted by Tim Hancock
If you have city water, why do you need additional filtering? We get our water from our pond so we obviously have to filter (charcoal system, multiple filters, bleach system, water softener plus under sink osmosis for drinking).

Normally our water isn't too bad here. I suspect it's because we are in a smallish town that's basically a suburb of Houston. Our town has it's own water instead of using Houston water which is gross. But even with our city water being better than the Houston city water (would have precipitation if left sitting long enough) our water still isn't perfect. There are times that the chlorine is so strong that you can smell and taste it. Sometimes it's so bad that I almost don't even want to brush my teeth. I'm sure that's not our only problem. It's just the only one that you can tell.

City water is not always necessarily good.

[schamp]

There is a filter called Springhouse made by EcoQuest. I got screwed by the company to the tune of $3500.00. I would recommend you have your water tested and let the different companies (in writing) say what their equipment can do for you. Pick one have them ( important have them install) install and then test your water again. If their system works then pay for it. If not tell them to remove it. I would not recommend a Springhouse for a whole house system, especially being on a well. I am trying to get the information out there about EcoQuest not standing behind their equipment and their warranty. I have a guy I can put you in touch with if needed. Spencer Champion

[Groesbeck Hurricane]

I believe Texas A&M will still test your water for you.

[RickM]

A few years ago a news program tested NYC, Poland Spring, Northern NJ and Evian water.

The order of "drinkability was in the above mentioned order.

I have one of those Omni House filters seen at Home Depot...not expensive at all. It's basically a chacoal filter, When I replace the filter every other month there's a quite a bit of sediment and other assorted residue. So it seems to be doing the job. I believe it states reduction in iron and other taste altering debris. Some cartridges filter chlorine and lead as well.

The problem with these simple systems is that if the filter is in there too long your water will be as clean as if passed through a dirty sponge. Not pleasant.

[masraum]

Any new info from anyone?

[TerryH]

Current issue of Consumer Reports lists 3 whole house filers.

Whirlpool
GE
Kenmore

All 3 contained black dots (failed) on lead removal, chloroform removal, and bad tasted removal. They excelled at flow rate and clogging which is what you think they would be good at being as they do almost nothing.

Here's the except:
"Best for enexpensively removing sediment, rust, and some chlorine. Long cartridge lifetime."

"But most are not designed to, and won't effectively remove most other contaminants including cysts, metals, and VOC's."

[89911]

The whole house seems to make sense, but they are less efficient at removing what more specific filters would. Too much volume. The reverse osmosis are the best, but they take much longer for any volume, like filling a big pot for boiling water. You'll also need a storage tank under your sink. I just installed a cartidge type that was rated well from CR. It completed removed the taste that was the main culprit. As far as the other filters removing items like arsenic, I'll worry about other issues. If your waters really bad, get a good whole house filter and maybe a cartridge at the sink for your drinking water if it still tastes bad.

[rfuerst911sc]

Check out Kinetico quad whole house filtration. I had one installed about 8 years ago and it works great with zero maintenance. No filters to change as it backflushes after a certain number of gallons run thru it. It has 4 ( quad ) filters with granular charcoal in them. I believe Kinetico is sold nation wide. I also have their water softener and unlike other units on the market there are no electrical connections. It works off of a timer similiar to your water meter.

[pwd72s]

No helpful advice here...but you guys sure make me glad to be living in the Pacific Northwest. All of our drinking water has no chlorine, tastes great, tests clean, and comes from a secret well hidden close to the foothills of the Cascade Mountains. One advantage to living here...every winter, momma nature "flushes the toilet" so to speak, with around four feet of rainwater...