What Is A Whole House Water Filter?

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A whole house water filter is often called a point of entry system as it treats the home's entire water supply before it circulates through the house. One type of system is called a water softener which traps calcium and magnesium in the water and replaces them with salt. The higher level of calcium and magnesium in your water the more they are replaced with salt. The more calcium and magnesium in your water the harder your water is and the more soap and water is needed to clean clothes, dishes and the more scale the is creating. Scale builds up on the inside of the pipes and appliances and causes problems with the machinery. Soft water, that is water with less calcium and magnesium the smoother our skin feels and softer our hair feels as there is less build up on their surfaces.

In order to know what type of water filter you need you first should obtain an accurate listing of what is in your home water supply. You can get a copy of a report titled, the Consumer Confidence Report, which is required by the FDA be made annually about the quality of your water. Talk to you local government agency and they can tell you how to obtain the report.

You can also have your water privately tested. By providing a small sample of your water to a certified lab that can tell you exactly what is in that sample. Your local government agency can also tell you who are the certified testing labs for your area. You should not go to a water softening company as many times these companies are more interested in selling you their products than providing complete and accurate information on your individual water supply.

Once you know what is actually in your water you can proceed with the next step in determining the best whole house water filtration system for your home.

There are numerous types of water filters.  Here is a sampler of those available as whole house filtration systems.

Water softeners are large tanks filled with various filtration media which exchanges salt for calcium and magnesium. The more calcium and magnesium in the incoming water the more salt that will be used. The softened water has more salt and less calcium and magnesium. This type of water filter works best for only softening your water.

Another type of whole house water filter are used for removing radon, chlorine and other volatile chemicals from the water. They are used to remove excess minerals and bad odors such as sulphur and tastes from the water.

Whole house water filtration systems that are used for reducing radon, organic chemicals and pathogens in the water consist of one or more canisters filled with granulated activated carbon. They are either simple flow through tanks or use a back washing system. If bacteria is present an ozonation system is required. They often use an electronic controller for automatic flushing but have a back up that will allow for manual flushing in the event of a power failure. Systems usually last 10 years but will need to be inspected annually and replaced after about 10 years of continuous use.

What kind of whole house water filtration system you purchase strictly depends on your needs. Do you want a system that merely softens your water so that you have no hard scale build up? This type of system is normally the cheapest but not not protect you from any dangerous chemicals harbored in your water.

The next level up is those that remove radon, chemicals and sulphur to improve the off tastes and odors in your water. These can be simple flow through systems with no backwashing capabilities.

The third option is the heavy duty models that removes the dangerous chemicals, radon and bacteria in the water. These systems have a Ultra violet or ozonation feature that not only filters the water but also traps the bacteria in an ultra filtration membrane.

No matter what system you decide on be sure to check for certification features so you know you are getting what you are paying for and that the filtration system is certified to do what the sellers claim it will do. By knowing what you need, reseaching your options and receiving guaranteed certification credentials you are sure you water will be treated as prescribed.