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Whole House Water Filtration Systems

Filter Systems

Buying bottled water is not only more costly than filtering your own household water supply, but the quality of the water may not be as good as filtering your own household water supply. Also, the plastic bottles used are rapidly becoming an environmental waste problem if not properly recycled. Water filters are not the same as "water conditioners". Water filters remove sediment (sand, dirt particles), bad taste, chlorine, and odor. They also reduce chemical contaminants and volatile organic compounds that are detrimental to your health. Water conditioners add minerals to the water and change the chemistry of the water to make it usable. Water filters will not remove dissolved solids. Special systems such as reverse osmosis or distillation are used for this purpose. Water filters are available to filter your whole house water supply or can be installed point of use, under the counter at the faucet you would like to have filtered.

Whole House Water Filters

Whole house water filters will help guard your clothes, fixtures, and toilets against unsightly stains caused by iron and rust particles. They will also help to protect and extend the life of your appliances. Whole house filters should be installed in the main water supply line before the water enters the house. Filters should be protected from freezing and ideally installed inside the house, in a garage, or in a pump house. If the only place to install the filter will be outside then you will need to insulate it to protect it from freezing. For ease of replacing the filter cartridges later, we recommend a shut off valve be installed before and after the filter. Ball valves (Brass or PVC) work very well for this type of application. This will allow you to take the water pressure off of the filter and isolate it by keeping any water remaining in the line from "back-filling" into the housing as you replace the filter cartridge. Choose a water filter housing that nearest matches the pipe sizing of your supply piping to the house. You do not want to undersize the filter housing. If need be, increase the size of the water filter housing. Filters will cause some pressure drop and a larger size filter housing will allow for easier water flow and less pressure drop than a smaller diameter filter housing. Also make sure the filter cartridge you choose will allow adequate gallons per minute (GPM) of water through the filter to meet the demands of your household requirements. For instance, if your normal water usage during peak times of the day are 10 GPM but the cartridge is only rated at 4 GPM, then you may need to buy two filter housing and install them parallel (side-by-side).