Which Water Filter Should You Get?
I own a countertop water dispensing system*. It dispenses hot and cold water and has a 3 filter system. A number of years ago, I got to wondering if the water from it really was free of contaminants. The one’s that I were concerned about were things like chemicals in dry cleaning compounds, chlorine and lead (if you have an older home you definitely need to test for this) just to name a few. I found a company called Suburban Water Testing Labs their website is (www.h2otest.com) They are an independent certified lab so they do not sell water filters or systems. They have kits that you can order that test for different things. I spent about $500 and did some very advanced testing. My water came back with very good results. It had none of the chemicals I was concerned about so my filter system is doing an excellent job. There is another company that does water testing and their number is 1-800-458-3330 (National Water testing is the company) If you live in San Antonio here are the 9 things that you definitely want removed that are in our water (these were obtained from a city water report) :
- aluminum
- barium
- chlorine
- chromium
- Ethylbenzene
- Flouride
- HAA5’s
- Nickel
- TTHM’s
The filters that I use can be ordered from a great site called www.greenlivingnow.com Amy Tedesco is very knowledgeable and knows her stuff. She did a lot research regarding these filters and this company. They are not very expensive and the unit that houses the filter will not become obsolete as they upgrade filters with new technology from time to time.Amy puts in a lot of time and effort on her research and is not compensated so this will help her out plus you are getting a superior product. You can also sign up for her free news letter which is great.
Having your own filtered water is also better and cheaper than buying bottled water and is much better for the environment. See my post on bottled water for some eye-opening data.
Besides filtering your drinking water I also recommend a shower filter. This can also go under the heading of beauty because bathing and washing your hair in filtered water is so much better for your skin and hair. You skin is the largest organ on your body and it does absorb chemicals. If you are showering without a filter then you are dousing yourself with a good dose of chlorine everyday. As the hot water opens up your pores you absorb chlorine and the steam vapor causes you to inhale chlorine also. The one that I have in my master bath is a little fancier. It is an ionizing showerhead that produces negative ions (that is the experience you get after it rains or when you are in the mountains and have that fresh clean air). It is a little pricey but you never have to change a filter or anything. It also produces infrared rays that help improve the skin and scalp. It is very easy to install. The water feels like silk. You can go to the products section and learn more about it and order directly from my site!
*the actual hot and cold point countertop dispenser is from a company called Oasis but the filter system with it is from Lakota (the filters that you can purchase from www.greenlivingnow.com) You do not need to a countertop dispenser, I just like having hot and cold water to hand. The Lakota filters can be hooked up directly to your water line and they are very easy to install.
