Water filter is used for the removal of suspended particles from the water in order to make it usable or drinkable as well. The major function of a water filter is to pass the water through it and stop the impurities inside the pores or sides of the wall of the cartridges used inside the filter. A simple example of the water filter can be using a plain cloth to separate the visible particles from it.
Drinking Water Filter
Drinking water is most important part of life on the earth, doctors say that we should drink as much water as possible and they recommend minimum of liquid consumed should be least 2 liters in a day. On the other hand in most parts of the world water is contaminated with many kinds of bacteria and other chemicals etc. Drinking water is can be purified or made safe for drinking by using water filter. Drinking water filters are available using different technologies and obvious target for all is to make Tap Water Safe for Drinking.
There are many types of water filter systems available i.e.:
- Shower filter systems
- whole house filter systems
- Faucet mounted water filter
- Re circulation filters for water storage tanks
Famous forms of water filters are charcoal water filters, ceramic water filters and reverse osmosis RO filters. These forms of water filtration system are having cartridges and filers that need replacement.
Selection Of Water Filtration System
The selection of water filtration system depends upon the requirement of different applications whether it is on domestic level or commercial or industrial level. There are several big manufacturers in the market of water filtration systems, but you must be careful the best choice could be a whole house system. However, those systems are expensive and not easy to maintain as well.
On commercial level like malls, universities and housing complexes require huge amount of domestic water and therefore they may use a fully automatic water filtration, purification or conditioning system that can include sand filters, multimedia filters, softeners and UV sterilizers etc in order to control water quality and prevent the diseases like Legionella etc.
multimedia-water-filters
For kitchens and other food processing related requirements small water filter is typically enough to supply the house or a kitchen with drinking water. In this case counter top and under counter filters tend to give enough purified water for cooking & drinking etc. Space permitting, counter top filters are best value for money, the only disadvantage is that it should be fitted on each faucet if source for end user is not single point.
Video Demonstration of Sand Water Filter Principle
Water Purification System
Water purification is the process of removing undesirable chemicals, biological contaminants, suspended solids and gases from contaminated water to make it fit for drinking. Although natural water is reasonably pure, it is always variable due to seasonal variations, regional variation in water quality.
Water purification is the transition of dirty harmful (Contaminated) water into clean safe water. We purify water to get rid of contaminants that can be detrimental to our health. Water purification generally means freeing water from any kind of impurity it contains, such as contaminants or micro organisms. Water purification, or drinking water treatment, is the process of removing contaminants from surface water or groundwater to make it safe and palatable for human consumption.
Water purification or treatment is necessary for removing impurities and control microbes to avoid contamination. The treatment of water majorly depends on water’s chemistry and contaminants, influenced by, e.g. rainfall, erosion, pollution, etc.
Water Purification Methods
There are different water purification methods that include boiling, filtering, distilling, chlorination, softening and reverse osmosis (ro). The type of method to be used again depends upon the specific user requirements and type of water to be purified.
Whilst there are contaminants in every water supply, the methods of water purification and filtration you’ll use will depend on three factors:
- the state of your local water supply
- the cost and performance of the filtration unit
- their health-benefits
Water Boiling: This is a very basic water purification procedure which kills all germs and other biological contamination and also helps settling the calcium and magnesium contents in the bottom of water. The general advice is to boil all water for 5-10 minutes plus 1 minute for every 300m above sea level, up to around 5500m where boiling becomes ineffective.
Water Filtering: Some home water filtration systems can remove chemical contaminants for example, but fail to effectively remove microbiological ones (bacteria) from your water supply. Therefore, these are not “purifiers” in the true sense of the word.
Water Distillation: Of all the methods of water purification and filtration, distillation is considered in some quarters to be the best. It removes the widest variety of contaminants such as salts, chemicals, bacteria and other micro-organisms from your water supply. Water distilling produces flat tasting water that is stripped of the trace minerals that your body needs. Some doctors contend that this can lead to multiple-mineral deficiencies within the body. However some experts contend that most of the bodies mineral needs are met through eating food, not drinking water. Therefore the effect of de-mineralized water on the body is still being hotly debated. Distilled water is mostly used in research and laboratories for best results.
Water Chlorination: This water purification method uses a high dose of chlorine but later neutralizes it using hydrogen peroxide, and is very effective. Chlorine tablets are used for water quality improvement in this method.
Reverse Osmosis (RO) Water Purification System
Reverse Osmosis is a technology used to remove majority of contaminants from water by pushing water under high pressure through a semi permeable membrane • It is a process where you demineralized or deionized water
To understand purpose and process of RO, you must first understand naturally occurring process of Osmosis. It is a process where a weaker saline solution will tend to migrate to a stronger saline solution. For example, Plant root absorbs water from soil & Kidney absorbs water from blood.
Reverse Osmosis RO Unit
RO or reverse osmosis is other way round of naturally occurring Osmosis. Water is pushed through semi permeable membrane under high pressure, thus leaving behind contaminants. Pressure depends upon salt concentration of feed water. More the salts, more will be the applied pressure.