How to Make Your Drinking Water Safe
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We should all be drinking lots of water every day, meaning it's crucial that it is as clean and pure as possible. Here's information about how to make your tap water safe plus my choice for water filtration.
In yesterday's post, I gave you a lot of information showing that the drinking water coming out of your tap may not be as safe as you thought.
Today I am going to talk about water filtration choices and will share my Current Recommendation for purifying your drinking water and doing so on a budget.
Our history with water filtration is a long one. It started years ago when my husband and I first married.
Note: Read to the end of this post. I have tried a lot of methods, and I'm so happy with where I am now. There are pros and cons to all of these systems–what you choose is up to you.
I phoned the manufacturers of various pitcher-type and faucet-mount water filtration systems to determine what to buy. Since we were renting at the time, the cost of installing a unit didn't make sense at the time. We later ventured out to other installed options, which I'll cover here too.
Water Filters We Tried
Faucet Mount Water Filter
When we were living in IL, soon after marrying, my research eventually led me to purchase PUR brand's faucet mount filter. It brought with it a nice set of credentials as it apparently had been endorsed and was used at the time by the U.S. Navy if memory serves me correctly.
My husband was a part time youth minister at the time and one of the youth volunteers was married to a man who was a chemical engineer. When I shared with him the conclusion that I had come to about purchasing our PUR filter, he echoed with enthusiasm what a great filter it was, stating that he had seen the research and thought it was the best filter on the market.
PUR Counter Top
When my husband and I lived with his parents for a two-year period just before our oldest son was born, we recommended that they buy PUR's counter-top model instead of the faucet mount. The faucet-mount filter unit had proven itself to be heavy for some faucets, causing problems with leakage and other issues, and additionally the counter-top model was less expensive to use.
We bought the PUR Counter Top Model and loved it. Looks like they don't make it any longer….
Multi-Pure Carbon Filter
However, after moving to Oklahoma for my husband's first tenure-track job as a professor, I became aware of Multi-Pure carbon filters. They were more expensive initially, but the cost per gallon analysis showed that the Multi-Pure was a clear winner.
After again doing extensive research into the amount of and types of contaminants that various filters on the market, we made a change.
Multi-Pure had a great deal at the time wherein we pre-purchased 10 filters (10 years' worth) and the filter housing was then provided for free, resulting in significant savings. So we were locked in for 10 years, but I felt confident in our choice.
Three years later, our oldest son was diagnosed with autism and I was having some troubling health issues. I'd been reading on and off about reverse osmosis, distillation and alkaline water, but was really confused about what the best type of water was.
So I spoke with “experts” in field and perused the internet and researched more.
I already felt that I was a bit excessive in taking my “super-duper carbon-filtered water” with me everywhere in a stainless steel bottle, but I really wanted to the best filter I could find.
There are many articles and resources that I could point you to, but here's the “distilled version” (pun intended).
Reverse Osmosis
Reverse osmosis filters were the fourth step in our water filtration journey. However, there are a lot to choose from.
We looked at the pros and cons of the system that Pure Water Products sold versus some others, but we went with the Pure Water one due to feeling we could really trust them. In fact, I was considering a salt-free water softener as well, but Gene at Pure Water talked me out of it!
We purchased a reverse osmosis system that uses our multi-pure carbon filter as one of its filters (we had already pre-paid for these and Gene said that they were a great filter and we should save money and keep them) and then we put a remineralizing cartridge on the filter as well.
We additionally purchased a whole house filter to remove chlorine and sediment as the negative health effects of chlorine in water are something that I wanted to avoid.
Costco also carries some reverse osmosis units that Mr. Franks said were worth considering, but some of those have expensive replacement cartridges.
Anyhow, you would have thought that at this point we had reached the final conclusion in our “Search for the Best Water Filter”, however the journey wasn't over yet.
Concerns About Removing Minerals from Water
One of the factors to consider when choosing a water filter is, do you want to remove minerals or not?
It's a very complicated topic. I prefer to leave the minerals intact, but here are some opposing viewpoints on this issue.
1. One is here that mentions the dangers of drinking distilled water. In a nutshell, the article mentions that distillation removes all minerals from the water, and removing these minerals can lead to health concerns and imbalances.
2. The second article is written by Gene Franks, the owner of Pure Water Products. He discusses reverse osmosis technology and compares it with distilled water in a no-nonsense manner. His thinking is that removing minerals isn't such a big problem.
Berkey Filters
Berkey Filters are the top choice for a lot of frugal natural-minded people and for good reason. Their filters are inexpensive and retain minerals in the water. However, I have some concerns about these filters.
We moved to the Berkey after reading about reverse osmosis systems removing beneficial minerals from the water. We had a remineralizing cartridge on our RO system, which puts some minerals back into the water, but felt I wanted to go more in the natural direction and just not remove the minerals at all.
Berkey Concerns: Fluoride, Bacterial Contamination, and More
Do Berkey Filters Remove Fluoride?
Berkey became my choice for a portable water filtration system and can be great in-home if you have monitored the pH of your water. Unfortunately, Berkey's fluoride filtration system isn't dependable unless your pH is in the optimal range. The problem is that I have read varying reports about what that optimal range is, so I encourage you to do your own research.
Bacterial Growth in Berkey Filters?
Furthermore, you really need to clean the reservoir out regularly. This is the case with any filtration system that holds the filtered water.
Standing water grows bacteria and when it stands in your filter, that is no exception.
We did end up going with Berkey for awhile, and it's a great portable option for water filtration that apparently can even filter really dirty water (think emergency situations). I love that you can take this with you easily on a trip or camping and you can easily bring it with you if you move. This smaller unit is a great size for camping. And for a REALLY portable option, these Sport Berkeys filter right as you drink!
Heavy Metals in Berkey Filters?
In 2021, there was a report made by a consumer about heavy metals being detected in Berkey filtered water. The report seems to be legitimate, but of course anyone can report anything. It's important to keep an open mind and find out the real data as much as possible.
If you feel still would like a Berkey after reading this (and a lot of people do trust them), here's where you can likely get a great deal on Berkey filters.
You can also find Berkey here but for the better warranty, buying direct from this Berkey site is best.
Berkey Buying Tips
- If you still wish to use the Berkey, I highly recommend that you purchase at least 1 size larger than you think you need. The most common complaint I hear from people is that they wish they'd bought a larger unit.
- I also recommend the sight spigot and the Berkey primer. The sight spigot allows you to see the water level in the filter without removing the top. The primer allows you to prime the filters without using a water faucet. The priming can be pretty messy so the primer is definitely worth it.
My Favorite Water Filter
PureEffect Water Filters
PureEffect Water Filters are possibly the BEST filters out there. They raise alkalinity and remove: Radiation, Fluoride, Pharmaceuticals, Microorganisms, Heavy Metals - VOC's, Chloramine/Chlorine, THM's, HAA's, NDMA, PFAS, Pesticides/Herbicides, Sediment/Particulate, Nano and Micro Particles/Plastics, Bad Tastes/Odors
I LOVE PureEffect filters. We've been using them for quite a few years and the water tastes amazing and the owner is extremely detail oriented. He set out to make the best water filter possible, and he might have done just that.
What These Filters Remove
- Radiation
- Fluoride
- Pharmaceuticals (Drug Residues)
- Microorganisms (Bacteria, Viruses, etc.)
- Heavy Metals
- VOC's (petrochemical byproducts)
- Chloramine/Chlorine
- Disinfection Byproducts (THM's, HAA's, NDMA)
- PFAS (PFOS, PFOA, PFNA, etc.)
- Pesticides/Herbicides
- Sediment/Particulate
- Nano and Micro Particles/Plastics
- Nitrates and Nitrites
- Bad Tastes/Odors & More!
For complete results you can see PureEffect Water Filter test results on their site.
You can get extra UV protection as well.
The owner can walk you through installation if needed, doesn't try to “upsell” you, and the filters are very reasonable.
We chose an under the counter model, but you can go with the countertop as well.
My husband isn't that handy (sorry, honey–well, he'd tell you that himself), but he and my son installed the PureEffect Filter by themselves.
No Minerals Removed
No minerals are removed using the PureEffect filters. You can read more about the potential health problems from removing minerals from your drinking water here.
Radiation Removal
You can even get a radiation filter with this unit–amazing and very helpful especially for people on the West Coast of the US (in the wake of Fukushima).
With PureEffect, you can get either an over or under the counter filter that removes just about everything, but it leaves the natural minerals intact.
Can You Filter Softened Water with PureEffect Filters?
The answer is yes. Sodium is naturally occurring so it bypasses the filter.
Do PureEffect Filters Remove Glyphosate?
According to the EPA, glyphosate is removed effectively using activated carbon. Since the PureEffect filters have a lot of this in their filters, one should expect that glyphosate is removed using their filters.
What PureEffect Filter Should You Buy?
We bought the Under the Counter Ultra UC Disinfect. We actually haven't used the UV light yet but wanted it in case we needed it. If you need to save money, I would go without that.
I really love this filter system and if we didn't have a whole house chlorine filter already, I would be purchasing one of those as well.
Do You Need a Shower Filter?
The answer is a resounding YES!
Who wants things like chlorine running all over your body?
I mean, you can use a Swim Spray after showering, but that doesn't take care of the problem of chlorine that you inhale while showering.
Thankfully, PureEffect has a great shower filter too.
It removes Chlorine, Chlorination Byproducts, VOCs, Hydrogen Sulfide, Radon and more, and it does all of this at a great price.
Where to Buy a Tub Filter
This Bath Ball Water Filter is great quality and pretty affordable per gallon. It filters out:
- chlorine / chloramine
- chlorine and chloramine byproducts
- odors
- perfluoroalkyl polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)
- iron oxides / rust
- sediment and more
and filters up to 2500 gallons before needing to be replaced.
So while there are a lot of toxins that you really don't want in your water, there are a lot of great ways to remove the junk and enjoy truly clean water for your whole family!
How have you chosen to make your tap water safe?
If you haven't already, what do you think you will do?
We have a Berkey and love it. There are extra filters (other than the black ones) that are white and will ‘filter out’ other contaminants like fluoride. When we had to use our city water, we got a set. Now that we are back on our well water, we removed them. I’m wondering now if we should re-install them. I wonder if the white ones take out the Chromium 6 you spoke of in the comment below. Thanks for the great info. 🙂
I just got documentation that it takes out 99.8%. I have labs to show it.
What is the name / brand of the remineralizing cartridge you use? Where can you come by these?
I bought it from Pure Water Products – the link is in the post – thanks!
Hi Adrienne, I was rereading your article as the mulitpure postcard just came in the mail asking if i want to stop or continue receiving filters. I also just noticed a white spot on my 6 yo son (with autism)’s adult tooth. darn it. i wanted to avoid flouride so badly but was talked into the carbon filter with the cancer scare and figured i’d prob do RO later and go back and forth and at least if i mixed it up I wouldn’t get too much or too little of things… If it weren’t for your article I’d order RO from Mulitpure right away but I think I’ll give Frank a call, (and knowing me that will confuse me more. lol). I also just tasted vortex water (structured water) from a women’s house and for $1500 she will never have to buy a filter, again. her whole house is now softened and uses no salt. not RO, so no water waiste, i believe. i feel rushed to make a decision, now, with my son’s tooth and have 2 other young children with baby teeth, still (and with the postcard from mulitpure). $1500 is a lot of money for me to spend the time researching if i’m in a rush, so i’ll likely go RO for now. I’ve started with aquaponics, so the structured water sounds ideal otherwise.
lastly, Frank talked u out of a water softener but I read that u got one later? do u still feel his advice is mostly valid? thx!
Yes I do. When I talked w/ him first our city water was testing at a 6.5. Now, a few years later, it is at an 8 and we had to pay for a plumber to un gunk our toilets from water residue. I can only imagine what is going on in our water heater, etc. We have it installed now. I consider him to be very honest and the cost, plus install was less than what local salt softener companies wanted plus I don’t have to get salt. Ever! :).
I called Mr. Frank today. Maybe I’m confused He said he sold u a whole house filter. he told me to look up compact whole house filters. i did and the prices for filters and the smaller systems seem reasonable. that is mainly to take out chlorine he said. he said he does sometimes recommend water softeners for places like AZ, where I’m at. I didn’t know they have installations since they are in TX. that’s great to know! i’ll likely go with the 3 filter basic RO system with him and ask if there is a discount if i also buy a whole house system or water softener. I didn’t know u could test the hardness of water. we go through dishwashers pretty fast, but have a 5 yr warrantee, now, so might not be an issue otherwise. the RO system from multipure is too large to fit under our sink. the filters are so much more. i saw the research u did on essential oils and got to see your heart with the messiness of things. with that, I respect how u look at things and if u already did your research on this company, I think I’ll follow along here. oh, btw-he said he hasn’t heard of structured water and it might be one of the water treatments that he’s seen come and go but overall, he tried to not talk badly about it, just sticking to the facts of what he knows. seems like a good guy.
I did get a whole house but that was a Cl and sediment. I think I mentioned that. Is there something else you were wondering about? I agree – seems like a good honest guy. Take care :).
Hi Adrienne, I came across your website by searching for how to make rice milk, and then found your article on water filter. I am struggling with the choice too, thank you for sharing. I haven’t seen your updated article come out yet, would you please share the other filter/brand you are considering?
I will look into Pure Water Products. Wish they are NSF certified or WQA certified…What do you think of Pelican filter and softner combo?
Thank you very much and your website is a great resources for moms!
I am looking at Berkey. I would call Gene at PWP and ask him about the NSF, etc. It is all really confusing. Ideally I would like to drink only high quality spring water but I can’t afford that.
Adrienne, thank you so much for your quick response. Mr. Franks responded quickly too, he said he has products with parts NSF certified but not the entire thing. I wait to hear his recommendation for my area.
Have you looked at Pelican? The combo sounds really good, but it’s expensive and I don’t know if it’s really good.
I did look into Berkey. Two things make me cautious (1) If it’s that good, why it does not seek being certified? (2) Amazon reviewer commented that Berkey sells Sprite’s shower filter at a higher price with no product label.
Both Pelican and Berkey seems to buy domains on Internet. Once you searched they are there all time, which made the whole research hard. Thanks again for sharing and look forward to your new update!
Here is the reply from the Berkey dealer I am working with. Hope it helps!
Thanks for the information! I’ve been doing research about whole house filtration and I look forward to speaking to Mr. Franks. Are you still happy with your system? Would you change anything? What kind of update to this post are you referring to? Much thanks!
Yes, I am still happy. We are considering another kind of filter but there are drawbacks either way. We just bought a softening system from him that doesn’t use salt. It isn’t installed yet. I’ll be posting hopefully soon on the other filtration but honestly, there are pros and cons of both.
Do you recommend a whole house filter?
Costco now sells them, have you done any research on them?
Thanks for your time that you give to your bog, I love it!
Thanks! What kind of filter are you talking about?
Adrienne, we have multi-pure carbon. i figured i could always switch to multi-pure RO if i changed my mind. i worry often about the water since multi-pure doesn’t filter out the flouride and i have young kids, one with autism. We didn’t get the RO because the multi-pure guy brought an article with a study or theory (it’s been a couple of yrs, now) stating that RO causes cancer. He seemed honest since he’d make more $ off of the RO and encouraged us to get the carbon. i just signed up for their 10 yr plan, also; only cuz they said i could stop it at any time BTW (!). it sounds as if it’s cheaper to get them from multipure, anyway, from what u are saying?
i’ve heard often how PH is so important and wondered if I’d ever research and decide I need to us another kind of water so it’s so confusing that i’ve just sat tight and stuck with the carbon. i’m in Phoenix, AZ, so it would be great to know how much flouride and other junk is in the water.
i liked multipure’s certification process. i hate to make a big change if u are not settled on your decision, yet! pls keep us informed!!
thx for doing this search. i always said that water is controversial. jees! i’ll contact Mr. Franks
You can stop it at anytime? How does that work? Do they give you a refund? I wasn’t told that. I have never heard of RO causing cancer. What was the reasoning? The removal of minerals from the water? I have a remineralization cartridge on my water system. That being said, I am looking at one other type of filter as well. If you talk w/ Mr. Franks, please tell him I sent you – thanks!
Adrienne, i didn’t sign up for the 10 yr filter deal until I ordered my second filter and on the phone so it may be different for me. i recall the guy saying i wasn’t signing a contract and could stop it at anytime. sounds like u paid up front? i did not pay up front
If you call multi-pure someone there might be able to talk about the RO causing cancer as they were familiar with that concept when i called a yr or 2 ago or u can ask for the representative in Phx, AZ and maybe he can share the article with u. It’d prob take some effort to find the article since it’s paper not electronic, but i googled it quick and will paste what i found. this site is bias and i believe the article was by a Dr, but sorry i don’t recall! i don’t think there’s a lot out there so likely it isn’t true, but hence the confusion about which water to drink!
it seems to me that drinking flouride may be more risky than RO water-i really don’t like drinking flouride.
https://www.discountjuicers.com/healthywater.html
I will certainly tell Mr. Franks u sent me. 🙂
i look forward to hearing more!
I did pay up front. My 10 year contact is almost done. I might go w/ berkey after that b/c I am a deal now. I think they have a really good product. I just need to get things going w/ them on my blog.
I don’t know about the RO and cancer – might be b/c of the minerals being taken out?
have you heard of Pi water? i went onto a yahoo group listing for asthma and one person said they or their son hadn’t had allergies or asthma since drinking Pi water.
Those kind of energy waters have, in my research, not appeared to be worth it. But maybe I have something to learn.
I’m researching water-filters at the moment. I too, am interested to know why they said RO causes cancer? The guy that was trying to sell me RO said that RO produces acid-water. So, my guess, the link to cancer is that cancer cell thrives in an acid environment. That’s why you’re supposed to ‘alkaline’ your body. He said you could also add (buy) an ‘alkalizer’ to your RO to make it alkaline-water. Or just add baking-soda to save money, apparently it does the same thing. Our body/blood pH level needs to be slightly alkaline between 7.35 – 7.45, too akaline is also not good. You can google all this info.
Adrienne, I’m interested to know whether you’ve done research on the “remineralization cartridge”? What’s in it? Is it wholefood based or something synthetic? The last thing you want is to add synthetic minerals into your water.
I can’t make up my mind yet and I have question marks regarding all these extra “additives” (re-mineralization, alkalizer, etc) that we’re adding back into the water.
Then, there’s the issue of plastic – storing the water in plastic (water reservoir part) and the ‘housing’ for the filter is also ‘plastic’, I asssume. Even though it is BP-A safe, we now learn that BPA can be swapped for BP-S, which is just as toxic as BP-A. (google Dr Mercola’s article).
I’m not sure about the remineralization cartridge–good question. This is what it says it includes: “calcite and coconut shell carbon “. Sounds good to me–what do you think?
Thank you for your great article, we invested in a water filtration system made bye Culligan it is called the Culligan AC-30 Good Water Machine. It has a Pre-stage Sediment Filter, Reverse Osmosis Filter, Post-stage Carbon Filters. Just wondered what your thoughts on these are? Thank you again for your article, I think it is an important thing to be concerned about in the overly chemical world we now live in.
I don’t know their products but it sounds like what we have right now. Stay tuned…more on water filtration soon. Thanks!
Will do! The Berkey is about $250. I was also going to add flouride filters, bringing it to about $280. The “Black and White” RO system looks to be about $370. I was talking about emergency water filtration, which the Berkey covers, but not the RO system. However on the Pure Water Products site, they sell a siphon-style emergency water filter for about $60, which is far more economical than the Berkey, and I do believe that over the long run, the RO unit would be much cheaper for home water filtration. Thanks for your quick response!
Hi, Adrienne! I know this is an old article, but I remembered it while looking at a Big Berkey, and I think you just saved me a bunch of money here! I looked at Pure Water Products site, and I do believe it is the better deal, especially as I can purchase a siphon filter at a later time for emergency use if necessary (and it costs less than 1/4 of the Berkey and is smaller and more convenient to boot!
I do have a question, though. I am looking at the 3 under-sink units, and I am curious as to which product you purchased. Obviously it’s been a few years, so the prices may have gone up a bit with inflation, but I just can’t determine which would be best. I do plan to call and talk to them, but just wanted to know which option you went with.
Thanks!
How much is the Berkey? I thought it was about $250 and the RO is about the same price….am I wrong?
I purchased one that was sort of custom as I had a carbon filter already…speaking of which I need to call and get a new one of those – thanks! Please tell Gene I referred you if you call them. I don’t get a commission, but he would appreciate it- thanks!
Well, I was thinking about it, but we are thinking of moving in a new place soon, so I just want something easy to use.
(link deleted by blog owner since it doesn’t exist any longer.)
Have you heard about these?
Thanks!
Hi and so sorry for being so late. I have missed so many comments – going back to address them all. I hadn’t heard of these. I would look at the costs to see how much they cost. I don’t like pitchers b/c of contamination issues in the container. I have added a new filter to my post that I think is really superior. I would be interested in hearing what you think about it. Always learning!
Hi, Adrienne!
Do you know something about water pitchers? Which one do you think is the best? I am really confuse with all of these water filters. I got Brita couple of months ago, but was reading it’s not very good choice.
Thank you!
I don’t really like them b/c they tend not to filter out that much. When I got my first filter years ago I got a faucet mount for that reason. Would you consider that?
I have a “Zero Water” water pitcher. The manufacter claims that for the first 500 gallons or so it leaves you with 0 ppm. There’s a little testor that comes with it that’s supposed to make you have warm fuzzies that the product is removing junk.
Whatever, it gets rid of the sulpher smell (Florida “Panhandle”) and probably costs about $0.36 per gallon.
Is that just fluoride?