Few things are more refreshing on a hot day than a cold glass of lemonade. The perfect pitcher of lemonade is cool, sweet, refreshing and a little bitter. You can work hard to create the perfect recipe, but if you’re using bad water you’ll find that you just can’t quite get it right.
Not only is poor water quality going to mess up the taste, but it also could be adding some ingredients to your lemonade that you don’t want your family drinking.
A good glass of lemonade is just one of the many reasons you want to ensure that you have good tasting, safe and clean water throughout your home. With that goal in mind, here is some information about ways to eliminate hard water and to ensure that your water is free of contaminants, viruses, and bacteria.
Hard Water and Water Softeners
Hard water is water that has high mineral content. It often tastes or smells bad, leaves a brown or reddish stain, leaves water spots, makes soap and detergent less effective, clogs pipes, causes skin irritation and can cause appliances to wear out more quickly.
Water softeners remove minerals from water and can eliminate the many issues associated with hard water. Whole house water softeners generally work by removing minerals through a process called ion exchange.
These effectively soften the water before it enters your home and can help to preserve plumbing systems, enable you to clean more effectively and can improve the taste and smell of your water supply.
The Benefits of Whole House Water Filters
Whole house water filters are a way to provide clean water throughout your house, as opposed to just having purified water at certain sinks or basins. They work by purifying water at the point of entry to your home and generally involve a 4-step process:
- Pre-filtering: water is first put through a pre-filtering process where large particles and contaminants are removed
- Chlorine removal: after being pre-filtered, chlorine and similar contaminants are removed; this step helps to improve the taste and smell of your water
- Activated charcoal: this step removes any remaining impurities and helps to ensure that your water is safe and clean
- Waste removal: in this step, the removed contaminants are flushed out of the system
Is A UV Water Filter Right For You?
In addition to a whole house water filter, UV water filters can be an important way to ensure the safety of your home’s water supply as they remove bacteria and viruses from water.
These filters are especially important if you’re concerned about your water having E. coli, giardia or other viruses or bacteria, and they are particularly effective in smaller homes.
UV water filters work by using ultra-violet rays to penetrate and destroy harmful pathogens in your water. They effectively destroy bacteria and viruses without adding any chemicals or changing the taste or smell. However, since they don’t remove contaminants, it’s generally necessary to use this type of filter in conjunction with a whole house water filter.
If you have any concerns about the quality of your water or questions about installing water filters, call Miracle Plumbing Inc. today at (408) 882-1505. We can help evaluate what systems might be beneficial for you and install any water filtration systems you need.