Common Types of Water Filter Systems

Many experts warn that water from a tap source does not meet health guidelines. While you cannot always control the source of your water, you can certainly add an extra layer of protection from contaminants by purchasing an efficient water filter system. Here are the most common water filter types:

Carbon Water Filter Systems:
Carbon, a porous material, absorbs impurities as water passes through these point-of-entry systems. They generally remove lead, PCBs, chlorine byproducts, certain parasites, radon, pesticides and herbicides, certain gasoline and dry cleaning additives and solvents, some levels of bacteria, and traces of pharmaceuticals.

Reverse Osmosis Water Filter Systems:
Often used in conjunction with carbon filters, these systems push water through a semipermeable membrane to act as an extremely fine filter. One disadvantage is that these systems waste more water during the filter system (4 to 9 gallons for every 1 gallon filtered). They generally remove more finite chemicals that carbon filters might miss, including perchlorate, sulfates, fluoride, industrial chemicals, heavy metals, chlorine byproducts, chlorides (which give water a salty taste), and pharmaceuticals.