Selecting Drinking Water Filters: Design and Location Decisions

Drinking water filtration systems for your family are made in many different styles. Each style has good points and bad points, so deciding on the best style to fit your house, your needs, and your free space is an important step in the buying process.

Filtered Water Pitchers

Filtered water pitchers work by passing water through a filtration cartridge using gravity. Filters of this design do not filter the water very well since they are unable to utilize solid filtration media, such as ceramic, since pressure is low. After all, they only have gravity pushing the water through the filter, instead of tap water pressure. Filters of this type are one of the slowest wasy to create filtered drinking water and don't allow for a lot of choices on filtration media.

Reverse Osmosis Purification Systems

Reverse osmosis purification takes quite a bit of time to purify water, so a pressurized water tank is included to store sufficient purified water for later use. If you don't have lots of extra space available under the counter a reverse osmosis water purification system is not for you.

You should also consider that reverse osmosis water filtration isn't the best water filter technology available today. New filtration methods are simpler, provide better tasting water, and are more reliable.

Countertop Water Filters

Water filters for your countertop can be easily installed and removed, so they're a good choice for apartment living or other times when a temporary installation is needed. Also, a hole in your counter top or sink is not needed to install a counter top filter.

A single canister counter top water filter uses no more counter space than a water pitcher. A counter top filter for drinking water is the right choice when space under the sink is already full.

Water Coolers that Include Filtration Systems

water coolers with filters are not only used in the office anymore. Thousands of mothers are trying to get their kids to drink more water and less coke, and are excited about their kids getting refills without entering a busy kitchen.

A well designed pure water cooler makes safe hot and cool water whenever needed, so water coolers are useful all year long. And remember, you get pure drinking water without having to cary all those heavy bottles.

Under the Kitchen Sink Water Filters

A water filter system installed under the sink frees up countertop work area and makes a good looking installation. Since under the sink water filters get installed out of sight in a cabinet, they are typically larger, and thus offer water filtration that is the best available.

A four stage under sink water filer system is a top quality filter for you and your family, with minimal under the sink space requirements.

This water filtration design is often referred to as under the counter water treatment systems, as one isn't required to install the filter under the kitchen sink.

Refrigerator Drinking Water Filters

Drinking water filters for the refrigerator are made to bolt on to the back of a plumbed fridge to filter your drinking water and ice made by your ice maker.

A water filter system for your refrigerator eliminates contaminants that pass into soft drinks via your refrigerator's plumbed in ice maker.

If you are not the type that cooks very often, filtering the water and the ice you get from your refrigerator might be good enough. Water filters for the refrigerator are similar to filters an ice maker, with the only difference being the attached appliance.

Water Filters that Mount on Your Faucet

Faucet Mount Water Filters install on your existing kitchen faucet and have a switch so you can get filtered water or unfiltered water at the switch of a valve. Faucet mounted water filters don't provide the best water, because only a minimal water filtration cartridge, with only granular activated charcoal (GAC), is included.

Overall, a two stage counter top water filter using carbon block resin is a much better choice than a minimal filter attached to your faucet.

Portable Water Filters

For those on the go, portable water filters are almost required. These range in design from filtered sports water bottles to compact counter top water filtration systems.

Even though you have all these choices, you should be able to easily choose the water filter system design that meets your drinking water needs. The biggest part of your decision hinges on the available room in your kitchen and how you most often use purified water, for example, drinking vs. cooking.