Water purification is when contaminants are removed from water before consumption. The best water purification methods will remove harmful substances while retaining essential minerals. While water purification can be used for a variety of purposes such as medical, chemical and industrial uses, this article focuses on purifying water for human consumption.

There are several methods of water purification. The main ones are:

Distillation

Ion exchange

Reverse osmosis

Microporous filtration

Ultra-filtration

Photo-oxidation

Distillation
This process uses the condensed vapor from heated water. The benefit of distillation is that it is cheap. The disadvantage is that is requires a lot of electricity and can not produce purified water on demand.

Ion exchange
Ion exchange is a very effective water filtration method. It is a complicated yet effective process, and is considered much more powerful than reverse osmosis which is what is used in most home water filtration systems. Water purifiers that use ion exchange as part of their water filtration process are considered of top quality.

Reverse osmosis
Many home water filter systems use reverse osmosis (RO). Reverse osmosis filters water through a semi-permeable membrane. The membrane filters out contaminants. While RO can be effective, unfortunately the filters are expensive and a lot of water can go to waste.

Microporous filtration
These systems use a barrier to stop particles and have been known to get a 0.1 micron rating. They can also use an ultra- micro filter (fitted to the dispenser) which have a rating of 0.05 micron. Microporous filtration is considered one of the best forms of water filtration.

Ultra-filtration
Similar to reverse osmosis except the filter pores are larger (0.001 to 0.02 micron).

Photo-oxidation
Photo-oxidation makes use of ultra-violet radiation to kill bacteria and micro-organisms.

The above water filtration methods all work, but some work better than others. Not all of the above methods are found in home water filtration systems and some, such as photo-oxidation can be expensive and only used in industrial applications.

When choosing a water purification

Let’s face it. With all the environmental toxins that experts are telling us are in our water, owning a water purification system is no longer a luxury. It’s is a necessity. Just doing some simple research online will yield dozens of companies that specialize in home water treatment. However, there are only a few that provide portable water purification products.

Heavy duty systems like reverse osmosis and distillation tend to be more appropriate for commercial use. When adapted for residential use, these water purification systems are still unwieldy and maintenance-intensive. Even if you weren’t looking for a portable water purification system, reverse osmosis and distillation have other drawbacks that may make you rethink the hefty investment. Both require the addition of a carbon filter that must be regularly changed, to catch synthetic chemical contaminants and parasites and bacteria that the main filters are incapable of removing. Both systems also strip out health-enhancing minerals like calcium and magnesium. The end result is expensive water that is clean, but not necessarily healthy.

Bottled water could be considered portable water purification, if it wasn’t for the fact that there is no guarantee that the water is actually pure. There are no government regulations that require bottled water to be any cleaner than tap water. The U.S. FDA has publicly stated that, “Companies that market bottled water as being safer than tap water are defrauding the American public.”

For my money, the best portable water purification system is one that uses multi-stage filtration technology. This comprehensive approach to water purification means that everything I don’t want in my water is removed and everything that I do want in my water remains untouched. I no longer have to worry about high levels of chlorine leaching heavy metals from my plumbing or creating an irritating gas in the steam from my shower.

I can also feel confident knowing that synthetic chemicals like pesticides, herbicides and agricultural runoff are not in my little girl’s glass of water. She can enjoy a safe, pure, great tasting drink of water that contains essential minerals important for the health of her teeth and bones.

You may be pleasantly surprised to learn that multi-stage filtration products come in a variety of forms designed to suit your personal needs. Over and under the counter water dispensers, shower filters and whole house filters can provide water when and where you want it. Each of these products is a portable water purification system in itself, as they are just as easy to remove as they are to install. If you need to relocate or just want to purchase a new home, your portable water purification system easily goes with you.

Make no mistake about it. A home water treatment system is an important investment that deserves serious consideration. Why not spend your hard-earned money on a system that delivers the cleanest, healthiest, best-tasting water WHEREEVER you may be. A one-time investment in portable water purification will yield a lifetime of healthy returns for you and your family.

In order to help answer that question, let’s look at a brief description of some of the different methods of water purification and their different results.

Chlorination

Chlorination is one of the oldest, and most widely-used water treatment methods. 100 years ago, the discovery of chlorine as an effective disinfectant meant that devastating, water-borne epidmics such as cholera and typhoid could finally be wiped out. But as times have changed, so have our water purification needs. The threat of disease has been replaced by environmental toxins. As such, the need for disinfection has been replaced by the need for filtration.

Unfortunately, chlorine has now also been identified as having its own toxic properties, including releasing dangerous chloroform gas, and causing leaching of lead when coming into contact with aging home plumbing. Chlorine also fails to disinfect intestinal parasites such as cryptosporidium, and giardia, which can be especially tough on a child’s developing intestinal tract. As far as water purification technology goes, chlorination is definitely out-dated.

Bottled Water

No one knows what types of methods of water purification, if any, are used to produce bottled water. The government does not require bottled water to be any cleaner than tap water. You basically have to take the word of the bottled water company that you’re getting safe, clean water.

Bottled water can also be expensive and results in an inordinate amount of environmental waste. Over 60,000,000 plastic bottles are produced, transported and disposed of EVERY DAY in the U.S. alone!

Despite having some major drawbacks, this so-called water purification technology, continues to be popular with consumers.

Distillation

One of the methods of water purification that still enjoys wide-spread use is distillation. This is a complex process where water is passed over a hot coil, in order to create water vapor. This vapor is sent to a cooling chamber so that it condenses back into liquid form. This process results in a separation between water and inorganic substances like lead, calcium, magnesium etc. Bacteria are also destroyed.

Distillation is a water purification technology that was originally developed for industrial use. But because of the increase in demand for in-home water treatment, distillation companies took advantage of the marketing opportunity. However this process is not very effective removing organic chemicals, so a carbon filtration system must be added to make the water truly safe for drinking. Carbon filters require regular changing since they can quickly become breeding grounds for bacterial growth.

While distilled water is safe, it isn’t healthy, since it has been de-mineralized. This form of water purification technology is also very slow and costs approximately 20 – 26 cents per gallon. Add to that the cost of the carbon filter and the result is an unwieldy water purification system.

Reverse Osmosis

Reverse osmosis is a fancy term to describe a process whereby water is forced, by pressure, through a fine-porous membrane that traps harmful contaminants. This is another water purification technology that was designed to address industrial requirements and then adapted for home use.

One result of using reverse osmosis in your home is that, like distillation, it strips out much needed trace amounts of calcium, magnesium and potassium. Water processed by reverse osmosis is, in fact, dead water. Minerals in water are Nature’s way of protecting our health by preventing mineral deficiencies.

Reverse osmosis is a complex form of water purification technology that also results in a lot of upkeep. Case in point: you can expect to pay around $800 just to get a replacement filter.

Multi-Stage Filtration

The multi-stage filtration process combines the most efficient technologies available, including mechanical filtration, absorption and ion-exchange. This advanced water purification technology works first to reduce specific contaminants like sediment, chlorine, lead and other synthetic chemicals (e.g. herbicides and pesticides) while trapping chlorine resistant organisms and cysts like cryptosporidium and giardia.

Next, unlike other methods of water purification, multi-stage filtration works to enhance the natural mineral water balance of the water.

In-home multi-stage filtration systems come in the form of under and top-of-the-counter drinking water dispensers, shower filters and whole-house water filters. These systems are generally easy to install and maintain.

Multi-stage filtration results in affordable, healthy, great-tasting water at a cost of under 10 cents a gallon. Make no mistake about it.

The demand for clean drinking water isn’t going to go away. With all the different methods of water purification available today, you need to know what kind of results you can expect from investing in water purification technology.

Home water sources can be broadly categorized as two types – municipal public water and private water wells. For the majority of regions, public water supply is guaranteed to meet the necessary quality standards and does not need filtering. Wells on the other hand often only comply partially with local basic requirements for safety, so a filter would be necessary to ensure your safeguard from any contamination in the water. Before making any assumption, and regardless of your water source, it’s important to contact authorities or trusted companies and labs, in order to analyze and provide detailed information for the status of your water.

Perhaps the most popular method of water filtration stands the use of activated charcoal systems. Easy and cheap to construct, these filters substantially improve the taste of water and remove any odd smell. Such filters also effectively prevent volatile organic substances and partially reduce inorganic chemicals like chlorine. The problem with activated charcoal based water purification systems is that they are unable to deal with industrial chemicals like most metals and other solids. Some modified charcoal filters are able to deter lead from passing through, so if that’s the desired effect, it’s important to check the system specifications to see if there is such support.

Reverse osmosis has received a lot of praise for years, but not long ago its disadvantages were quickly discovered. The way it works is by letting water pass through a filtering membrane and then storing the filtered water in a separate container. Although the procedure is very effective and removes most inorganic chemicals and substances, there is a huge water loss. About 75% of the water that goes through the filter is wasted, the flow rate of the separate tap leading out of the storage tank is very low and the membrane gets easily damaged, requiring regular replacement.

Distillation is and will continue to be a popular choice for many people and the units that utilize this method of filtration are quite effective. Such filter can remove most solids contaminating your water, but may be unable to deal with some chemical pollutants. Some forms of bacteria also survive after the vaporize-condense process. Another consideration here is that the continuous use of distillation units cause an increased consumption of energy and not the least — the water becomes much too tasteless because it lacks the minerals it otherwise contains, some of which are actually beneficial for our organism.

UV ray based water purifiers are great in removing organic contamination but cannot cope with chemicals. Maintenance is required regularly as solids that the water may contain eventually build up onto the unit and thus prevent the UV light from doing its job.

Filtered water dispensers usually utilize a combination of the above methods plus some innovative technologies that provide extreme level of purity and quality of water. They also require less maintenance and come with multi-year warranty that includes professional servicing. Easy to install and not affecting the water flow rate by much, such dispensers are a great long-term solution that ensure the safety in your home or office.