Reverse osmosis water filter systems Manufacturers and marketers have overstated the usefulness of reverse osmosis water filter systems for home use. As a primary or secondary stage treatment in a large plant or facility this process is useful, but even then it does not meet the somewhat lax government standards for public drinking water. It still has a long way to go before being clean enough to be called safe drinking water. Tap water contains over 2000 known carcinogens.

Filtering water by reverse osmosis blocks only a small number of these. Reverse osmosis relies on a porous membrane through which water is forced at high pressure. Depending on the size of the pores, some chemicals are blocked while other pass through. When a chemical is dissolved in water, most of the resulting molecular sizes are smaller than the size of the water. It stands to reason that if the water is able to pass through the membrane, the majority of the chemicals dissolved in it will go right through as well.

The needs of a user wanting an in home water purification system don't match what reverse osmosis treatment was intended to do. If there is visible dirt in the water, a person would make a good investment by getting a reverse osmosis water filter systems. However, further steps must be taken before the water could be called "drinkable". Portable units are used by military forces in areas where clean water is not available, but other forms of disinfectants must be used to destroy and remove bacteria that are present.

A corporation that needs water with a very low mineral content may often use reverse osmosis treatment to produce a nearly mineral free water. This water is not good for human drinking water. There are negative effects on the digestive system and it can lead to a deficit in beneficial minerals. The materials coming out of the tap are not visible with the naked eye. It may be possible at times to detect their presence due to smell or taste, but they are generally too miniscule to be seen without a microscope.

This factor contributes to the danger they present. We are unable to recognize their presence. In Milwaukee several years ago, more than a hundred people perished as a consequence of ingesting tap water. A microscopic parasite had infected the water. This parasite may only cause a stomach ache or it may induce severe sickness. These microscopic organisms are referred to as cysts by experts on water. Cysts are one of the things that cannot be filtered by reverse osmosis systems.

Chlorine is able to destroy most things that live in water and may be harmful to human health, but the cysts are resistant to it. The Milwaulkee treatment facility was in full compliance with the law, but was still not able to protect the public. The government is called upon by environmental groups to provide further protection for residents. Unfortunately, there may not be anything else they can do.

Ground water contamination resulting from years of contaminants being intentionally or unintentionally put into the soil and then flowing into the water cannot be fixed in a short time. The responsibility for protection is our own.


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