Which is the best water filter for you and your family? There are many options available today from an inexpensive pitcher filter, to a convenient countertop water filter, to an out-of-site undercounter water filter, to shower and bath filters to a whole house water filter.
Your choice will depend on your needs, your budget, and your water quality.
Some questions to ask before you purchase:
- Do I have well water or city water?
City water issues are usually pretty straightforward. You’ll want to filter for chlorine and/or chloramines, heavy metals, pesticides, herbicides, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and sediment. Most low-cost filters do not filter out chloramines, pesticides, herbicides or VOCs, so you might need to do some extra research if your municipality adds chloramines to your water. If your water is hard (leaves scaling, buildup), then you can decide whether you also want to soften your water. Click here for more information on water softeners.
Well water issues can be more difficult to resolve because there can be multiple issues such as bacteria, iron, sulfur (rotten egg odor), manganese, hardness, sediment, inorganic contaminants, acidic water and more. Your best best is to have a water analysis completed before you research a water treatment system.
- Have I had my water tested? Or have I looked at my city water report?
Knowing your current water quality is the best place to start. Again, there is not one system that will remove any and all contaminants so you need to narrow down your concerns and research a system based on that.
- What are my main concerns?
Narrow down your concerns. There is no “magic” water filter that will filter everything – no matter what someone tries to sell you! Focus on your concerns and identify the rigt filter based on that.
- What is my budget?
Options can start at $30 and go up to $3,000 and more. Sometimes a “cheap” filter will be less expensive up front, but filter replacements can get pricey, especially if you need to hire someone (i.e. a plumber) for your filter changes.