Water Purifier Buying Guide
Water purifier is necessary nowadays especially if you use underground water for drinking as these can contaminants.
Before you start looking for a water purifier you should also keep some points about water in mind:
-
Water should deliver essential nutrients and minerals like calcium,magnesium, potassium and trace elements needed to live.
- Water helps in balancing out the acidic state of the body. These acid wastes accumulate --because of pollutants, modern diet and stress -- our tissues slowly deteriorate. Chronic diseases such as cancer, arthritis, diabetes and osteoporosis are associated with this acid condition. Water should help balance out our acidic state by being alkaline.
-
Water should have antioxidant properties. Oxidization hastens cell breakdown, while foods with antioxidant properties prevent it. You don’t need anyone to tell you that you want a body that generates cells, not destroys them!
-
Your water should be free of contaminants. People are shocked when they hear that there can be over 2000 contaminants in an ordinary glass of tap water
WATER PURIFICATION METHODS
Different water purifiers use different methods of purification, some have three purification stages and some five or more. A higher number of purification levels ensure cleaner drinking water. Its necessary to know about what each stage does and then choose the purifier you think is the best for your home.
Pre filter purification
A micron pre-filter is designed to remove silt, dust and dirt particles from the water before it enters the main filter of the unit.
Candle-filter purification
There is a special multi layer micro porous candle filter to remove all suspended impurities.
Sediment Filters
Sediment Cartridges trap particulate such as silt, sand or carbon fines. Sediment cartridges are commonly used as pre-filters to RO (reverse osmosis) systems and come in a variety of micron ratings depending on the application.
Health and taste cartridge
Taste and odor filter cartridges most commonly contain activated carbon. Activated carbon removes chlorine and organic matter making the water less distasteful to consumers. In process applications such as reverse osmosis (RO) these cartridges are pre-filters that protect the RO TFM membranes from chlorine damage.
Reverse osmosis (RO)
Reverse osmosis separation technology is used to remove dissolved impurities from water through the use of a semi-permeable membrane. It involves the reversal of flow through a membrane from a high salinity solution to the high purity, or permeate stream on the opposite side of the membrane. Pressure is used as the driving force for the separation. This means that through the reversal flow RO removes not only impurities, it also desalinises the water. So, for those living in areas where the water is hard, a waterpurifier with RO is a must. It will save the expense of spending on mineral water on a daily basis.
The problem with reverse osmosis is it takes away all the minerals in the water, including healthy ones.
The system can be rather slow and contaminants with molecules that are the same size or smaller than water like chlorine can pass through. Chlorine can also damage the permeable film, resulting in impurities mixing with the clean water.
|
COMPARE WATER PURIFIER PRICE AND FEATURES
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
eProdz (Only for registered users)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Ultra-violet(UV) filtration
Ultrafiltration removes dissolved solids of and above the size 0.005-0.1 microns. It is capable of removing solids, bacteria and viruses.
NON-ELECTRIC WATER PURIFIER
These are of two types:
- Online: Fixed to the mouth of taps, these purifiers are portable and need no electricity.Made of plastic, the filter candle usually has a resin filter that needs to be changed every month.
- Offline or Storage Type: These are also known popularly as water filters. These don't need electricity or plumbing. These purifiers have a combination of sediment filters and activated carbon filters.
These storage type water purifiers gcan generally ore 18-26l of water. This type of storage is very helpful in places facing water shortage.
Body Type
Steel
Steel ensures total safety, hygiene and durability, for complete peace of mind.
Aluminium
It reacts with salts and minerals in the water to produce aluminium oxides which are toxic and implicated in brain disease.
ELECTRIC WATER PURIFIER
Connected to pipelines, they have a combination of sediment filters and activated carbon. They employ the UV purification system or the Reverse Osmosis(RO) system.
These are of two types:
UV System
Look out for the one with voltage stabilizer and LCD screen.Available in countertop and kitchen wall-mounted models, the UV rays are well contained and safe.
RO System
These systems get rid of disease bearing bacteria and viruses, and pollutants such as insecticides and cancerous dyes. They make hard water drinkable and are best for those living in coastal areas.
Mounting
Wall Mounted
|
|
|
|
Sediment filters/cartridges
|
|
Cartridges are made of fibre(usually made of polypropylene).They hold back particles to pass through.
|
|
|
|
Impurities stick to carbon layer, ridding tap water of odour, colour and bad taste.
|
|
|
Bacteria, Viruses, Salts, Proteins,Dyes and Other Constituents
|
Has a semi-permeable membrane. Water is pumped through the membrane.
(As the pure water concentration increases, greater pressure is required; hence, RO systems need electricity.)
RO is needed where there is hard water.
|
|
|
Disease-Bearing or other harmful micro-organisms
|
The first is a filter that removes impurities, then uses high-energy UV rays from a UV lamp fitted inside the purifier to eliminate micro-organisms. Water is exposed to these rays at a particular intensity for an optimum period of time.
|
FEATURES OF WATER PURIFIER
Flow rate
Every purifier has a maximum flow rate which if exceeded, will allow bacteria to pass through the system, so be careful to choose a UV that is adequate for the home in which it's being installed. Look for a filter that flows at a litre per minute or more.
Weight
The weight of your water filter is important, especially if you plan on moving it from one place to other.
Body
Check if the body of the water purifier is durable, rust proof and attractive. There are different materials available such as Aluminium and ABS Plastic available.
Points to keep in mind when buying a water purifier:
- Quality of water: The salt content - high or low - should determine your choice.
- Convenience: Depending on where you would be collecting the water, select an online,offline or inline systems.
- Budget:Most purifiers are pocket friendly. Also, electricity consumed in most inline purifiers are not more than 25W.
Global Certification
Check for global certifications like WQA (USA) Gold Seal mark for RO or UV systems as many local assemblers import components from local or non-reputed Chinese suppliers assembles units in India.
WATER PURIFIER PRICE AND BUDGET
You should have a budget in mind to purchase a water purifier. Water Purifiers can cost you as little as Rs 1,800 and as steep as Rs 45,000. There are more features like display panels, rechargeable batteries, more purification stages, higher flow rate etc. available as you pay more.
Also see,
Related Keywords : water purifier brands in india, compare water purifier prices in india, water purifier reviews, Kent, Whirlpool Purafresh,Eureka Forbes,Alfaa,Aqura,Bajaj,Jaipan,Moniba,Micro,Ultra Care,Usha Brita,V-guard,ZeroB,AquaGuard,Astonik,Crompton Greaves, Kenstar, Maharaja Whiteline, Aqua Pure (Modi Hoover), Orpat, Pristine, Sintex, Ultra Guard, Videocon, Glen,Butterfly, Philips, TruePower, Pigeon, Hemkund, Hindusthan Unilever Pureit, Wama,purisys, water purifier aquaguard, aquaguard, water purifier india, ro water purifier, kent water purifier, ro, kent, forbes water purifier, pureit water purifier, pureit, whirlpool water purifier, pure it, aquasure water purifier, aquasure, pure water purifier, hindustan unilever, pureit water purifier, whirlpool,hindustan water purifier, Whirlpool Purafresh, RO, reverse osmosis, UV, Watech