Reverse osmosis water filtration uses high pressure to push water through a membrane with extremely small pores, which removes almost all of the dissolved solids from the water.
They remove a long list of chemical contaminants such as arsenic, lead, copper, sodium, chloride, sulphate, nitrate, fluoride and phosphorus.
Reverse osmosis systems are also effective at removing protozoa such as Cryptosporidium and Giardia, bacteria and viruses.
It’s the same technology used by most bottling companies to produce pure water from municipal water, and by massive desalination plants to produce drinking water from sea water.
Many of our customers use alternative water in their homes, such as rainwater and groundwater.
As a water treatment company, we’ve seen a lot of sub-standard borehole water filtration installations. There were a lot of filtration system installations at the height of the water crisis, and many of those were carried out by installers who lacked experience. It would be better to not assume that one is getting the best water quality without getting regular lab tests done, and a reverse osmosis filter is one way to ensure that your family is getting the highest quality water for drinking and cooking.
Even after treatment, groundwater can often have a metallic taste, or contain high levels of other chemicals, and these are removed by reverse osmosis.
With a reverse osmosis unit, you will taste the difference!
While our municipal water is generally of good quality in Cape Town, the ageing infrastructure, reduced supply pressure and other problems sometimes result in inconsistent water quality.
Rather know for sure that the water you’re drinking is the best it could be…
The water is so pure after reverse osmosis filtration, that some people have expressed concern that the process strips not only the contaminants from the water, but also the good minerals required by the body.
Research shows that the contribution of the recommended daily allowance of minerals through drinking water is in fact very small. Drinking water would normally contribute 5 to 10% of our calcium intake, and magnesium 5 to 7%.
Using magnesium as an example, according to the Food and Nutrition Board of the National Research Council in the USA, the recommended daily allowance for magnesium is 350 milligrams. US Drinking water contains 6.25 milligrams of magnesium per litre on average, so to get the full recommended daily allowance from water alone, one would need to drink 56 (fifty six!) litres of water per day.
More information on the nutritional contribution by water can be found here.
Even though the contribution of minerals by water to our daily diet is so low, we offer a remineralisation filter with our units so that we are assured that what we’re putting back into the water helps to raise the pH and balance the water. It’s like starting with a blank canvas and then building up with the correct minerals from a base which is almost pure water.
Another criticism sometimes leveled at reverse osmosis systems is that they waste water. Our systems use a high pressure pump, which produces much less waste water. One could expect around 1 litre of concentrate per 1 litre of purified water. The concentrate can be collected and used for washing or flushing toilets.
Before the water gets to the reverse osmosis membrane, it is sent through three pre-filters. These are two sediment filters and a carbon filter, which removes bigger particles, chlorine, and volatile organic compounds.
Filter cartridge and membrane life depends on the quality of the water going in, and the volume of water being filtered. One could expect the lifespan of the filter cartridges to be between six months and a year, and the membrane between one and two years, but due to the uncontrolled water input quality, it’s not possible to give a definite lifespan. They are consumables and will need to be replaced periodically.
Our small under counter units have a storage tank, so you will have water available when you need it, even during load-shedding!
If you’re keen to lose the hassle of buying and transporting bottled water, and helping to reduce the mountains of plastic waste which are burying our planet, contact us to find out about getting an RO system into your kitchen.
We also install bigger units for whole-house and industrial water treatment.
