Most reliable drinking water purification methods

Only that water is worth drinking that is potable. Water that reaches us is treated thoroughly before making it usable for various purposes. But it still is not worth drinking. If the drinking water is contaminated it can cause water-borne diseases. To make sure that the health of all consumers is maintained, it is essential to purify the water. We discuss here some of the best drinking water purification methods that can offer good health in every glass of water.

Boiling

Purifying the water using the boiling method is an age-old process. This process works by killing the bacteria by boiling the water at high temperatures. It is said that about 15 minutes of boiling the water in a clean vessel is enough to get pure drinking water. Water not laden with chemical contaminants can be purified using simple boiling process.

The bonus advantage that comes with the boiling method of purifying water is that the extra minerals present in the water get accumulated at the base and sides of vessel used. This process, however, can change the taste of water. So, with practice, one becomes used to drinking the boiled water.

Main advantages of boiling water as purification method are:

1. Easy method: It does not involve any complex chemical process. All you need to do is fill the vessel with water and put it on the flame.
2. Safe to use: Though you need fire to boil water for purifying it, still you are safe as you are not exposed to any kind of chemicals.
3. Fast process: You can get a lot of water boiled in just a couple of minutes. All you need to wait for is cooling down of water so that you can drink it.
4. Home-based purification method: This can easily be performed at home on an induction stove or gas stove. You can also keep the water in the microwave and boil it.

Thus, boiling is one of the easiest and most advised things to do whenever there is an outbreak of a disease. Otherwise too, when you rely on water sources like the lake, pond, river, etc. for your drinking needs, it is advisable to boil the water first before drinking it.

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Filtration

The filtration process of purifying the water is applicable when you can see visible impurities in the water. Using multiple layers of filtering mesh, you can ensure a better quality of water. This way of obtaining pure water retains the chemical composition of water. Filtration can be a chemical process like the use of alum stone that separates the physical contaminants from the water.

With the help of water filters, dirt, dust, germs, and other small compounds can be separated from the water. Sometimes, apart from mesh, the active carbon is used for sucking the contaminants off the water. Filters can remove various dangerous chemicals from the water.

Best advantages of filtration process are:

1. Simple method: Handy materials like water filter mesh can be helpful in carrying out the filtration process.
2. Used by water purifier machines: Water purifiers easily available at markets make the use of filtration method. The users of water purifiers need not employ complex methods for the process. The machine does all on its own.
3. Retains material make-up of water: Water obtained after filtration is considered healthier because its material composition is not altered. The taste remains natural and chemical composition as well.
4. Can replace ROs: Not all waters require reverse osmosis process for filtration. Sometimes, the water loses its healthy composition when reverse osmosis is used. This can be avoided by using a simple filtration process.

Filtration is a proven method of water purification. Users can rely on this method when any complex purification process is not required.

UV filtration

UV water filtration process acts on disease-causing germs and bacteria by altering their genetic composition. Since this method attacks the reproductive abilities of the pathogens, it is considered the most effective method of purifying the water. This method is applicable in home-water and helps in getting the best quality water for drinking. It does not alter the taste or odor of the water, and so, users need not adjust their taste buds to the purified water.

Some of the best benefits of UV filtration method are:

1. Chemical-free filtration: Since the UV filter does not involve chlorine, you need not combat with any side products. There is no chemical build-up messing with the potability of water.
2. Offers exceptional purity: Purify water with a UV filter as it kills about 99.99% microbes.
3. Low maintenance: It involves the use of an ultraviolet light bulb which is to be replaced annually only. Thus, it does not require much power or maintenance for running.

UV filters are to be combined with RO systems to make the water potable. The UV filter may not separate chlorine or heavy metals from water. So, wherever there are chances of the presence of these in water, use RO coupled UV filter.

Reverse Osmosis

You can treat water with reverse osmosis process, too, for filtering contaminants. The reverse osmosis process involves passing of water through a semi-permeable membrane with the use of pressure. The water is flushed off the chemicals with the help of pressure and these are entangled in the membrane. Ion exchange formula is used in advanced RO systems. The taste of water is not altered in the process; in fact, the RO system works as water softener too. It is better than chlorination. In fact, it is a method advanced than chlorination. While boiling kills bacteria, one uses the RO method to remove chemicals.

RO method offers benefits like:

1. Cost-effective method: You can ditch bottled water and adopt RO treated water. This helps in having drinking water from the supply available at home. Thus, additional water expenses are saved.
2. Removes all impurities: In order to remove fluorides, sulfates, and other chemical contaminants, you can make use of the RO method.
3. Energy-efficient: You can save the energy consumed in boiling water by using the RO system for purifying water.

Ion Exchange method

The Ion exchange process is useful in water treatment plants. This process is used for recycling waste or used water. The exchange of ions involves replacing the problematic components of water with favorable ones. It also helps in obtaining soft water from the hard water.

People treat water to tackle hardness of water too. While contaminants of chemical nature prove to be dangerous to health, the hard water proves to be testing on the digestive system. Thus, water softener using the ion exchange process makes the water easy to digest. The softened water also proves to be useful in washing clothes and bathing as it is required in less quantity for removing soap.

Advantages of ion exchange process are:

1. Removes dissolved contaminants: While other filters can remove impurities present in a tangible form, this process works on dissolved impurities which may go unfiltered in other methods.
2. Heavy metals are available to reuse: The heavy metals obtained from the process can be reused to make other products.
3. Very effective water treatment solution: No perforation of substances happens in soft water obtained by the ion exchange filtering. Thus, it is more effective for clearing dissolved impurities.
4. Water regeneration possible: The brine obtained after ion exchange method is available for filtering it further. Thus, more water can be regenerated from the given supply.

Chlorination

Chlorination is the crude process of water filtration. The chlorine tablets used in the process can kill the germs or bacteria. Chlorine can be used to treat water to make it suitable for home consumption. To get the best results, make sure that you add chlorine tablets to warm water. This is because chlorine dissolves well in water which is a bit hot. The chlorination process involves the use of liquid chlorine or chlorine tablets. Sometimes, water tastes differently due to chlorination. Also, the people suffering from thyroid should consult a medical practitioner before using chlorinated water.

Water filtration is necessary for making water potable. The problem of drinking water can be solved with the help of applying filtration methods. These are a few of the most popular filtration methods useful for purifying water for drinking purposes. Try these to ensure the safe drinking water supply at home.

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