What is a Reverse Osmosis Water System?

This is the finest filtration available today. It is the treatment typically used by premium bottled water companies.

A very wide array of contaminants are eliminated or substantially reduced.

For residential or cottage applications, it has the greatest range of contaminant removal.

Reverse osmosis water systems filter particles through a membrane which is approximately 0.0005 micron in size (bacteria are 0.2 to 1 micron & viruses are 0.02 to 0.4 microns).

These units remove substantial amounts of salts, metals, minerals and most microorganisms including cryptosporidium and giardia, and many inorganic contaminants.

These systems also successfully treat water with dissolved minerals and metals such as aluminum, arsenic, barium, cadmium, chloride, chromium, copper, fluoride, magnesium, iron, lead, manganese, mercury, nitrate, selenium, silver, sulphate, and zinc.

It is also removes many taste, color, odour-producing chemicals, particulates, total dissolved solids, turbidity, and radium. There are two types of Reverse Osmosis Water System membranes typically used in home or cottage water purification systems:

1. Thin Film Composite (TFC)

2. Cellulose Triacetate (CTA).
TFC membranes will filter out considerably more contaminants than a CTA membrane however, they are more susceptible to degradation by chlorine.

Are you are considering a RO system on a chlorinated water supply? It is important that it include quality activated carbon pre-filters to avoid this degradation.

A typical RO system is composed of first, activated carbon (GAC) pre-filters, the RO membrane, a storage tank, and a faucet to deliver the purified water to your counter top.

Look For Quality- the Best Water Filter

Please note that RO systems vary in membrane quality, output capacity, and storage capacity.

The effectiveness of a system depends on the quality of its components – especially its pre-filter cartridges and the membrane itself.

Lower quality pre-filters will suffer from premature membrane fouling, reduced performance, lower purified water output, and a shorter membrane life.