Filtering water

[stinkynuts]

Failure to change carbon block filters, or granular activated carbon filters at least every six months, allows contaminants to saturate the filter, forcing it to leak contaminants back into the processed water. The water output may contain more contaminants than the filler was intended to remove in the first place. Along with contaminating your water from infrequent filter replacements, failure to change the filters might also reduce the water pressure in your filtering system. Your water filter will not work properly

OK, you can call me an idiot if you wish, but why aren't these warning in the Brita filter boxes? I had to search online for this information.

I thought I could save some money by not changing the filter, and for the last four years I have felt very sick: tired, fatigued, and weak. So much to the point that I considered suicide.

I am wondering if the toxins from my Brita filter are the cause of my illness? I developed these symptoms several months after using it. I haven't changed the filter since I originally bought it (almost four years now). I never noticed a change in the water taste, and the water kept on filtering, so I thought it was working.

 

[DistantVoyeur]

They do tell you to change the filter.... even used to give you stickers to give yourself a reminder. Some even came with a digital filter usage countdown display....
Do they have to make a housecall??? Register your phone number?

Unlikely that not changing the filter would be the cause of all your ailments, but just change the damn filter and read the instructions that come with the new filter.....

 

[Asterix]

I remember bumping into a guy at Canadian Tire a few years back and he said that brita water filters and others like it, weren't good at all.
He said the best would be one built into your faucet/sink area.
Are there any other viable quick options?

The most viable option is to not take health advice from some guy standing in line at Canadian Tire.

 

[pussylicker]

Canada has the second cleanest municipal drinking water on earth,

Depends on where you live, that is a debate we don't need to get into.

Unless you really really hate the taste of your local water, there is no reason whatsoever to filter the tap water you drink.

Sorry, but I don't want to drink flouride or chlorine, plus the other sh!t that is put in municipal water along with the sh!t from the lake.

 

[pussylicker]

The water coming out of your tap in urban Ontario is absolutely fine to drink. Read the Health Canada reports. If you feel that you really need to filter your water go ahead, it's a free country but you're wasting your money. If you smoke but still feel the need to filter your tap water you are a total moron.

We all know about the BS Health Canada spews. There are lots of things they consider safe, when in actual fact they aren't.

 

[elmufdvr]

yea don't drink the water.. fish fuck in it....hahahhahahahaha

 

[LoveThemGirls]

Damn, stinkynuts, those are some pretty extreme symptoms. This is the way I know when it's time to change my Brita: I brew some orange pekoe tea, when the filter is working, the tea is clear and orange, when the filter has to be changed, the tea is black.

You should do a detox, I use the Cleansesmart 30 day detox once/year, take 2 pills at night, 2 pills in the morning, along with a fibre supplement. This will help to get rid of the toxins that have built up in your body from the dirty water. It may also help with your odorous testicle problem.

http://store.gorawcafe.com/rl-clsmrt.html

 

[to-guy69]

For those who enjoy taking showers piping hot and do not use a shower filter (to remove the chlorine), you are actually breathing in chlorine vapors directing into your lungs which is even worse than drinking chlorinated tap water.

 

[tboy]

For those who enjoy taking showers piping hot and do not use a shower filter (to remove the chlorine), you are actually breathing in chlorine vapors directing into your lungs which is even worse than drinking chlorinated tap water.

You're too right! This was first discussed back in the 80's and the health risks that can occur when showering without an exhaust fan or leaving the door open. If I remember correctly chlorine turns to a gas faster than water so even a reasonably hot shower still produces high concentrations of chlorine gas.

As for the Brita packaging NOT telling you to change the filter every x months. That's bullshit, they say so in the instructions that came with the "jug" and even say so on their tv commercials.

Some of the tap attached filters have a indicator that turns red when it's time to change the filter.

Now if this was the US Stinky would be sueing the pants off brita for not calling him every x months to remind him to change the filter.....

As for our water being some of the best in the world. It wasn't the Government who did the study, it was an independant body that surveyed water from all over the world and made that determination.

 

[Meister]

I'm on well water.

 

[kbluejayk]

I remember bumping into a guy at Canadian Tire a few years back and he said that brita water filters and others like it, weren't good at all.
He said the best would be one built into your faucet/sink area.
Are there any other viable quick options?

Well, you never go to CT for a minor tune-up on your car...your final bill will be 2 or 3 pages long! that's what commissions can do to a cost estimate!
Ditto for home water filters...

Other options? YES! Check Consumer Reports and other independent resources on the web...then SHOP AROUND!

 

[fuji]

No cheap water tester? Damn. I was hoping I could mail in samples somewhere. I don't know what to test for. I'm sure the city water is fine, just want to make sure that the pipes leading into my place are also fine. Seems like something that should be easy to test, can't you get a battery of testts for common contaminents?

 

[blackdog]

Toronto water is good to drink. The places that you have to worry about are smaller rural communities like Walkerton. In these places the water supply is affected by farming byproducts and toxins in the groundwater. If the old boys that run the filter system in your town are old drunks you are in trouble. Well water should be tested regularly, especially in the spring when all the runoff from the melting snow holds months of concentrated toxins and road salts etc.

 

[to-guy69]

No cheap water tester? Damn. I was hoping I could mail in samples somewhere. I don't know what to test for. I'm sure the city water is fine, just want to make sure that the pipes leading into my place are also fine. Seems like something that should be easy to test, can't you get a battery of testts for common contaminents?

Lead contamination of drinking water is usually a concern in GTA homes built prior to 1955. To request free testing for lead in drinking water, you must call the Water Quality Lab at 416-392-2894 or email waterqualityline@toronto.ca.

 

[shakenbake]

stinky the simple answer is yes. The bacteria and other contaminates that the filter takes out stay in the filter and continue to flourish especially if it is kept for long periods of time and continually add to the filter.

Although they are affected by many conditions, the life of the filters vary widely and the instructions for the changing of them are usually a safe period in which the manufacturer has determined they will work some what efficiently, it is best to follow the instructions for time frames.

I have worked for a person who developed a system that although very effective is somewhat costly to maintain and market, as distantvoyeur pointed out the reverse osmosis systems are very good choice for the average consumer. Also remember that the majority of people are on municiple water supplies and they are already treated and safe enough for the major bottlers of "Spring Water" to use.

RO is great. However, one downside is that they can sometimes be energy-intensive. In addition, if not designed properly, the bleed stream is much greater than the product stream. Just my two-cents' worth based on industrial observations. Maybe, a hybrid system that brings the best of both respective technologies, or diffusion dialysis or electrodialysis, would be ideal.

 

[Questor]

The most viable option is to not take health advice from some guy standing in line at Canadian Tire.

Ditto for readers on an escort review board. Sure, you can get some ideas here, but research it independently and make up your own mind.

 

[TheSaint]

I have been using the Brita filter that attaches to the faucet. It has a little light that turns green every time you use the filter setting. When that light turns red, it's time to install a new filter. Usually lasts me about 4 to 5 months.

As for the quality of the water, I have a white kettle that used to turn dark & dirty looking over time. I cleaned it, started using the filtered Brita water only, and it has stayed pristine white for a year now. Also, I used to be able to smell and taste something a little "off" in the pure tap water. Now it is as good as, or better than bottled water.

 

[DistantVoyeur]

No cheap water tester? Damn. I was hoping I could mail in samples somewhere. I don't know what to test for. I'm sure the city water is fine, just want to make sure that the pipes leading into my place are also fine. Seems like something that should be easy to test, can't you get a battery of testts for common contaminents?

If you want to test your water send in a sample to a private environmental lad. But they will bill you for every test you request. There are so many things that may or not be in there that it can expensive.
If you have specific concerns it would be cheaper, but each test has it's own costs.

 

[Cobster]

Well, you never go to CT for a minor tune-up on your car...your final bill will be 2 or 3 pages long! that's what commissions can do to a cost estimate!
Ditto for home water filters...

Other options? YES! Check Consumer Reports and other independent resources on the web...then SHOP AROUND!

Thankfully I got a kick ass mechanic friend huh.
I know about crappy tire and their mechanics, thanks for the heads up.

As for home water filters, we were in the aisle looking for something in the same section and conversation just came up. He said he was working a faucet job that wasn't easy etc, etc.
So after some more conversation, I asked him what he thought of them.
He didn't come outright and say, here's my card, brita sucks, call me.

 

[Rockslinger]

Lead contamination of drinking water is usually a concern in GTA homes built prior to 1955.

My water test result came back and there is LEAD in the water. Is there any filter that can get rid of this LEAD?