Water & Air – Filter Systems News

With Fire Prevention Week starting on October 9^th, we thought it would be a good time to discuss the simple ways you can protect both your home and your loved ones. Oftentimes, fires in the home start as a result of poorly maintained electrical equipment and appliances such as dryers. With the dry fall air taking over the hot days of summer, take a look at this checklist and make sure your home is safe!

1)      Maintain Dryer Lint Filter Screens: Busy moms and dads often leave laundry in the dryer while at work or picking the kids up from school. However, it only takes an extra piece of lint to start a dryer fire. Be sure to have a lint filter screen for your dryer, and make sure that you clean it every time you use the dryer! Consider the Whirlpool 349639 Dryer Lint Filter Screen, which  fits numerous name brand dryers.

2)      Keep Fireplaces Clean and Maintained: Ensure that you have a spark screen or glass door for your fireplace. If you have furniture close to your fireplace, a spark can easily start a fire.

3)      Regularly Change Furnace Filters: In the long list of things to do, remembering to change your homes furnace filters regularly probably falls to the bottom of the list. However, a clogged air filter can lead to poor indoor air quality at best, and carbon monoxide poisoning and chance of fire at  worst. These filters should be changed every 3 months. To take the stress out of remembering, purchase a 6 pack of filters (which is enough for the whole year!) and sign up for a free reminder service from Filters Fast!

4)      Be Careful with Cigarettes: While you might not be able to prevent Uncle Jim from smoking when he visits, you can make sure that it won’t become harmful to your home. Be sure to have a designated smoking area and be sure to completely put out ALL cigarettes and frequently clean the ashtray.

If you are concerned about smell, consider the Holmes Smokeless Ashtray Smoke Grabber, which traps smoke from a lit cigarette before the smoke gets dispersed throughout your home!

These simple solutions will help protect your family from the dangers of fire. Of course, it is also crucial to keep batteries changed on smoke detectors and to have an escape plan in place should a fire occur. However,  something as easy as cleaning your dryer lint filter and your furnace filters regularly will guard your home, belongings, and family.

Remember: Fire Prevention Week is October 9th- 16th 2011!

Cool, crisp, clean, clear water. In the hot summer days of August, there is nothing better. We run to the faucet or Brita Pitcher when temperatures reach over 100 degrees. Imagine a truly sizzling hot day, running for the tap, turning on the cold faucet and the water that comes out is not the regular water you are used to, but cleaned wastewater. As the name implies, cleaned wastewater is water that “has been used in your toilet or sink or shower is purified through a variety of technological processes that make it clean enough to drink” (Alix Spiegel, NPR Article)  Would you feel the same relief from the heat? Or would your mind stop you from enjoying the cool glass of water?

Some scholars say yes.  Dr. Carol Nemeroff, of the University of Southern Maine speculates that many people are not able to get over the “ick” factor of drinking water that could have previously been found in their toilet. The scientific term, contagion, refers to the phenomenon of people thinking that once something has contact with another thing, those two things are always joined. In this case, water and your toilet.  Significant research of over 2,000 people suggests that it is difficult for people to dispel this kind of thinking; regardless of if it is scientifically proven that the cleaned wastewater is safe for consumption.

Therefore, getting Americans on board for the use of wastewater as drinking water may involve less science, and more psychology. The key it seems is to change the identity of the filtered water by connecting it closer to nature. As water reuse expert Dr. Haddad says, people feel more comfortable if the treated water sits in an underground aquifer for a significant period of time. However, this brings up additional problems, as exposing already treated water back to nature can have negative effects on the quality of the water.

It is clear that our water thinking has a significant impact on the way water is used and distributed in this country. Now that we have the science to turn wastewater into drinkable water, we need to find a way to change its identity so that people no longer have visions of drinking water formally found in the bottom of a bath tub or toilet bowl.

It’s a question we’ve been bombarded with since yesterday morning, when the Associated Press published an article stating that United States manufacturers and drugmakers have legally released 271 million or more pounds of pharmaceuticals into water sources that often provide drinking water.
During this “PharmaWater” investigation, the AP identified 22 compounds present in drinking water. Included in these compounds are such chemicals as lithium, antibiotics, sedatives, mood stabilizers, sex hormones, skin-bleaching cream and chemicals used to combat head lice and worms.
Yet while drugmakers and manufacturers are certainly responsible for a large portion of the pharmaceuticals in our water, consumers of the pharmaceuticals are just as responsible for depositing pharmaceuticals back into the water supply. After taking these pharmaceuticals, consumers excrete the unabsorbed remainders into the toilet, where they enter the water supply. Flushing drugs down the toilet is a more direct way of doing this, and one that is surprisingly common.
Perhaps the only thing scarier than all of these pharmaceuticals in our drinking water is that there is currently no filter that removes pharmaceuticals from tap water. While companies are currently working on filters that remove pharmaceuticals from water, none do as of yet. Some theorize that filters using activated carbon may work, as the carbon has been shown to capture organic substances that may be found in pharmaceuticals. But as of now, the testing for pharmaceuticals is too insufficient to say whether or not this is the case.
So while we cannot say for certain whether these filters remove pharmaceuticals, we can say that many of our filters do remove contaminants that we know can be harmful to your health, such as arsenic, lead, chlorine, cysts, total dissolved solids, toxic heavy metals and bacteria.
Give us a call to discuss your specific filtration needs. Better yet, consider purchasing one of our many home testing kits, which will tell you exactly what is in your water (again, except for pharmaceuticals).
Then, when you know what’s in your water, give us a call and we’ll suggest a filter that will remove the undesired contaminants.

Question:
I have an Amana Model #DRS2660BC. Do you know if there is a filter that removes flouride that will fit my fridge?
Answer:
There is no refrigerator water filter available that will remove flouride. The most common filtration system for flouride removal is a reverse osmosis water filter system. We do have a reverse osmosis system for review. It is the APRO5500.

Original Comment from Blog User
I HAVE A BORRED WELL. I USE A WHOLE HOUSE FILTER. TODAY WHEN I WENT TO CHANGE MY FILTER ONE SIDE OF IT HAD A GREEN GROWTH ON IT. IT WAS ON THE SIDE THAT FACED THE DOOR OF MY WELL ROOM. THE DOOR WAS LEFT OPEN WHICH HARDLY EVER HAPPENS. WHAT IS THIS?
Answer:
What you have on your filter is Algae. Is there any sunlight reaching into the room? Normally sunlight will cause Algae growth. Now, how do you clean it? First discard the old filter. Before placing a new filter into the housing, clean the inside of the housing well with a water and bleach solution. Then replace the filter. After replacing the filter, run your water through a shower or something that uses a lot of water for 5-10 minutes to ensure that the bleach solution has passed through your pipes and your water is safe to drink.

Question: bought a house with a 7 filter system…only label says springhouse and ecotech….what is this? where do i get replacement cartridges for it….does it also have to have a water softener inline with it? what is the electric plug on one of the cartridges do??
Answer:
We found the Users Manual for the system that is installed in your home and it can be found at http://www.ecoquestintl.com/ownersmanuals_web/SpringHouseOM.pdf.
The plug appears to be for Ultra-Violet UV water filtration. UV Filtration is used to kill any bacteria present in water. They do not seem to make any claims to the effectivness of their system on bacteria and looking at the diagram of the the filter flow, it looks like the UV system may have some flaws. UV light can be blocked by larger particles in water. Since the filtration appears to have a 20 micron filter prior to the UV stage, any particles under 20 microns can enter the UV chamber and effectively protect bacteria by being between the UV light source and the bacteria. It seems like a better design would have the 1 micron carbon block filter prior to the UV chamber to remove all particles greater than 1 micron in size which would minimize the shadowing effect. Do not use this filter system with water that has been deemed unsafe for consumption. This system does not have a softener built in. If you have hard water, then you would need a seperate water softener to solve that problem. Replacement cartridges can be found from the manufacturer. Depening on the size of the cartridge, you may be able to use any brand of filter that meet the specifications.

I have a reverse osmosis system GXRM10G. Family of 2. How often should I change the postfilter sump and prefilter sump and should I change the RO cartridge at the same time?
Most Revers Osmosis Filter Systems require pre and post filter changes at 6 month intervals to maintain peak performance. The membrane should be changed every 2 years or if you notice a significant drop in water passing through the reverse osmosis system. In your case the GXRM10G uses the FX12P pre and post filters which should be changed every 6 months and the fx12m membrane which should be changed every 2 years. The O-rings should be changed every other filter change on the pre and post filters and every change on the membrane.

Most people are not aware that after you change your refrigerator water filter, there are two additional steps that should be taken to properly complete the water filter change.

Step 1: Reset your refrigerator water filter change light

Most new refrigerators now come equipped with an indicator light that notifies you when it is time to change your water filter. This light does not automatically reset when you change your water filter and the light must be manually reset.

Here is a list of refrigerator manufacturers and how to reset the filter change indicator light:

Amana- Press and hold the Auto and Dispenser Lock buttons until the water filter status indicator light flashes.
Frigidaire- Press and Hold the Reset Button Until the Indicator Light Flashes.
GE General Electric- Press and Hold the Reset Button for around 8 Seconds.
HotPoint- Press and Hold the Reset Button for around 8 Seconds.
Jenn-Air- Press and Hold The Light and Lock Buttons until the Water Filter light flashes.
Kitchen Aid- Press and Release the Light Button 5 times Quickly.
Maytag- Press and Hold The Light and Lock Buttons until the Water Filter light flashes.
Samsung- Press and Hold the Ice Type and Child Lock Buttons at the same time for 3 seconds.
Whirlpool- Press and Release the Light Button 5 times Quickly.

Step 2: Flush a couple of gallons of water through your new filter

Since refrigerator water filters are made of carbon, some carbon residue is present in the first gallon or two of water. This will not harm you but may leave a bitter taste and residue in your water. If you continue to have these problems after flushing a couple of gallons through the filter, it is possible that you have a defective water filter.

Once these two steps are completed, you are all set to enjoy great tasting ice and water through your refrigerator. If you don’t see your manufacturer listed or the instructions don’t work for your model please post a comment with your make and model number so that we can provide exact instructions for your model.