Excellent question, and I should have stated this up front. I want to remove chlorine for -- cooking (2 sinks on opposite sides of the kitchen) -- espresso machine (Researching that purchase now. It will be plumbed in.) and icemaker on the same line -- a fish tank water change system
Not having chlorine in the showers and washing machine is a bonus. The lifetime cost of individual filters at the three locations would exceed the cost of a whole house filter, so why not filter everything?
calblacksmith Said:
You do not need to filter all the water in your home for coffee and for coffee, you do NOT want RO water, it is TOO pure and has a flat taste not to mention that in most coffee equipment that is self filling, the RO water will cause errors in the autofill systems.
I agree 100%-- not only that, but an RO system wastes a huge amount of water. Our water is moderately hard, but I haven’t worried about softening the water for espresso. No one in our area uses water softeners. Maybe we will need to install a filter capable of softening the water for the espresso maker (undecided), in which case the cost economy of the whole house filter decreases but the other benefits would still be there. I've been thinking that periodic descaling would be sufficient.
NobbyR Said:
Removing chlorine from all your water for domestic use might cause a hygenic problem, because it'll facilitate bacterial growth inside your pipes. After all there's a reason why it's there in the first place. It's seems better to me to remove chlorine from the water you need for cooking or brewing coffee, for example, prior to use.
I seem to have survived using water systems ranging from city, well, pumped from a lake, and even rainwater cisterns with no ill effect, so I’m not worried about life without chlorine. (that’s kind of the goal)
Bacterial growth in the pipes is an interesting thought. Most likely this would be affect taste rather than health, like what happens in boat and RV freshwater tanks . A whole house filter usually is plumbed to permit you to bypass it for maintenance. Maybe a periodic flush with chlorinated water wouldn’t be a bad idea. I’ve never seen any discussion of that.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts and creating an interesting thread. I'd love to hear some feedback from someone who has a system like we're considering before we make the leap.
Posted Wed May 16, 2012, 10:48am Subject: Re: Whole house water filter question
PressedForTime Said:
Bacterial growth in the pipes is an interesting thought. Most likely this would be affect taste rather than health, like what happens in boat and RV freshwater tanks . A whole house filter usually is plumbed to permit you to bypass it for maintenance. Maybe a periodic flush with chlorinated water wouldn’t be a bad idea. I’ve never seen any discussion of that.
Bacterial growth in pipes shouldn't be a problem if you have copper plumbing, as copper is quite an effective bactericide - provided that your pipework is arranged to ensure the cold stays COLD and the hot stays HOT (a maxim from a plumber acquaintance of mine). Plastic pipework, I don't know, but I'm sure a bit of research will give you an answer if needed.
I've noticed that city water supplies in the US (at least the bits I've been to) seem to have much more chlorine than over here. Don't know why that may be, but I guess the source and the way it is stored all come into the equation. Anyhow we seem to survive OK with much less chlorine in our domestic pipework, so I wouldn't worry too much.
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