Shower Filters and Kitchen Filters

one thing i forgot to mention in the entries regarding food/eating and bathing is the importance of water filters. in my experience enviropure products (screw-on shower filter and kitchen counter top filter) are good with the following proviso: the shower filter goes bad very quickly - a few days. if you double it (i.e. mount two filters back to back) and pair it with something like a GE shower filter from home depot then it lasts for a longer time. by mounting a sequence of short filters we are forcing the water to go through a sufficient depth of filtering media for the water to actually be somewhat filtered.

aquasana shower filter has been the best shower filter in my experience because it forces the water to slow down. water doesn't shoot into the aquasana shower filter and then out - it enters, goes up and down and essentially takes a circuitous route through the filter media. the aquasana filter also makes the water go through sufficient depth of media to really be effective at filtering the water. the wellness shower filter and all other filters where the water goes through it like an arrow doesn't manage the speed of the water. another problem with these shower filters is that they do not accommodate a sufficient amount of filtering media for the water to pass through before it leaves the filter housing in order for the water to be effectively filtered.

in order for a shower filter to effectively begin filtering the water, the speed of the water has to be managed. this can be done by forcing the water through a circuitous route through a filtering media. second, after the water enters the filter housing, it has to travel through a certain distance through effective and healthful media before it can really be said to be filtered. you can gauge the effectiveness of a filter by looking at the size of the filter cartridge and its shape. most shower filters on the market are straight and very short. the problem with these products is that in addition to not really being long enough, it doesn't really do anything about the water speed. i don't care how good their filtering media may be, for the water to be really filtered, you need to deal with the speed and route the water takes through the filtering media.

to sum up, the problems a shower filter needs to address are the following: water is exiting the pipe at very fast speeds. the water speed as it goes through the media has to be fairly slow in order to really be filtered. secondly, the water must pass through a sufficient depth of media in order to be filtered. lastly, you need media that is capable of filtering hot water. many media are not suitable for handling hot water.

if we look at kitchen filters, water speed as it enters and goes through the media, water temperature and depth of the media are all favorable to doing some modicum of the filtering that the manufacturers claim. The water is not coming out of the pipe at 2.5 gallons per minute (the speed at which it exits the shower pipe here). The water temperature is also an issue. Regardless of claims, media last longer and is more effective at filtering cold water. In the kitchen environment, the filter can be used exclusively with cold water since filtered water is used for drinking, cooking, washing fruits and vegetables. If hot water is required, the cold filtered water can be conveniently heated. Lastly, the depth of media (approximately 10 inches or more) that water has to travel is appropriate for the speed of the water coming out of the tap in order for the filter to remove some of the toxic matter in the water.

i guess in order to have genuinely filtered water for bathing, you would need a system that filters, heats and stores the processed water. you wouldn't really need to store cold filtered water although this would be ideal. but in order to have hot water for bathing, the system must first filter cold water thoroughly. after the water has been filtered, it can be heated. finally, heated water needs to be stored in a suitable container that is non-toxic and has excellent heat retention capability.