How to select the best water purifier for your home
It’s important to make a smart decision when selecting the right water purifier. The quality of water that you drink has a direct impact on your health as well as your loved ones.
Finding a water purifier in India seems a daunting task nowadays. There are several options available in the market and all brands promise to provide quality water. Several believe that every purifier does its job in the same way. But we know that’s not true. Different water conditions require different purification technologies.
Things to consider before choosing the right water purifier for yourself
Check the quality of water:
The first thing that needs to consider is the quality of water available in your area. What is the source of the water you get supplied to your home? Usually, in the urban areas, the water is supplied by the municipalities. The water supplied by the municipalities is already treated and then sourced to our homes. But when you do not get your municipal water supply then what next? Do you rely on groundwater or you order water tankers? And what is the quality of the water from these sources? If it supplied by water tankers, most gated communities in metro cities due to the lack of direct water supply then most probably it’s hard water. Now, hard water contains pretty high percentages of dissolved solids like fluorides, heavy metals, and etc. All these dissolved impurities make hard water unfit for human drinking habits. If the water contains a high amount of TDS(Total Dissolved Solids) then go for RO water purifier. The RO water purifier comes with a selectively permeable membrane that removes all the impurities. On the other hand, water sourced from municipality managed storage and delivery system is generally termed as soft water. Soft water, though not as harmful, also needs purification before it can be deemed safe for human consumption over the long run. you can go for the purifier with UF technology with removes particulates and other impurities.
While testing the quality of your water, it is important to check whether the water is contaminated. The waterborne disease originates due to contamination of water and that is fatal for human health. If your water contains microbes, bacteria or viruses then it is preferable to choose the RO+UV+UF water purifier. The RO membrane removes the impurities and when water passes through the UV chamber, it kills almost all the microbes present in the water. Hence, the RO+UV+UF water purifier always makes the water completely safe for drinking.
Check for the essential filter components:
Pre-sediments filter, pre-carbon filter, and post-carbon filter are the filters that must be there in good purifiers. Where pre-carbon filters remove particulates from water, the pre-carbon filter absorbs organic impurities and odor from water, and the post-carbon filter enhances the taste quality of water. So make sure these filters while selecting water purifiers for your home.
Check out water storage capacity:
This is also one of the important factors that you need to ensure before choosing a water purifier, especially in Indian homes where power supply is erratic. You should have a rough idea as to how much water you need to meet the daily requirements of your family. If the capacity of the purifier caters to your requirement then that is the best choice for you.
Check out the certification:
Only go for the brands which have appropriate validated certifications. You can put faith in the product who has ISI, WQA or NSF certifications. These certifications assure you about the authenticity of the brand.
Look over the designs and build-up of the product:
You must also choose a water purifier after considering a strong buildup that ensures maximum durability. It must be made up of engineering grade plastic. Most importantly, you should make sure that the plastic is food grade too. It is unwise to use any plastic container to store water as it may increase the toxicity of the water. Only if the purifier is made of food-grade plastic, then it is safe to use. So that your water will not get toxic Hence you must take care of that.
Inquire about maintenance cost and after-sales service:
Water purifiers are just a machine and it requires regular maintenance otherwise water will contaminate because of old parts of the purifier. Basically, the cost of the filter of a water purifier determines the cost of the maintenance of the water purifier. UF water purification is a very basic water purification Technology and the average maintenance cost of the UF water purifier is 1500–2000 rupees. As far as the maintenance of and UV water purifier is concerned you have to change the UV bulb annually or whenever it gets ineffective. The average maintenance cost of the UV water purifier is 2000–2500 rupees. Let’s talk about the maintenance of RO water purifiers. RO water purifier has the highest maintenance cost in comparison to UF and UV water purifier. A top-end RO based water purifier will cost you 5K Per Year for an Annual Maintenance Contract. So you must consider after-sales service and maintenance costs while choosing a water purifier. If the after-sales service of the brand is bad it will create a plethora of problems to you. It is always wise to choose the purifier from a company that excels at providing good quality after-sales service and high maintenance.
Read product and customer reviews:
Before making a buying decision, you should be scrutinized in your own way. Go through the product reviews on various websites. You can check their customer reviews and understand their experience with the product. It will definitely help you to decide whether the purifier is worth the money or not.
Price:
You have to check your budget, everybody has their own budgetary constraints. So you must see whether the price of the product suitable for your budget. If it befits your budget, then, by all means, buy it.
Concluding
Now, this brings us to the end and those were some of the important factors that you need to consider when looking for a water purifier. With an increasing amount of pollution, buying a water purifier is a necessity. Choose the one that fulfills all your needs and ensure you always drink good water.