Thursday, August 25, 2011

Reverse Osmosis - Friend Or Foe?

There is a serious debate going on about reverse osmosis. People want to know what the disadvantages of reverse osmosis are and does reverse osmosis make water safe to drink. With all these questions and doubts, it just makes sense to understand a little about this process of water filtration and then you can decide what is the truth.

osmosis water filter

Reverse osmosis has been quite successful in the commercial sector, where it was designed for desalination. However, critics of the system have misgivings and tend to point out the disadvantages of reverse osmosis at homes because they feel that the system is hyped by the manufacturers.

OSMOSIS

This article will give you an honest and unbiased view about the disadvantages and also answer to the question -- does reverse osmosis make water safe to drink?

Disadvantages of Reverse Osmosis at Homes:

The disadvantage of this system is the time it takes to filter water. The system takes roughly three to four hours to filter just one gallon of water. There is the price factor. Imagine you are paying around ,000 to install in your home and then you have to wait for hours before your water is filtered for drinking or cooking purposes.

In addition, there are questions about the safety of water. Does reverse osmosis make water safe to drink? Well, the system is unable to remove chemicals from our drinking water. The system does not filter out chemicals and toxins exposing you to hazards and dangers including the risk of getting cancer or lead poisoning.

If the disadvantages of reverse osmosis are so many and there are questions being asked about safety of drinking water, why is the system so popular? It all boils down to effective marketing. How many times we have seen this strategy employed? There is no doubt that the reverse osmosis system is known to remove elements that naturally exist in our drinking water. It helps to remove the all the elements that give water its unpleasant odor. But that is about all this system does.

Does Reverse Osmosis Make Water Safe to Drink?

The answer to this question is a resounding yes. Reverse osmosis uses a process known as ultra filtration wherein a membrane is used to filter the water. The openings of this membrane are microscopic which do not allow larger particles to pass through. The systems also use electric shocks to keep chemicals from passing through the membrane.

The process of not allowing contaminants to pass through the membrane is called rejecting the contaminant and there is a rate for this process. If the rate is not set at high, the membrane will allow undesirable elements to pass through it make the water unsafe to drink.

For those of you who are still pondering over the question: does reverse osmosis make water safe to drink should realize that correct installation has to be used at homes for reverse osmosis to be effective and this means spending more money to be a plumber and an electrician to do the fitting, even then you are not sure whether the fitting is done correctly.

The disadvantages of reverse osmosis far outweigh the so-called benefits. If someone forces you to buy a reverse osmosis system, do not listen to the person. The best way for you to judge the efficacy of a water filtration system is by testing it and making sure that it fulfills your water treatment needs. Different systems handle water treatment differently and you have to find one that is right for your requirements. But the best water filtration system is one that can remove chemicals, impurities and particulate matter while retaining the beneficial trace elements.

Reverse Osmosis - Friend Or Foe?

OSMOSIS

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