Best Whole House Water Filter

The importance of having clean drinking water is paramount when it comes to maintaining the health of a family. That is why, there can be no compromises when it comes to choosing the best whole house water filter for your home. In this article, I share some tips on choosing the best whole house water filter system and help you decide through some reviews of the best products available in the market.

What is a Whole House Water Filter?

A whole house water filter is a complete water filtering solution for your home. Instead of putting up filters at various water outlets, a whole house water filter is connected to the main water inlet of a home. That way, all the water that enters your house through various dispensers in toilets, showers, faucets, baths, laundry and kitchen is pre-filtered before it's used. Generally, whole house water filters are connected to the primary water line, before the water gets distributed to the hot water heater. So, the water gets filtered right at the source, before it is subjected to any usage in the house.

Choosing a Whole House Water Filter

There are many different types of whole house water filters available in the market. Which would be the best whole house water filter for your home, will be decided by the kind of contaminants that exist in the water you receive. So, basically one needs to determine the type of contaminants before choosing the right water filter that can remove or filter them out. The most common kinds of impurities or contaminants, found in water supplied by municipal corporations are iron, sediments, chemicals and hardness minerals. These contaminants can vary from being just nuisance to toxic kinds. A water analysis report can be had from the municipal authorities, which will give you an idea as to what kind of whole water filter would be the best for your home. Best whole house water filters and softeners can remove hardness, as well as a range of other contaminants. Some types of contaminants require specific filters, while others require more number of filtering layers. A water analysis of your area will help you decide what type of filter or filters will be the best for your use. The most common filters are carbon based filters. Here are important points you should look out for while choosing the best whole house water filter:

• Filter Type and Layers: See that the type of filters and the number of layers it has, are enough to remove the primary contaminants in your water supply.
• Flow Rate: Flow rate of a whole house water filter will decide how much water is filtered out, every minute. It is measured gallons per minute (GPM). See to it that flow rate capacity is more than 10 GPM. A flow rate in range of 15 - 40 GPM will be adequate for most homes.
• Filter Size: The filter size denotes the dimensions of filter. It affects the water pressure and flow rate. The standard filter size that suits well for most homes is 4.5" x 20".
• Filter Life: With progressive sediment deposition, the life of a filter diminishes. It is usually mentioned in gallons of water that the filter can handle before it goes in to redundancy. Normally, standard carbon filter cartridges will last for 100,000 - 150,000 gallons with exposure to normal municipal water supply. Standard carbon filters with back washing valve last longer.
• Port Size: Port size is the diameter size of the pipe connected to the whole house water filter. A 1" port, with appropriate filter size works fine for most homes and provides water supply without pressure drops.

Best Whole House Water Filter: Reviews

Rating whole house water filters is all about evaluating them on the basis of the parameters mentioned above. Here is a list of some of the best whole house water filters available in the market.

• Pelican PC600 Premium Whole House Water Filter: Priced at $699, this water filtration system is built to last long. Provides filtered water for small homes at adequate pressure.
• Rhino EQ-300 Whole House Water Filter: Priced at $799, this product provides three stage filtration and has a filter life of about 300,000 gallons. It can remove contaminants down to a size of 5 microns.
• Kenmore Heavy-Duty Whole House Water Filter - 38448: This heavy duty filtration system comes at a price of $56. It delivers a high water flow rate and high pressure without drop.
• Pelican PSE1800 Premium Whole House Filter: Priced at $1944, this is one of the best whole house water filters on the market. It comes with a 10 year warranty and offers excellent filtering service removing chlorine, pesticides, herbicides, industrial solvents and organic compounds.

So, this was a representative list of best whole house water filters available in the market. There are many more choices of products available in the market, designed to suit varying requirements. Select one after carefully considering the water analysis report, filtering requirements and flow rate.