With more than 30 years’ experience in the residential and commercial water treatment space, Mark Nelson is a Class 1 Drinking-Water Operator and a CBWA (Canadian Bottled Water Association) Certified Plant Operator. As founder and president of Nelson Water in Ottawa, Mark focuses on dealing with challenging water treatment system designs for problem water. He also heads the largest water bottling plant in the city of Ottawa with a delivery network throughout the Valley.
We all need access to a supply of clean and fresh water for drinking, making our favorite beverages and for cooking. Clean and filtered water allows you to taste the real flavors of the foods and drinks you prepare and it’s a healthier choice for your family. Water from the local treatment plant is cleaned to a basic standard, but it may still contain unwanted contaminants. In this article, we will examine five reasons why you should consider a water filtration system for your kitchen.
1. An Efficient and Cost Effective Way to Remove Contaminants
The main reason that most people install a water filtration system in their kitchens is to remove contaminants that can range from annoyances to causing harm. When most people think of a water filter, they imagine a system that supplies clean water to every tap and plumbing fixture in the home. This is known as a whole-house water filter and it’s a great option if you want to improve the water quality for other tasks. But, the focus of this article is a water filter that you can use at a single location which is usually the kitchen sink. This type of water filter is known as a point-of-use (POU) filtration system and it allows you to get cleaner water on-demand without breaking the bank.
2. Removing Contaminants Found in Tap Water
As we mentioned earlier, public water supplies are disinfected to a basic level to ensure that they are potable. And yet, every year there are many people that are exposed to waterborne diseases and a wide variety of contaminants. One of the main problems lies in our aging water delivery infrastructure. Pollutants can enter pipes via cracks and breaks. Another problem is that many contaminants are not removed and considerable investment would be needed to upgrade our systems to remove them. A prime example would be the emerging threat of pharmaceutical byproducts found in our waterways.
Here are some of the common contaminants found in various concentrations in our tap water, they are: arsenic, heavy metals, Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS), Radionuclides, Chlorine, Chloramine, disinfection byproducts, microorganisms (bacteria, viruses, parasites) and many more.
Installing a POU kitchen water filter can remove all of these contaminants making your water from that tap cleaner, fresher and healthier. This is a far better option than resorting to bottled water, which costs more in the medium to long term and it’s hard to store. When you have on-demand filtered water from your kitchen tap you can use it to fill pitchers for the refrigerator, make clear ice, cooking, baking, making beverages and more.
3. Brewing Better Tasting Beverages
Many people spend a great deal of time searching for the perfect cup of coffee or tea. But, one of the main ingredients that is often overlooked is the water used to make the beverage. If your water contains contaminants, this will affect the molecules that determine the flavor of the beverage. In fact, if you have a high concentration of dissolved mineral content the water is considered to be hard and it’s less capable of supporting the flavors. This is why many coffee and tea experts recommend the use of filtered water to create the perfect brew. When you install a reverse osmosis (RO) POU filter system at your kitchen sink you will be surprised at the improved taste of your favorite beverages.
4. Making High Quality Ice
Again, this is a much overlooked aspect of making a cold drink or cocktail, but the ice you choose makes a real difference. Making ice at home with water that contains contaminants will result in cloudy ice cubes that don’t stay cold for long. The ice will contain chlorine which affects the flavor and the mineral content can damage your ice maker. If you make ice with pure water, the cubes are clear, they tend to last longer and you can taste the true flavor of your drinks. This is why cocktail experts recommend using clear ice when making drinks professionally.
5. Improving Your Baking and Cooking Results
Poor quality water can have a dramatic effect on your baking and cooking results. The taste of the food may be compromised, the cooking times can be longer and there may be health related problems. If your food contains contaminants such as disinfectant byproducts, heavy metals, and other pollutants, it cannot be considered to be healthy. When you cook with filtered water, the taste of the food is prominent and not masked by pollutants in the water.
When it comes to baking, using pure filtered water can have an even more dramatic impact. Essentially, baking is chemistry and the ingredients must work well together if you want your bread to rise. The quality of the water you use can affect the yeast during leavening and this is crucial to your baking success. All leavened products require the formation of gluten or the results are flat and failure is likely. When there are contaminants such as hard minerals, chlorine, and chloramine present the fermentation of the yeast is impaired. If you want consistent baking results, making the switch to filtered water will be a revelation.
What is the Next Step?
As you can see, there are considerable benefits when you make the switch to filtered water. A POU filtration system at the sink will certainly help you to produce tastier and more consistent results when baking, cooking, and making beverages. The most reliable filtration method is reverse osmosis (RO) because no chemicals are added to the incoming water. The system works by forcing the water through a semi-permeable membrane that has tiny pores that only allow the water molecules to pass through. The contaminants are left on the surface of the membrane and are periodically flushed away into the drain. This process takes a while, so the water is stored in a clean tank under the kitchen sink to ensure that you have on-demand filtered water when you need it.
If you want to learn more about a kitchen sink water filtration system, contact your local water treatment specialist today.