Today, with the focus on health, many families are opting for adding a water treatment system to the home. Whether you receive your water from a municipal water system, or a private well, a whole house water treatment system can ensure the health of your water supply.
There are many different options when it comes to water treatment systems. The one you choose ultimately depends on your needs, what contaminants might be present, your budget, and the advice of your water treatment professional as to the best option.
Aging infrastructure in many cities and increasing density of homes drawing on aquifers can lead to an increase in possible contamination. Bacteria and organic organisms like giardia, e-Coli, and others have been found in both municipal water and private wells. One treatment options that can provide your family with peace of mind is Ultraviolet technology.
A UV water treatment system can destroy up to 99.99% of waterborne microorganisms. When used in conjunction with a filtration system, you can also remove many other inorganic contaminants as well. Let's take a look at the advantages and disadvantages UV water treatment systems, the components and some frequently asked questions about UV water purification.
Municipal water suppliers take the necessary precautions to meet water quality standards. Homeowners who test annually also are aware of their water quality. However, chlorine resistant microorganisms, like giardia or cryptosporidium can still find their way into municipal supplies and are naturally occurring in water wells. These organisms cause thousands of documented health cases each year.
UV purification systems can take water purification to another level and are a safe solution to remove the dangers of microorganisms from your water. UV Water treatment is:
• Effective – destroying 99.99% of microorganisms
• Chemical Free – UV systems use no chemicals. Water is passed under ultraviolet light to kill organisms
• Environmentally Friendly – UV is a viable, environmentally friendly alternative to chlorination and emits absolutely no by-products
• Trouble Free – Once installed, a UV system simply needs annual service
• Reliable – works 24/7/365 keeping your water supply safe
• Safe – no handling of dangerous chemicals is required
• Fast – water flows through the system with no need for a holding tank or reaction times
• Clean – no dirty filters or media to dispose of, ever!
• Low Energy Use
• Conserves Resources – The UV purification process does not waste any water
• FDA Approved – UV is one of only 4 methods approved for disinfection by the FDA
Most UV systems require only an annual bulb change and the occasional changing of the filter that protects the lamp. While UV systems can be a bit costly, the low operating costs make it pay for itself quickly.
While UV light offers many benefits, there are a few challenges to using this form of treatment. UV light is only able to remove microorganisms and does not remove any other contaminants like heavy metals, salts, chlorine or man-made contaminants. If you have issues with other contaminants, UV light can be used in tandem with filtration to further remove contaminants.
UV light is also only effective in the water being treated is clear. If your well produces murky water or contains “floaties” it should be pre-filtered before UV light treatment. If the UV light can not reach the microorganisms because it is blocked by particles, it will not be effective.
Finally, UV systems need electricity to operate. This means that it may not be suitable for some applications like emergency needs or survival needs if electricity is not available.
Overall, UV water treatment is an outstanding way to meet your families needs for water purification. It has been proven to be one of the most reliable, cost-effective methods for disinfecting water and is applicable in both point-of-use and whole-house water treatment applications. When used in conjunction with either pre-filtration or post-filtration, UV light is an excellent method to ensure years of healthy clean drinking water for you and your family.
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Nowadays, most people are concerned about their health, including the quality of drinking water entering their homes. Private well water is one source of drinking water in many homes today. However, many private wells face the risk of contamination from natural and man-made pollutants that seep underground. These contaminants can pose health risks, and the consumption of such water can also lead to illnesses.
Due to these health concerns, people look for different ways of treating private well water. One of these options is UV water treatment. UV water treatment involves using ultraviolet light to destroy microorganisms and pathogens in water. However, this poses the question, how effective is UV light in treating private well water? Read on to learn if UV water purification works or not and the advantages of using it.
Well water comes from underground water seeped into the earth from the surface. As the water moves underground, it can easily pick up all kinds of contaminants from human activities and natural occurrences. This is why it’s important to test your well water regularly, filter it, and disinfect it before using it for drinking.
Some contaminants commonly found in well water include heavy metals like lead and copper. In addition, organic chemicals and nitrates found in fertilizers also wash off and find their way into wells. These impurities can be removed through filtration.
However, even after filtering your water, microorganisms such as viruses, bacteria, and parasites still risk contaminating your water. These pathogens can cause infections and gastrointestinal illnesses. This is where UV water purification comes in. UV light has been proven to be one of the most effective ways of disinfecting water. Moreover, it has gained popularity because it doesn’t use any chemicals.
A UV water technology system utilizes ultraviolet light to kill the microorganisms found in water. Most of these microorganisms cannot stand the UV light as little exposure to the light destroys their DNA. This prevents them from reproducing, so even when you ingest them they will not multiply in your gut and cause illnesses.
When used properly, UV water filters disinfect and kill up to 99.99% of the bacteria and viruses in your private well water. However, the water should not contain too many heavy minerals or suspended particles for UV light to work effectively. This is because these elements can limit the effectiveness of the UV water purifier.
UV water purification systems only target microorganisms, which means they do not remove other pollutants from your well water. As mentioned above, the presence of these water contaminants can reduce the effectiveness of the UV purification system.
These particles can create blind spots where the UV rays will not reach the microorganism by building grime on the surface of the glass sleeve. This affects the amount of light that can pass through and increases the risk of harmful microorganisms in the water even after treatment.
This three-step process ensures you get the most out of your UV water purifier and drink safe, contaminant-free water.
The only downside of UV water disinfection is that it does not eliminate all the contaminants found in water, only the microorganisms. You will, therefore, require other filtration methods to remove sediments, chlorine, salts, and heavy metals.
UV light water treatment is an excellent option to disinfect your private well water when combined with a pre-filtration system. This water treatment method will kill 99.99% of microorganisms without changing the taste of your water or adding any chemicals, making it safe for drinking. Therefore, try UV water purifiers if you want to remove pathogens such as bacteria, viruses, and parasites from your private well water.