People most often judge the quality of water by its taste. The scary fact is that you cannot taste, see, or even smell most contaminants. Since Portland water is so soft, it does a great job of leaching lead and lead solder from pipes and fixtures in older homes, and even from the city’s distribution system. Even at low levels, contaminants in drinking water have an impact on your long-term health.

If you plan on making some major changes in your kitchen, consider a water filter. Point-of-use water filters are becoming more of a necessity as water quality deteriorates around the country. The Water Quality Association’s latest market research indicates that 55% of consumers are more likely to purchase a home if it contains a water treatment system.

Choosing a water filter
With water filters, what you see is not necessarily what you get. There are over 4,000 water filtration and purification systems on the market. Many filters are designed to improve taste and odor, but may not reduce contaminants.

The following questions will help you choose the best filter:

How many contaminants is the filter certified to reduce?
NSF® International and UL® are the two independent labs that test and certify water filters. Checking the certification is the only way to verify that a manufacturer’s claims are true. (TNSF website: www.nsf.org. Underwriters Laboratories Inc.: www.ul.com.) Check the NSF listing to see if it is certified for lead, mercury, TTHMs (disinfection by-products), endocrine disrupters, cysts, pesticides, and herbicides.

Is the technology appropriate for the contaminants that are in your water?
Certain technologies are only capable of reducing certain contaminants.

Solid carbon has the most comprehensive capability for reducing contaminants of health concern.

Granular-activated carbon filters generally make the water taste better but do not reduce pesticides, herbicides, or disinfection by-products.

Distillers and reverse osmosis systems remove the beneficial minerals as well as heavy metals such as lead, but do not reduce many volatile organic chemicals or disinfection by-products.

Softeners replace minerals for salt.

Ultraviolet and ozone systems kill microbiological contaminants but do not reduce other contaminants.

Does the system waste water?
A reverse osmosis system typically wastes about 3 to 4 gallons for every 1 gallon of filtered water it produces.

Does the system leave the beneficial minerals in your water?
Solid and granular carbon filters allow beneficial minerals to pass through.

Is it easy to use with a replaceable filter?
The filter should be easy for you to change, without requiring a plumber. Some systems are throw-aways when the cartridge is used up.Don’t throw away your money on one of these.

What is the cost per gallon of filtered water?
Are the system and replacement cartridges reasonably priced, or will you be paying a fortune over time? A quality solid carbon block filtration system is less than $.07/gallon when you replace the filter once a year. GAC filters tend to have very high replacement cartridge cost ($.23/gallon) for very little contaminant reduction. Distilled water is usually $.25 or more per gallon. Bottled water can cost over $2/gallon.

What is the warranty and is there a money back guarantee?
Many warranties are only one year, and only a few companies offer a 100% money back guarantee in the first 30 days following your purchase.

How long has the company been in business?
Look for a company that has been around for a long time and stays on the cutting edge of technology.

Two for the price of one
Planning ahead in your design or remodel ensures that your under-sink filter can be run to your refrigerator. The majority of filters that come inside of refrigerators are taste and odor filters. You will also be paying more in your refrigerator purchase—anywhere from $200 to as much as $700 more, just because it has a filter. You can also run a line to a bathroom and instant-hot water dispenser.