Well-water is awesome. You know exactly where it’s coming from. You’re not dependent on anyone’s infrastructure but your own (or that of your well-sharing community). And there is a sense of security knowing exactly what you’re drinking.
In a rush? Here’s the best option for most people: Vitapur whole home filtration system at Amazon.
But sometimes your well water can have an abundance of minerals or gasses that lead the water to smell or taste a little funny. Sulphur and iron are 2 that come to mind. While rarely harmful in the amounts found in well-water, the flavor is less than desirable.
Test the water from your well
Before we go any further, I want to stress how important it is to get your well water tested – by professionals – to ensure its’ safety. While it is true that, by and large, water is safe to drink, you should NEVER take it for granted that yours is safe. You are fully responsible for the safety of your water.
Yearly Check-ups
You should make sure you put in your yearly budget for annual check-ups to make sure your water stays potable.
This does a few things; first, it lets you rest easy knowing that the water you are drinking is safe and won’t cause you any harm. Second, it helps with budgeting. Getting a yearly inspection will let you know if there are any potential problems that may pop up, allowing you time to budget for the moment those issues arise.
A yearly checkup should check for indicators of unsanitary and unsafe contaminants. Things like; pH level, E. coli, water temperature, dissolved oxygen, nitrates, and transparency. All of these tests will ensure the safety and tastiness of your well water.
This checkup should also check the mechanical stability of your well to include the water pump and how secure the well is.
So, you’ve decided to filter out those flavors and start enjoying your well water? I’ve found just the right filters for the job. Read on!
APEC Top Tier 5-Stage Ultra Safe Reverse Osmosis Drinking Water Filter System
Wow, that was a long title. This system is an excellent one, and it believes in itself so much so that the company will give you a 1-year satisfaction guarantee. It is made to fit under a standard kitchen sink cabinet. This one comes with its own faucet that, of course, is lead-free. The best part is, the faucet is a very attractive shiny chrome.
The APEC is made of a top-notch design quality and is the only technology that is capable of removing 99% of the contaminants found in water. These contaminants include lead, chlorine, fluoride, and many, many more.
The top of the line, long-lasting filters give pure and refreshing water and the system is capable of treating both tap and well water.
This is easily a product worth getting for your well-water. The moment its installed underneath your kitchen sink you’ll enjoy better tasting water. One drawback is the reduced storage space you’ll inevitably have under the sink. But the taste will make up for it.
Vitapur Ultraviolet Whole Home Filtration System
This is a system I absolutely love. Being a whole home system you’ll be able to access purified water throughout your house, rather than at one sink or faucet. Making clean water showers an actual thing – YAYY!!
The UV lamp will inactivate dangerous bacteria like salmonella and E. coli. The lamp has an estimated life expectancy of 1-year before it needs to be replaced. There is also a sediment filter that gets rid of chlorine, odors, and other contaminants that have made their way into your well-water.
Do you like the Vitapur Ultraviolet system? Me too…. Check it out at Amazon.
Home Master Artesian Full Contact
Again, this device uses reverse osmosis. If it didn’t, I would not be standing here recommending it to you. It also an under the sink filtration system, but it takes up quite a bit more space than the APEC does.
What makes this one special is that it utilizes design features that solve the majority of problems that reverse osmosis users come across. Things like noisy drains or a slow flow of water. The Home Master dispenses water at twice the rate as normal reverse osmosis machines.
If twice the rate sounds like a large increase, it’s because it is. But if you’ve ever had to deal with the wait time for filling a gallon of water to make sun tea before, then you can fully appreciate how big of a difference this will make.
This unit has easy changing filters that only have to be replaced either once per year, or after every 2,000 gallons. The multiple stage filtration process (seven to be exact) takes out 98 percent of the impurities found in water, and that is absolutely fantastic.
Make that water hot fast!
With the best hotplate for boiling water.
This unit is much larger, and a bit more expensive, than others but it packs a ton of convenience in its over-sized frame. Not having to wait an unreasonable amount of time to fill up a gallon jug is a huge plus. And that plus -to me- means that it is worth the extra space and money.
Amazon has the Home Master now.
iSpring RCC7 WQA 5-Stage Reverse Osmosis Filter System
This is a decent machine for removing impurities in your well water. It can filter more than a thousand pollutants from your water, and if you register your purchase directly with the manufacturer, you will get a free 1-year money back guarantee.
As the title implies, it uses a 5 step process, utilizing reverse osmosis to purify well water. It takes out impurities that cause water to smell or taste bad.
See my pick for the
best wine glass for a cabernet.
I think this is a good kit, especially if you are on a tight budget. However, I do take issue with the fact that it is a five-stage system, rather than the seven-stage system that most of these machines use. By no means are you going to endanger yourself or your family by using this, but you also aren’t getting the best quality of water possible.
Aquasana 6-Stage Well Water Filtration System
Specifically for well-water use, the Aquasana removes the vast majority of contaminants in your water, and all the unsafe ones. Removing viruses, bacteria and a whole host of other impurities.
It has a UV filtration that melts 99.99% of all viruses and/or bacteria such as E. coli, cryptosporidium, chlorine and others.
Sure this is an extremely expensive unit, but it is well worth the money. Being created specifically for use with wells, it is rated to filter 500 thousand gallons of water before it needs replacement. You will have to change out the filers for the system right around every six months.
The main thing I take issue with is the fact that if you want to remove fluoride or iron you will have to purchase the add-on filter that is made for that. With a system that is on the higher-end of the price spectrum, one would hope that it removes ALL impurities.
You can find the Aquasana 6-stage well-water filtration system at Amazon.
Well-water benefits
Maybe the most unappreciated benefits you get from well-water is direct access to a natural source that hasn’t been adulterated by the cocktail of chemicals that the EPA puts into the city’s water source in order to keep the water safe.
Sure, these chemicals are put in the water supply at the absolute minimum levels (allegedly) and only to keep your water supply safe. But we don’t all want to be forced to digest fluoride, among other chemicals, on a daily basis.
Let us not forget that we also take showers in that same “doped up” city water. Did you know that our skin absorbs that water? And at a surprisingly high rate too. Just thinking about all the chemicals I ingest and absorb through my skin, makes my skin crawl – But maybe that’s the chemicals.
Obviously, you probably shouldn’t just pump the water out of your well and go directly to drinking it. But that’s why you’re looking into water filters for your well.
Why it’s important to filter your water
Everybody that drinks water wants to make sure they are getting the best tasting water they possibly can. That is why beverage companies spend millions of dollars developing and advertising their own take on aqua.
But have you ever stopped to think about why water tastes funny in the first place? It is mostly due to chemicals and other impurities found in it. Think about it, tap water tastes infinitely better than pool water right? But there both 2 hydrogen molecules with 1 oxygen molecule, what makes it so different? That’s only because, as bad as tap water tastes, it doesn’t have chlorine and the host of other chemicals rendering it undrinkable.
On top of having great tasting water, there are several other reasons to filter the water coming out of your well. The greatest reason being that: Your private well is not protected and regulated by the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency).
Of course, this comes with a host of issues because making sure your water is safe to drink is 100% your responsibility.
Bacteria
Your well water is home to all types of bacteria, and you can’t always see them. Even the clearest and most satisfying aqua can be unsafe to drink from. Most filters will get rid of all the harmful bacteria.
Chemicals
Because private wells aren’t regulated by the EPA, there is tons of variance in the water that comes from it. Depending on where you are your water can be rich in iron, copper, fluoride, and a host of other chemicals.
Not all filters are going to remove all chemicals, so be sure to get a filtration system that accommodates your needs.
Can damage your fixtures
If your water is high in iron you’ll notice that it begins to rust (or give the appearance of rusting) your sinks, toilets, and showers – and it doesn’t take too long to do it either.
Well-water is nothing but groundwater that has collected inside your well. Groundwater is the combination of rainwater, melted snow, and ice. Naturally, groundwater is not 100 percent pure water, it absolutely contains contaminants. Filtering this stuff is necessary.
Getting a filtration system to weed out the corrosive chemicals can add some longevity to your housing fixtures.
Wrap – Up
Reverse osmosis machines are a terrific way to make your well water taste like it came straight from a geyser. There are some drawbacks, such as the size. But sacrificing a little space for one of these units will give you years of pure, fresh tasting water, straight from your own well.
Of course, you could also opt for a large filtration system that covers your entire home. These give you significantly more benefits. Not only are you drinking purified water, but you are also bathing in that same crispy clean aqua.
Systems like the Aquasana Rhino will give you multiple years of use. That means multiple years of high-quality h2o – Bobby Boucher style.
Alexis DeAnda is a food fanatic, library card user, and cast iron hunter, in that order. She has been cooking for anyone that will taste it ever since her mom let her make doughnuts on Saturday mornings at the age of 7.