WHICH WATER TREATMENT METHOD IS BEST FOR YOU?
If your main criterion is purity, then there is no substitute for a reverse osmosis system, despite its cost, and the disadvantages of flow-rate and taste. If you are short of money, an end-of-tap version is available for around £90 (supplier: Environmental Water Supplies) which has the merit that you can carry it with you when you go out or travel.
If you are sensitive to nitrates, use a reverse osmosis system for preference. Alternatively, look for a nitrate-reducing version of KDF, AC and jug filters.
If you are very short of money, but want something more convenient and effective than a jug filter, then your best choice may be a smaller plumbed-in undersink activated carbon filter at around £50 before plumbing costs (supplier Berglen), or an end-of-tap activated carbon filter which costs between £11 and £90.
If you are sensitive to water you wash with, a showerhead KDF filter at about £50 (supplier: Environmental Water Supplies) is a cost-effective way of reducing problems and inconvenience. Users report that these are not always effective so may not be useful if you are very sensitive.
If you want a system for your whole house, there is currently no ideal solution. There is an activated carbon filter system available for about £100 which will serve (supplier: Opella), but it is not designed for that purpose, and is costly and inconvenient in terms of filter replacement. Some suppliers are now just introducing purpose-built all-house AC filters – keep an eye out for new products coming on to the markets.
If money is no object, suppliers will quote to plumb in RO, KDF or AC systems to supply multiple or different parts of your system – for instance, drinking water and sink, laundry, bathroom, or even lavatory. This could easily cost you upwards of £1000, so you need to be really sure it’s worth it.
If you are not short of money, and not so sensitive that you really need RO water, a compromise solution may work better – say, with a good quality KDF or AC plumbed-in filter in the kitchen for drinking and cooking water, with a portable tap filter or jug filter available for other situations, and a showerhead filter for showers. Coverage of this kind would be possible for between £300 and £400 (before plumbing costs).
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