Best home water filter

John AdamaStaff - April 14, 2020

Note: Due to COVID-19, many of the best products are sold out everywhere, but in many cases you can still place your order to save your spot in line.
[See the full post at: Best home water filter]

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Any reason why you didn’t go more in depth on the St. Paul Mercantile filters?  After doing a fair bit of research on gravity filters I chose the 3.5 gallon size instead of the Royal Berkey.  Less expensive, can fit 6 filter candles instead of the Berkey’s 4, doesn’t require pressurized priming of the filters, and filters flouride and chloramine (plus a bunch of other things) without add-on doodads.

 

No negative reason. Just that we don’t (yet) have much experience with the assemble-yourself options and wanted to get some info up in the meantime. Plus the vast majority of people won’t go the DIY route, because they’d rather just buy turnkey, have a service department they can call, and so on.

 

I’ve used Berkey and filters from St. Paul Mercantile.  The experience of using both is exactly the same—St. Paul Mercantile’s is not more DIY than Berkey’s.  The difference is only in the brand and the price.  The construction is virtually identical.

For both systems you have to replace the filter elements (candles) on a regular basis (usually yearly).  I’ve come to favor the Aqua Cera brand (also available on the St. Paul Mercantile website) because my research showed me they do a better job of removing fluoride than Berkey’s.  They’re also easier to use.

Over the years I’ve asked for help from John at St. Paul Mercantile and also Aqua Cera.  Both have been responsive and helpful.

 

We ordered parts from SPM today and will follow up with a review ASAP.

 

I think it’s a mistake to not evaluate Point of entry filters.  Yes, they are not portable and only work with your main water system, but that is also true of under sink filters.  But they also have the advantage of filtering the whole home, so you can do weird things like drink your bathroom water.

Additionally, I prefer to have dual use “preps” – things that help me everyday as well as in an emergency.  So, everyday (and in this Covid-19 emergency) I’m not worried about water safety at all because of my point of entry filter.  I can add in a Point of Use as a back up.  Two is one, one is none.

I’ve found the iSpring Point of Entry filters easy to install and cost effective.  An example: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B008GNRMYK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

Thanks for the feedback. There’s no right and wrong, we just know from experience that it’s an easier point of entry (heh, sorry) to the market for people to start with point-of-use products. Then some folks expand past it, and most stay content with just the point-of-use.

We looked (even asked people at NSF) for POE systems that had alternative inputs for emergencies, but we aren’t finding good solutions. Would love to see them though, and as soon as the market gets there, we’ll cover it!

 

Jamie, I use a point of entry system similar to the one you use.  It does very well at removing sediment and chemicals but does not remove bacteria or fluoride. One option is to purchase an ultraviolet light insert that fits inside one of the blue filter holders.  That would kill the bacteria as the water flows through.  If you are on municipal water, bacteria would rarely be a problem.  Also, unless you purchase a filter element specifically designed to remove heavy metals, this type of system would not remove arsenic, fluoride or other heavy metals.  This is why I use a point of use filter for drinking water.

 

Hi there great article would like to know your thoughts on Alexapure from Infowars. Been using mine for two months and it’s great.

 

The Alexapure’s are fine, and we touched on them in the article. They just have less popularity/history in the emergency preparedness community. You can (and should) buy them from many other places, Infowars is just one reseller.

 

Berkey water filters are not NSF certified, unless something has changed recently.

 

Thanks for pointing out. Was aware in our eval, but we should be more explicit in pointing that out, given how we talk about NSF otherwise. Will soon edit article to reflect. We decided to still support Berkey because even without the NSF certification, there’s enough history and validation to feel confident in the non-NSF testing.

 

Thank you, I appreciate the clarification.  What are your thoughts on using the Berkey for purification with potentially contaminated water (for example, a boil water advisory)?

 

The Wirecutter also seem to dislike the Berkey, and note in their lab tests they were unreliable, and results fluctuated a fair bit.
https://thewirecutter.com/reviews/big-berkey-water-filter-system/

 

The Sawyer Point Zero Two System isn’t available anywhere and I’m wondering if it’s been discontinued. A two bucket system is sill available with a 0.1 filter.

 

A review of the Point ZeroTwo bucket system went up after your comment: https://preparedpro.xyz/blog/review-sawyer-point-zerotwo-bucket-system/

 

Using a home testing kit, I’ve compared using a Sawyer 0.1 filter and Chlorine Dioxide tablets. My results show that the filter does a significantly better job at eliminating bacteria.

When treating questionable water, I usually add Chlorine Dioxide to filtered water which kills viruses in 20 minutes, but is overkill for eliminating bacteria.

 

I’ve been hesitating over a Berkey for more than a year because of the price point, but with Omicron on the horizon I decided I needed to put this final step into my preps and I just ordered the travel size with extra filters. Happy early holidays to me!  

The reason I ordered the travel size is that I’m well aware of my strength limitations and the weight, both empty and full, are about at the level with which I am comfortable.  At some point I might start a Forum thread about “preps that are easier to carry” – for example, I bought the smaller 2.5 gal Scepter water can instead of the recommended 5 gallon because the last thing I need in an emergency is to injure my back! If I really needed the extra capacity (I don’t) I’d rather order two travel Berkeys than one “Big”; this serves the purpose of making them easier to carry as well as providing a backup in case one inexplicably fails. 

 

The recommendations on this site are to educate people on what we think is best for most and to teach what to look out for. Good job for not just blindly taking our recommendations and considering your situation and if it is a right fit for you or not. It sounds like the choices you have made are the best choices for you. 

The travel Berkey is great! It will just need filled more frequently and may not filter as quickly but besides that there are no other cons. And like  you said, it will be easier for you to move around and has extra versatility that way. 

 

You said “The standard reference for rating a home water filter system comes from NSF International. If a filter system doesn’t have an NSF mark, you can’t be sure of its effectiveness.”

But what are the criteria for selecting a standard reference?

 

I reached out to a representative from NSF and this is what they had to say:

“The NSF/ANSI Drinking Water Treatment Unit Standards are the American National Standards for water filters.  These standards have been developed and are continually updated and improved by an expert Joint Committee. Experts on the Joint Committee represent three main stakeholder groups – Regulators, Consumers, and Manufacturers.  The Joint Committee follows a consensus process and thorough scientific methods regarding the development of these standards including extensive laboratory testing using the latest analytical instruments and techniques.  The standards require three basic categories of testing of water filters:

• Extraction testing to evaluate and assure the safety of the materials in contact with drinking water.
• Structural integrity to assure durability and resistance to leakage.
• Contaminant reduction to assure the product reduces the specific contaminants claimed by the manufacturer according to rigorous protocols requiring performance throughout the lifetime of the filter.

 With this inclusive and scientific approach to development of the standard and the complete and rigorous evaluation of the filters required for conformance, NSF certification provides excellent assurance of safety and performance of the filter.”