Point-of-use water purifiers reduce the risks of pathogens in drinking water. These systems are easy to install and take up little space. They can be used at home or in light commercial buildings.
POU systems can be used alone or in conjunction with other water filtration systems such as point-of-entry (POE) systems. Choosing between the two depends on your needs and the situation.
Cost
Unlike whole house water filters, point-of-use systems are installed directly at the source of a tap or dispensing outlet. They are also much more affordable than whole-house systems. Moreover, they allow households to control the exact type and level of contaminants in their water.
Under-the-sink models use advanced multi-stage purification technology and can remove a wide range of contaminants. Most of them come with a faucet and can be installed easily by DIY homeowners, while others require the services of a plumbing professional. However, these models are limited by their filter capacity and may not be able to remove all contaminants.
Many models use an electrolytic conductivity (EC) sensor, which measures the amount of dissolved solids by applying a small current between two metal contacts. EC is closely correlated with total dissolved solids (TDS), but it isn’t perfect. Some contaminant concentrations cannot be measured by EC, and there are significant differences between EC and TDS.
Another important consideration is that point-of-use systems don’t protect pipes or appliances from corrosive substances. Moreover, they do not address contaminants that aren’t present in drinking water but are known to clog or damage appliances. Nevertheless, if you are looking for higher-quality drinking water than refrigerator or charcoal filtered water pitchers, a point-of-use system is a good option. McBride’s Water Advantage, a water softener and filtration system dealer in Epsom, NH, can help you decide whether a point-of-use or whole-house system is best for your home.
Efficiency
A point of use water filter can remove heavy metals, organic compounds, chlorine, and odors from drinking water. These contaminants are commonly present in source waters for municipal drinking water and can be harmful to the human body. For example, methyl tertbutyl ether (MTBE), an additive used in gasoline to increase fuel combustion efficiency, is known to cause liver, kidney, testicular, central nervous system, and uterine problems. Other CECs, such as lead and arsenic, are also found in municipal drinking water.
In order to reduce these chemicals, most POU filters use granular activated carbon or sediment filtration. These types of filters have a very high removal rate for these specific contaminants. Another popular type of POU water filter is the reverse osmosis (RO) system. The RO process uses a membrane to separate water into permeate and concentrate. The membranes are highly effective at removing heavy metals, organic compounds, and odors from the drinking water. However, this type of water filtration can create up to five gallons of waste water for every gallon of permeate produced.
It would be beneficial to incorporate smart technology and elements into POU water filters that can reliably notify the user when the contaminant levels are approaching or have reached unacceptable levels. Conductivity, pH, and ORP sensors are readily available for less than $10 apiece.
Convenience
A point-of-use water filter is installed at a single fixture in your home like under the sink in your kitchen. They provide filtered water only to the specific fixture and typically offer low volume production (20-100 GPD). POU systems can include a variety of options from basic sediment and carbon faucet filters, to more advanced reverse osmosis (RO) and granulated activated carbon (GAC) filters for reducing chemical contaminants including volatile organic compounds, lead, PFAS and arsenic.
These filters provide great convenience for drinking and cooking. They are a cost effective alternative to buying bottled water and are environmentally friendly. POU systems are very popular for under-the-sink and countertop applications and can be found in many households. Countertop systems take up little space under the sink and are convenient for household use with the added benefit of removing plastic bottles from the environment. However, their lower capacity and lifespan compared to under the sink systems make them more suitable for light usage households.
On the other hand, point-of-entry systems are installed at the water line before entering the house and filter all the water that comes into your home. They can treat everything from your kitchen, bathrooms, washing machine and refrigerator to your toilets and showers. They can be more expensive than POU systems but offer high capacity filtration with the ability to remove a wide range of water contaminants. They also provide the most consistent high quality of filtered water throughout the entire house.