Need info on ultraviolet H2O treatment

Anyone know about or have info on ultraviolet water treatment systems?

Looking to increase my nawlege… my nohow…my edumacasun!:mrgreen:

Seriously… any info or web sites would help.

Thanks.

Home Depot has them on sale and lots of info should be able to find out a lot there .
Roy Cooke sr

kills bacteria that may be in the water. Replace bulb when needed. If you are in and area with hard water it is advisable to place the unit after the water softener. Otherwise the crystal sleeve will become coated with mineral deposits and the unit will not be effective.

http://www.uvwatertreatment.com/mighpu01.htm

Put a good sediment filter before the UV unit, as sediments hinder the effectiveness of the UV. Some manufactures recommend bulb replacement yearly.

http://www.home-water-purifiers-and-filters.com/whole-house-ultraviolet.php

I have been using one for a few years now. It is installed after whole house carbon filter and water softener. I was also recommended to change bulb annually, however, bulb is still good. I check it every few months. I installed my unit vertically to prevent sediment from settling on the glass tube inside.

I should add that I am on a 45’ dug well in the country and we use a bottled water company for our drinking and cooking water. One can never be to careful.

Here is my unit.

http://www.ohiopurewaterco.com/shop/customer/pages.php?pageid=136.html#SterilightSpecs

Roy,
How do you check that the bul is still good? I hope you are not simply looking to see that it is still shining.

You have a water softener, carbon filter and UV - and you buy bottled water think that is somehow less contaminated than yours? :shock:

Did you know that the bottled water industry is an unregulated industry. Most bottled water plants are located in the country often take water from the same aqua ducts as the neighbours. Some put it through a carbon filter, some don’t. Some claim to infuse oxygen in it ( what is suposed to do other than increase sales I don’t know). Some have the word “spring” in their name but that does mean that it comes from spring water even though thats what it implies. My point is that the bottled water you are buying is not neccessarily better than yours.

What is the number one concideration that a bottling plant has when deciding where to put a bottling plant. Certinly taste and clean have to be at accetable levels but the number one conciderations is volume. How much can they take. This is controled not only by the aqua duct supply itself but also by the permits the have been issued.

I am also in the country with a 33’ dug well. Have water softener and a UV (no carbon filter). perform my baterical tests regularily from a tap before the conditioning equipment and I NEVER buy bottled water.

Paul,

I have also heard that from others regarding the bottled water. My water is clear, cold and has no odor to it. I was more concerned about chemicals in the well as I am surrounded by farm crops. I was told that regular water testing only checks for organics. I would have to have the water tested for each particular chemical that might be in it. The friend who sold me the equipment (he is in the business) told me not to bother putting in all this equipment if I wasn’t going to drink the water. I am considering a R/O system for drinking water and canceling the water delivery.

Roy, If you want to test for chemiclas, given your situation I would start with nitrates. The type of crops and current soil condition will also give you a good indicator as to what might be going in your water. Some crops require heavy fertilizer and little pesticide and others require the opposite. And of course some are in between.

I think bottled water is a rip off. Recent studies indicate the plastic in many bottles leaches chemicals into water.

I drink well water, and have water softener, carbon filter, particle filter. I can sure smell the chlorine when I go to the big smoke. Now I use a Brita water pitcher and use it rather than bottles of water. Same taste as bottled.

There are two major water companies using springs in my area for use in bottles, it all tastes the same.

I think the Ontario Federation of Agriculture use to subsidize water testing for chemicals, et cetera on rural and farm properties, but don’t know if they still do.

Here’s something to think about. Why does bottled water have an expiry date?

Absolute pure water in a sealed container should theroretically never go bad.

Is it because of leaching chemicals from the plastic bottle?
Is it because of traces of organics (ie bacteria)?
or is it simply because if falls under some broad food classification that requires expiry dates?

No facts here just my opinion.

I think that this is crap.

Tell us how you really feel!

Does make one wonder doesn’t it.:-k

After having done further research on UV systems, I think the verdict is still out on these systems.

My opinion… stay with the carbon and particulate filters because you are forced to change them routinely. Whereas a UV system may appear to be operating as though it were new, when in fact the bulbs degrade in time and are more apt to be neglected since they are visibly putting off light. Many manufacturers recommended bulb replacement (some use 1 while others use multiple) at regular intervals ranging from 4 months to 1 year. The UV systems do not kill bacteria but effectively sterilize it so that it can’t reproduce. When UV range becomes degraded with time, their efficiency in bacteria sterilization is also reduced.

In my opinion they do not cure a bacteria problem, only treat the symptoms. I believe money is better spent elsewhere.

Thanks for the input and leads everyone.:slight_smile:

I can’t tell you how many realtors will take a water sample from the kitchen tap while the UV filtre is on. The sample should be taken with the UV off, otherwise you may not know you have a contaminated well. Duh. :frowning: