Types of water purifiers: Compressive guide

What are the types of water purifiers available in the market?

If you search for water purifiers, you will mostly hear about these three: RO, UV, and UF water purifiers. These are the ones you should seek.

RO is the most effective water purifier of all, but wastes a significant amount of water. UV kills all the harmful bacteria, adding no chemicals. UF removes all the suspended particles such as metals but it lacks behind with the dissolved salts.

You will get a combination of these technologies in your water purifier to meet different needs. Now let me explain about these.

Let’s start our blog post on: Types of water purifiers.

Also read, 7 Common Aquaguard Light Indicator Signals and Their Meanings

Types of water purifiers
water purifier types | Image: eurekaforbes

1. Reverse Osmosis (RO)

In reverse osmosis, the water is passed through a semi-permeable membrane, which has tiny pores. In this process, a water pump is used to pass the water through the membrane forcefully.

As a result, all the dissolved salts and impurities are left behind and you will get high-quality purified water.

It is the most effective method to purify hard water. Only RO can remove metals such as arsenic, fluoride, chlorine, nitrates, and sulfates dissolved in water.

Based on the installation, RO can be classified as:

  1. Wall-mounted or Table-top RO.
  2. Under-Sink or Under-Counter RO water purifier

Checkout the Aquaguard Aura, if you want a good RO water purifier.

Advantages.

  • It can remove all the dissolved salts of water.
  • It removes all the dissolved salts and metals that cause the foul odor and unpleasant taste.

Disadvantages.

  • RO has a significant amount of water wastage.

2. Ultraviolet (UV).

In UV or ultraviolet water purifiers, UV rays are projected onto the water and kill all the harmful microorganisms present in it.

It uses a UV lamp that projects UV rays on the water. It uses electricity to operate, which is as low as an electricity bulb.

The best part about UV water purifiers is, they do not add any chemicals to it. That makes it healthy.

Sadly, it can’t remove the dissolved salts, unlike RO.

Advantages.

  • Kills all the harmful microbes.
  • Do not use any chemicals.
  • Low maintenance and easy cleaning.
  • It keeps the essential minerals of water.
  • It operates at low electricity consumption.
  • Less water wastage as compared to RO.

Disadvantages.

  • It does not remove dissolved salts and smaller microbes.
  • UV water purifiers do not work for hard water.
  • It does not remove the suspended particles such as mud in it.

3. Ultrafiltration (UF).

UF or ultrafiltration is like RO, but with the membrane of larger pores. It removes all the suspended particles, such as bacteria or other organic substances.

However, it does not remove the dissolved salts. In case your water has high TDS levels, then UF alone is ineffective.

Still, UF removes most of the suspended particles present in the water.

Advantages.

  • It does not require electricity.
  • It does not use any chemicals in it.
  • UF has a long lifespan, making its maintenance low.
  • It can clean muddy water.

Disadvantages.

  • It is less effective for hard water.
  • Frequent cleaning is required.

4. Activated Carbon Filter.

These water purifiers contain an activated carbon filter which is made of charcoal. It adsorbs all the disease-causing pesticides and heavy metals present in the water.

It improves the water’s taste and odor. Activated carbon filters are considered best for removing chlorine from water.

Advantages.

  • It removes harmful pesticides and toxic chemicals, such as chlorine.
  • Improves water’s taste and odor.
  • It removes heavy metals and increases the lifespan of the RO membrane.

Disadvantages.

  • It does not remove dissolved salts and harmful microbes.

5. Sediment filter.

It is a series of filters that are used with RO and other water purifiers to remove the sediments or large floating impurities.

They are made of cotton or polyester fibers and come in a roll shape inside a plastic-sealed container.

These remove most large particles, like mud or other organic materials. Afterwards, water is purified in the RO.

6. Gravity-based water purifier.

Lastly, I would like to mention the gravity-based water purifier. It contains various filters and uses gravity to purify the water. The water passes through various filter cartridges with the use of gravity and gets filtered.

It does not require electricity and is usually slow to dispense water. They cost less compared to any other water purifier, such as RO.

Verdict: Types of water purifiers.

If your locality has hard water, or you use borewell water, then you must consider RO. However, if your water has a low TDS level or low chemical concentration, then you can also consider the UV+UF water purifiers.

Good brands also offer features such as mineral guards and copper boosters, which are good for your health.

Some water purifiers such as Livpure Bolt + offer water-saving features with RO, so you can also consider that. I hope you have liked our blog post on types of water purifiers.

If you have doubts, please comment and let me know.

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