Juliana sent me the following email, and I thought I should pose this question to my readers:
Hi Crystal,
I’m a regular reader here although I’ve been a bit MIA lately because we moved. Anyway wondering if you have every done any research on a thrifty water filtration device. I am of the mind that flouride is not natural and good for us, so i’m wanting to filter it out of our water any suggestions? do other readers have this concern?
thanks
As far as thrifty goes, it has been my experience that any water filtration system that actually works and gets rid of harmful chemicals for our water, is never thrifty. We actually use the Nikken Aqua Pour Gravity Filtration System in our home, and it costs a pretty penny to get. But the system is incredible and keeps pretty much everything out of our water, and puts essential nutrients and minerals back in it. While the system was actually a gift from my father, if I didn’t have it I would definitely choose to invest in a good water filtration system. Because ultimately that it is investing in our health.
So I’ll pose this question to you readers: Do you have a thrifty suggestion for Juliana? Is there a water filtration system that works well and takes out harmful chemicals like fluoride and chlorine? I’m as keen to hear your answers as Juliana is!
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The cheapest might be the Zero Water Pitcher. They have $30.00 worth of coupons on their site: http://www.zerowater.com/
We use this one (http://www.freedrinkingwater.com/products.htm), which is on sale for $299 (not very thrifty), but you get a lot of accessories with it and if you refer others to get one (they have to have your name), you get $40.00 each time or free filters. You can also get $40.00 back if you send them a picture of it. So, if you work really hard, you can get it for a lot less, maybe even free.
That’s a great tip! I’m going to look into that, because it definitely sounds like you can work out a bargain.
Maybe I am ignorant but I thought it was good they were putting flouride in the water. ??
It’s actually a poisonous toxin: http://www.wholywater.com/fluoride.html
I would suggest anyone double-check with your city/county/wherever you get your water before investing in an expensive water filtration system. You can get information about what is in the water, including what they add in. For example, in my area, they do not fluoridate the water, and it tests out very clean for other chemicals, as well. I’ve decided it is not worth it for us to buy more than the water filter in our fridge. Just something to look into–you might be pleasantly surprised by your local water quality!
I’m a Registered Dietitian and often hear clients tell me that they “can’t” drink water because they can’t afford to buy bottled or buy a filtration system. I looked at the article you linked to and the research is quite dated (10+ years) and the site is for a water purification system, so it presents very biased information. Fluoride is a naturally occurring mineral, but like all things isn’t good for you in excess. It is necessary in small amounts. I think the following link is a little less biased in the information it presents: http://www.acu-cell.com/fcl.html. In my opinion, the USA has some of the most clean, safe drinking water in the world. It is also regulated and treated. How blessed are we!? If you want thrifty, drink it from the tap! If your local drinking water does have a high content of minerals ( i.e. hard water) then a simple Brita filter should do the trick. Lastly, you can check with your water company about the levels of various minerals in your water to verify its safety.
It’s just a difference of opinion.
I agree with The Thrifty Mama. I drink my water from a reverse osmosis filter system from the tap. Southern California does ad fluoride and I do not believe it is safe for drinking. I use it in toothpaste because it is good for my teeth, but I do not want to drink it. Here is info from the EPA on flouride (http://www.epa.gov/ogwdw000/contaminants/basicinformation/fluoride.html)
The EWG ( http://www.ewg.org/tapwater/findings.php) has some links and studies done on the water quality in your area – You can look up your water quality by zip code.
I also tested my tap water with a tester and got 750 PPM! That is way over the guidelines set by the EPA of a maximum of 500 PPM (http://www.epa.gov/safewater/contaminants/index.html). When I used a Brita, it reduced it to 450 PPM… not good enough for me. The RO system has brought it down to 38 PPM and the water tastes great.
We are blessed to have better water quality then other countries, but it is by no means perfect in my opinion.
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http://www.morethanalive.com/Berkey_Water_Filters?id=FzQSL8rR
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This is what we use and love it. It filters with charcoal. It removes chlorine and flouride among other things. Don’t forget that it’s not just flouride that isn’t good there is also chlorine, rust and contaminates from the pipes themselves and who knows what else
I just looked at the prices on the Big Berkeys and I had forgetten that they are not very cheap and also the flouride is removed by elements you have to buy seperately. Though right now they are free with purchase on most of the filters. But we still love it and feel it has been worth EVERY penny
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As far as I’m aware the only two ways to remove significant amounts of fluoride from water is via reverse osmosis and distillation. I am going to buy a water distiller for $150 from amazon.com. At least I will have clean drinking water. I wish I could afford a system to remove it from the shower/bath as well. I’m also interested in removing all other contaminants as well such as medicines and other chemicals that don’t get removed from the water properly. I am concerned about xenoestrogens in my bottled and tap water as well. The distiller will also help to heat my house in the winter, not so good for the summer though.
I truly believe that fluoride can be dangerous so I understand the desire to filter it out. One product that I am saving up for is the Ecolo blue atmospheric water generator. It sucks the water out of the air for clean pure healthy H2O. It is a big ticket purchase but I have noticed that the price has been reduced reciently and sometimes the website has a special where they throw in a free generator with purchase so it can add up to a great deal.
Ok, this is probably the stupid question of the year but how bad is it to use a simple Brita Pitcher? I know it’s not great but is it good enough?