Reverse Osmosis Water Treatment

Reverse Osmosis is one of the best and most thorough water filtration systems available. Kinetico’s third-party certified RO systems reduce up to 99%+ of dissolved salts (ions), particles, colloids, organics and bacteria as well as many viruses.

An RO system typically consists of four stages of filtration. The first, a sediment filter, removes sand silt and other sediment that could clog the RO membranes.

What is Reverse Osmosis?

Reverse osmosis uses pressure to force water molecules through a semipermeable membrane, removing contaminants. A reverse osmosis system typically contains pre- and post-filters, the RO membrane filter, and sometimes an acidic rinse or a carbon block filter. The most common types of contaminants removed by this type of system include lead, fluoride, chlorine, dissolved salts, and more.

The first cartridge in a reverse osmosis drinking water system, often called the sediment or carbon filter, protects the membrane by straining out larger particles like silt and chlorine that could clog it. This is an important step because it extends the life of the RO membrane.

Water molecules naturally move through a semipermeable membrane from the area of higher concentration to the lower concentration. When the membrane is crowded with sugar, the pure solvent moves to fill the space until there’s equal concentration on both sides of the membrane.

Reverse osmosis can help you have bottled water quality hydration in your home, replacing the need for expensive, wasteful cases of bottled water. With a reverse osmosis system, you can also avoid the potential health risks of drinking contaminated tap water, including bacterial and viral infections. Our bodies are 70-80% water and we need that water to hydrate us, lubricate joints, aid organ function, and more. We get the rest of our nutrients through food.

How Does Reverse Osmosis Work?

Reverse osmosis reverses the natural tendency of water molecules to move from an area of lower concentration through a membrane into an area of higher concentration. This process is known as osmosis and it’s what allows plants to absorb water and nutrients from the soil, and it’s what causes your kidneys to filter out impurities from your blood. Reverse Osmosis Water Treatment re-enacts this phenomenon by using pressure to force contaminated water through a semipermeable membrane into a storage tank.

Reverse Osmosis systems use a combination of three to five filters to achieve pure drinking water. In a three-stage system, the first filters are typically a sediment filter and carbon filter. In a four-stage system, a fourth membrane is added to filter out particles that the first two membranes may have missed. Each stage of an RO system is called an array and each array can have anywhere from one to six pressure vessels with RO membranes.

The filtered water is then stored in a storage tank under your sink and a faucet installed on the wall that connects to the storage tank. Most residential reverse osmosis systems have an air gap between the drain and the clean water line to Reverse Osmosis Water Treatment ensure that dirty water doesn’t return back into the clean water line.

What Are the Benefits of Reverse Osmosis?

Reverse osmosis removes many harmful chemicals and bacteria from water. For this reason, it’s used in the food and beverage industry as well as for medical applications like dialysis.

On a residential scale, reverse osmosis is one of the best ways to produce clean, safe drinking water. Unlike traditional filtration systems, RO systems don’t waste any water during the filtration process. They use water pressure and a little electricity to filter out contaminants, leaving you with pure water that’s free of toxins and heavy metals, including arsenic, fluoride and lead.

The membrane also catches dissolved minerals and substances, including those too small to see with an electron microscope. This makes it a popular choice for homes that have hard water, which can cause mineral buildup in pipes and fixtures.

Reverse osmosis systems also eliminate the need for bottled water. The average American drinks about 13 gallons of water per month, so this saves you the cost and waste of purchasing those 5-gallon plastic jugs. You’ll also be reducing the number of plastic bottles that end up in landfills and polluting the environment.

Reverse osmosis is also an energy-efficient process. The high pressure that pumps the water through can actually be Filling Machine Supplier recycled into a source of power. This can be done by using turbines and motors to harvest energy from the off-shoot of the salty, contaminated water.

What Are the Disadvantages of Reverse Osmosis?

Reverse osmosis requires a significant initial investment and ongoing maintenance expenses, such as filter replacement. However, the long-term savings from having clean, healthy water outweigh these costs.

Most reverse osmosis systems use electricity to power a pump and create pressure that forces water through the semi-permeable membrane. As such, they produce more wastewater than traditional tap water filters, which can add up if you have a large household and drink a lot of water.

In addition to consuming energy, reverse osmosis systems can also remove valuable minerals from your drinking water. This is an issue if you rely on these minerals, such as calcium and magnesium, for your health. However, you can compensate for this by using other filtration methods or taking supplements.

Another potential drawback of reverse osmosis is that it produces a lot of wastewater, which must be stored somewhere. This water can be repurposed for cleaning or gardening, or it can be sent to a waste treatment plant. Many systems display the ratio of filtered water to wastewater, which you may want to consider when selecting one for your home.

Some reverse osmosis systems, such as our best overall pick from iSpring, include a final remineralization process that treats the wastewater before it’s dispensed. This restores the natural taste profile of filtered water and makes it more appealing to some people.