When it comes to the quality of your water, it can be difficult to know what type of treatment or filtration to use to achieve the goals that you are seeking because water can vary widely even from town to town.
Where you get your water, the county you are located in and what you are using it for are just some of the many considerations that will inform how you approach cleaning or filtering your water for use. In order to determine whether you should be using water treatment, water filtration or both, you first need to understand what they can do and whether the water you are using needs them.
What Does Water Filtration Accomplish?
Water filtration is, as its name implies, the process of filtering water through a device. This device can come in many forms, from a mesh strainer or series of filters with progressively smaller holes to ion filters that create a charge to draw materials in and capture them.
Which type of filter would work for you depends on the quality of your water and what is in it, but regardless of the answer to that question, the main purpose of filtration remains the same: to capture suspended solids and sediment in your water. If you have pieces of sediment such as sand or biological materials floating in your water, a filter can capture these and prevent them from proceeding onward through the system.
Filters remove sediment; this means that they are not useful for clearing the water of microscopic entities like viruses, as well as trace chemicals that could impact the safety or quality of your water.
Depending on what the water you are filtering is used for, filtration may be a complete solution in and of itself. However, especially in water that may become aerosolized (such as through a hot tub or cooling tower) or is on its way to human consumption, filtration may not be sufficient to keep your water safe for use on its own.
How Is Water Treatment Different?
In contrast to water filtration, water treatment can tackle the trace chemicals and minute organisms that live in your water. Sometimes called water purification, water treatment adds such
options as chlorine or iodine to the water to kill bacteria, viruses and other living, biological components that could not only make humans sick but also develop colonies within your water system and even foul equipment.
Water treatment can make water safe for human consumption and extend the life of your machinery, but it does nothing for suspended solids like rust particles or sand. Water that is already filtered or especially clean before it arrives at your location may work well with just a water treatment plan, but if you need your water to be as clean as possible, water treatment alone may not be the right solution for you.
Which Method To Choose
Choosing the right method for your water treatment system is not as simple as selecting one option and then setting and forgetting it. Water management is a nuanced process that should be customized to suit each building and its needs, which is why many people leave the process up to a trained professional.
A one-size-fits-all approach will rarely address all of your needs adequately, so consider the following questions when determining where to start. Do you know the composition of your water? Understanding what makes up your water is the first step toward choosing water treatment, water filtration or both.
Once you determine which method(s) will work best for you, consider your options within that niche; filtration comes as mesh, ion charged bags and more.
Similarly, water treatment can be completed using a variety of chemicals or even other additions such as water softeners as needed. A skilled professional can help you to understand what your water is made up of and which options can help you alter it into the state that you need for your purposes.
Work With The Water Cleanliness Professionals
Whether you are reconsidering your current water cleanliness plan or you are unsure whether filtration, water treatment or both would help with the quality of your water, a professional can help you create a customized strategy.
The experts at Tower Water set the standard in water treatment and understand that no two water management plans are the same. Reach out to schedule an appointment to discuss your options and evaluate water cleanliness solutions that fit not only the composition of your area’s water but also your budget and your goals.
