Countertop Water Filters: Which Is Best For You?
A countertop water filter is one of the easiest ways to provide yourself and your family with pure, clean water. The beauty of this type of countertop filter is that in almost every case, the only installation is attaching it to your kitchen or lavatory faucet. With just the flip of lever you can choose either tap water or purified drinking water. When choosing a countertop unit, you will want to consider what method of filtration you want, the counter space you have available, appearance and value. Fortunately, there is no shortage of countertop water filters to choose from.
A countertop reverse osmosis system is an excellent choice for a water purification system. An RO countertop filter provides a chemical free solution to protecting your family from fluoride, chlorine and chlorimines, heavy metals and chemical residues in the water supply. The TGI Pure CT-445 is a really nice looking unit that can produce 35 gallons per day and comes with a two year warranty. It sells for about $350. TGI Pure makes the CT-545 which is identical in styling but produces up to 75 gallons per day, includes a UV light that disinfects the microorganisms in water that can cause illness, and has a booster pup for low pressure applications. The CT-545 sells for $579. If you are just looking for a functional RO system to clean your drinking water then you may want to go with the PRO-150 by The Water Exchange. It is ugly as sin and not so easy to use but will provide you with high quality water at a bargain rate. The PRO-150 sells for about $200. Another high end water purification system that comes in a countertop version is a water distiller. Waterwise makes a variety of styles and sizes with varying production capabilities. The Waterwise 4000 is an entry level model that produces at the rate of 1 gallon every 4 hours. If you need more water than that you could consider the Waterwise 7000 which produces at the rate of 9 gallons per day and has a 3 gallon tank. Omni Water Filters produces the OCT2 which is an activated charcoal water filter. It will leave you with fresh clean tasting water by removing most chlorine, VOC’s and nasty odors and tastes. This isn’t the best filter you can get but at $50 it is a pretty good buy. The NSA 50C has been around a long time and is a standard in countertop water filtration. It effectively removes chlorine, VOC’s, unpleasant odor and taste. The NSA 50C runs about $190 but I have seen them as little as $50, new and in the box, on Craig’s List. Pur and Culligan used to make a countertop water filter but have discontinued them. I can only guess that they have chosen to focus on their respective niches of faucet water filters and whole house water filtration |
