“Bottled Water is better than reverse osmosis water,

Or

It isn’t healthy to drink reverse osmosis water”

At Home Water Systems, we’ve heard all the rumours about reverse osmosis (RO) systems. So here’s a little science lesson to teach you exactly how reverse osmosis works and what’s true and what’s not.

Reverse osmosisis the process by which water molecules are forced through a semi-permeable membrane under pressure. Think back to high school science lab. Remember the experiment with an egg in a glass of water? Once the shell was removed, water traveled through the membrane to balance out the pressure.

RO systems work in a similar way – just reversed.

1. First, raw tap water flows through a sediment filter to remove dirt, rust and the other solid objects.
2. Then the water flows into a carbon filter which removes 98% of the chlorine and organic chemicals.
3. The third step is what differentiates an RO system from other filters. Here, pressure greater than normal osmotic pressure is applied to the water. The reverse osmosis membrane then separates up to 99% of the dissolved contaminants from the water molecules. These removed impurities are rinsed down the drain leaving behind only pure, clean water.
4. This water is stored in a reservoir tank, typically located underneath the sink.
5. The final step involves pushing water through a faucet on your sink and a refrigerator dispenser before it reaches your glass.

But what about the rumours? Most bottlers actually use RO systems in their purification process. Next time you have a bottle of water, read the label. You could be getting the same quality OR even better water right in your own home. Reverse osmosis water is also safe to drink. It removes up to 99% of potentially harmful bacteria and impurities leaving you with safe, pure water for consumption.

Now that you’ve sat through our science lesson (and we’re pretty sure you will all get A’s) let us know if you have questions or think about applying what you learned to the real world.