Today the first topic on the Dr. Oz show was about contaminants in our drinking water, so it’s a perfect day to review my new ion exchange water filter system. The episode made me extremely glad that I went ahead and got the new filter system to replace my carbon filter only Brita. The two main common contaminants Dr. Oz discussed were Chromium and Lead, and the ZeroWater is certified to reduce these two.
The Zero Water is 5 level an ion exchange water filter system. Each filter removes 18,000 milligrams of dissolved solids from your tap water. I came across this filter by searching for a water filter system that would remove fluoride, lead and chromium, at an affordable price, and this one was a winner in all aspects. Other options which rated higher were full house installations...but this was the best pitcher option I could find. I purchased in on amazon.
You can view more about the filter system here- http://www.zerowater.com/
The Zero Water filtering system removes virtually all detectable dissolved solids from water…hence the reading of 000 TDS (total dissolved solids). These dissolved solids are invisible, but include salt, metals, organic and inorganic substances. It comes with a test stick to determine the solids in your water after using a 5-Stage Dual Ion Exchange filtration process.
Below are my results when I tested the different water sources starting with tap water, filtered tap water from my Brita, from my fridge filter, bottled water, and lastly from the ZeroWater filter. The Brita filter was brand new, and only on its 3rd filling of water. Our fridge filter clearly needs to be replaced! in spite of the "change filter" light not coming on yet.
Tap water (unfiltered) contained 171 total dissolved solids
1st the tap water filtered from the fridge contained 162 total dissolved solids
After filtering tap water through my Brita filter it tested to have 124 total dissolved solids
Fiji bottled water tested to have 131 total dissolved solids (more than my Brita filter)
Lastly tap water filtered through the ZeroWater filter had 000 total dissolved solids.
I was very surprised to read the results, as I always had the mindset that the water filter through the fridge was going to be even better than my Brita, but it tested to have the highest amount of total dissolved solids (apart from totally unfiltered tap water), followed by the bottle water, then the Brita filtered water then the pure ZeroWater filtered water.
I think what surprised me most was the taste. I purposefully tasted the zero water first, then my Brita filtered water right after and the Brita water (with the second least tds after the zerowater) definitely tasted more metallic. I could never tell before, but with something to compare to you really notice the difference! It was subtle, but I could tell.
Below is a chart that gives you an idea how your state averagely rates in the number of total dissolved solids in their tap water.
Minnesota rates around the middle...but if you live in North Dakota, Arizona or Nevada you may want to devote more consideration to how you filter your drinking water.
You can watch the clips about tap water from the Dr. Oz show in the 3 parts below.
He tested water in 19 cities across the US-
Is your water causing cancer?
