Home water purification systems have been growing in popularity for homes as well as businesses. There are dozens of different kind s systems. There are systems that are just filters attached to your faucets to run your water through some activated charcoal. These filter out whatever solids might remained in your treated water. There are systems that use electrolysis, activated charcoal, and UV light to filter solids, remove chemicals, and kill microbes. A plumber can walk you through the different types of systems. However, the basic question remains concerning who needs which systems.

Municipal Water Supply

 If you are on a trustworthy municipal water supply, you likely don’t need a complex water purification system. The water coming into your home should be free of toxins, microbes, and dangerous solids. There are some cases in which the pipes leading into your home might be old enough to have lead and might be leaching lead into your water. In that case, you’ll need fixtures that filter out lead. In some cases, the water coming into your home might be safe but just taste funny. If you want something a little more permanent than the filters that attach to faucets, you could have a system installed by a plumber.

In those cases, the plumber will install a system that is basically a charcoal filter but on a larger scale. All of the water coming into your house will run through the system. It will remove solids that might make water taste or smell funny.

Well Water

 If you live in a rural area, you might get your water from a local well. In that case, you’ll need to have a full water filtration system. That system will basically have three functions. When water is piped from your well, it will need to have solids removed. It will need to have chemicals removed. Lastly, it will need to have microbes killed. To remove solids, the water will likely be run through a multi-step filter. The filter might begin with clean sand, then work down to activated charcoal. That will remove most solids. Then, it might undergo electrolysis which passes the water through charged particles. The charged particles will be designed to react to chemicals suspended in the water but not to water itself.

Finally, the water will be treated with UV light. The UV light will kill any virus or bacteria in the water. That will leave you with pure, filtered water.

A plumber will be able to install that type of system for you.

Plumbing emergencies are some of the most unfortunate events that can occur for a homeowners. A plumbing emergency can be disgusting, disruptive, and expensive. It can even force you out of your home for a few days while a professional addresses the root problem. Fortunately, plumbing emergencies are often signalled before they become full-blown emergencies. There are signs that you are nearing an emergency.

1 — Odd Bubbling

 Your plumbing exits your house via several different pipes. The pipes then converge into a main sewer drain. When there are blockages, leaks, or air bubbles in those converging pipes, it can cause some odd consequences. For example, you might run your bathroom sink and see water bubbling in your toilet bowl. That would be a case of odd bubbling that indicates something has gone wrong. It likely indicates that something has gone amiss in your main sewer drain. You should call a professional immediately. The alternative could be sewage running into your backyard.

2 – Weak Water Pressure

 If you have weak water pressure in one fixture in your house, it could indicate a leaky pipe or a blocked pipe. It could also mean the fixture itself needs some work. If that’s the case, you need to have it addressed but it’s not an emergency. However, if you have several fixtures with weak water pressure, it could indicate a problem from the water main or something else systemic. In that case, you’ll need to call a plumber before the problem escalates into something drastic.

3 — Multiple Clogged Drains

 As stated earlier, your pipes drain in individual pipes and then converge onto the same sewer main. If you have several drains clogged, it means that something has gone wrong at or near the sewer main. That could mean that you will have sewage backing up into your house or your yard soon.

4 — Noisy Pipes

 Some old houses have pipes that clang and clank when you run the water. That could indicate that some clamps have rusted or corroded and need to be reaffixed. It could also indicate that your pipes are hitting one another and could eventually work loose. If a pipe fractures, it could lead to flooding that grows tragic very quickly.

5 — Wet Spots

 From time to time, you should look under your sinks and around your fixtures where you might not normally look. You should look for signs of wetness. Those could be indications of persistent leaks that have been building for some time.