I’ve had my eye on a good quality water filter since last year, but due to the expense, I’ve continually pushed it off – there’s always something more pressing that takes precedence.  But a month ago, I finally purchased the one I’ve been wanting – the Big Berkey.   It filters out things that most filters don’t – theoretically, I could catch water in a bucket from a rainstorm and use it after filtering it through this. 

It arrived a few days before Pesach and I said we’d put it aside to use on Pesach and then continue using it for the rest of the year.  But I didn’t get around to pulling it out during Pesach, so we finally took it out yesterday.  Since it had to be toiveled and dh didn’t get home with it until late, my dd set it up when he got home and filled it with water to filter overnight. 

First thing this morning, the kids started drinking the filtered water, and as soon as I came downstairs for breakfast, they started telling me how much better the water was.  Not only that, they very quickly found the taste of tap water, which they’ve been drinking for years, unappealing and said it has a strong chlorine taste to them now (my dd8 said it was bitter).  I was surprised that the difference would be noticeable so quickly.

The water is tasty, and since water is our main beverage, I’m glad to know that it’s really pure.  Last night, after the filter was already assembled, I happened upon the following article: http://health.yahoo.com/news/ap/pharmawater_factories.html.  After I read about the medical wastes that end up in many water supply systems, I was extra glad that we have this filter!  Unfortunately, lots of things end up in every water supply system, some of which are supposed to be helpful to us and are forced on us whether we think they’re helpful or not (like fluoride), others are contaminants that no one thinks are worthwhile.

There are two kinds of filters that you can buy with a Berkey filter – white or black.  The white filters are good for filtering water that is basically already clean; the black filters can handle more contaminants.  The white filters last about three times as long as the black filters, probably because they aren’t being used to block all of those contaminants!  Because of that, the black filters are more expensive, but I felt once we were getting a filter, it should be one that could handle anything we wanted to use it for.  I found a site (http://www.readymaderesources.com/cart/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=516)   that sells the Berkey with four filters at the same price most sites sell it for with only two filters, and they give you a choice of the white or black included in that price.  So now I have a replacement set of filters, though it should be a long time before I need them since you can easily filter several thousand gallons before needing to replace them.  And the filters can be scrubbed clean several times before needing to be replaced.

The most important element of a filter is, obviously, the filter.  The casing that holds it just makes it look nice.  I looked into buying the filters themselves and using five gallon buckets to make the casing for them (you can Google for instructions on how to make a Berkey filtering unit), but after finding the above source for the entire set up, didn’t feel the financial gain was of doing that was substantial enough to make it worthwhile. 

(By the way, I hope that this is obvious to you, but I don’t have any financial interests or benefits from anything that I link to.  I don’t make any money if you click on a link or order from a site that I mention here – I mention them because I do a lot of research on things before I buy them, and figure that if the time I spent can save someone else time, then I’m happy to share that.)

Avivah