Can I use the water from my softener?
Water softeners are used to remove limescale from water. There are several different techniques for this operation. Depending on the technique used, the water may or may not be drinkable. Generally speaking, if the water is guaranteed drinkable by the manufacturer, it can be used by the Berkey® system.
For more information, follow this link: Can I use my Berkey® purification system with water from my softener?
FAQs From Same Category
The service life of Berkey® filters has been calculated according to laboratory tests. It is different depending on the type of filter.
- For Black Berkey® black filters, see this link: How long do Black berkey® filters last?
- For PF-2™ filters, see this link: What is the life of PF-2™ filters?
- For shower filters, the filtration capacity is 113 400 liters of water, or approximately 1890 showers.
PF-2™ filters are optional filters, placed underneath the Black Berkey® filters in the lower tank and are specifically used to filter out arsenic, fluorides and heavy metals from the water. Although the Black Berkey® filters themselves perform well on this type of pollution, a high concentration of these pollutants could saturate them before their normal life span. To determine if these filters are necessary for your system, refer to the analysis of the water you are filtering.
More details on these filters can be found in the product sheet.
Black Berkey® filters act in a "mechanical" way by retaining pollutants in the millions of micro channels that compose it and also thanks to other layers, such as the ion exchange membrane or activated carbon. For the purely mechanical part, it is estimated that the filtration fineness is below 24 nanometers (0.024 microns) which corresponds to the size of certain viruses that are effectively filtered such as MS2 or Fr Coliphage.
Even if it is impossible to give the exact composition of the filters, for obvious reasons of industrial secrecy, what can be said is detailed by following this link: What is the composition of Black Berkey® water filters?