The Ultimate Guide to Water Filtration for New Hampshire Water

Water is an essential resource for life, and access to clean, safe water is a vital asset to everyone in New Hampshire. While you may have never thought about water filtration before, here is a guide to water filtration that can help ensure that you have clean water throughout your life, positively impacting your health in the future.

The Ultimate Guide to Water Filtration

Did you know that water quality can vary significantly throughout the state, depending on its source? New Hampshire, known for its picturesque landscape and pristine environment, may not always be spared from water contamination. Whether you rely on well water or city water in your home or business, it is crucial to understand why water filtration is so important and how it works to safeguard your health and the well-being of your family.

The State of Water Quality in New Hampshire

New Hampshire boasts an abundance of freshwater resources, with numerous rivers, lakes, and underground aquifers supplying drinking water to its residents. Despite this natural wealth, the state faces its fair share of water quality challenges. Both well and city water sources can be vulnerable to contamination from artificial and natural sources, including agricultural runoff, industrial pollutants, and aging infrastructure.

Well Water vs. City Water

Many residents rely on private wells for their water supply, while others are connected to municipal water systems. Understanding the differences between these two sources is crucial to help you determine the appropriate water filtration system for your home. Here are the variety of water sources in our state.

1. Well Water. Private wells get their water from underground aquifers. While it can be naturally filtered to some extent, it is very susceptible to contamination from local geological factors and human activities. Common water contaminants include bacteria, viruses, heavy metals, nitrates, and pesticides. Therefore, well owners must regularly test their water quality and consider suitable filtration options. These options can include whole-home water filtration units, reverse osmosis units, UV bacterial cleaners, and more.
2.  City water. Municipal water in New Hampshire is continually sourced from reservoirs, rivers, or groundwater. But before it reaches homes, it undergoes treatment at a water facility to meet regulatory standards set by the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services. While city water is generally treated and considered safe to drink, it can still contain trace amounts of impurities such as chlorine, chloramine, and disinfection byproducts, not to mention PFAS.

In the next section, we will review five specific ways to purify or filter your water.

Types of Water Filtration For New Hampshire

Access to clean, safe water is fundamental for a healthy life. Here are the various kinds of water filtration you can use in New Hampshire to ensure you and your family are safe.

Whole Home Water Filtration

A whole-home water filtration system is an excellent option for both well water and city water users in New Hampshire. These comprehensive systems are installed at the point of entry, ensuring that all the water used throughout the home or business is adequately treated before reaching any tap or appliance. We provide options for wells and municipal water homes at NH Tap.

Some advantages of whole-home water filtration include comprehensive application, protecting appliances, skin and hair benefits, and positive environmental impact. Whole home systems can effectively remove sediment, chlorine, heavy metals, pesticides, and other common contaminants, providing clean and safe water for all household uses, including drinking, bathing, and cooking.

A holistic approach to your water filtration is essential if you run a small business or a restaurant. By removing impurities from the water supply, a whole home filtration system can extend the lifespan of all appliances like dishwashers, washing machines, and water heaters. Filtering water can also positively impact your skin and hair health, reducing exposure to chlorine and other harsh chemicals. A whole home water filtration system can reduce your reliance on single-use plastic bottles, promoting a more sustainable lifestyle. When selecting a whole home water filtration system, consider factors such as a system’s filtration capabilities, maintenance requirements, and the specific contaminants you need to target. NH Tap always recommends conducting a water test to determine what contaminants are in your water supply.

Reverse Osmosis Filtration (RO)

A reverse osmosis filtration system (RO system) can be the right choice for homeowners needing protection on their drinking water. Ro filtration uses a semi-permeable membrane to remove many contaminants, including heavy metals, fluoride, and microorganisms. In specific cases, an RO system would not work for water, and your NH Tap representative can review your options with you.

There are a few advantages and disadvantages when implementing an RO filtration unit. While RO systems are highly effective at removing even the smallest particles and dissolved impurities and improving the taste in your drinking water, RO filtration produces an excess of wastewater during purification. It removes essential minerals from your water. The most significant benefit of RO systems is that they are typically installed under the kitchen sink, taking up minimal space and providing easy access to purified water for drinking and cooking.

Water Softeners

If you struggle with hard water, you often will see stains on your appliances or feel like your hair has lost its shine. Water hardness is a common issue in New Hampshire because of dissolved minerals like calcium and magnesium in the environment. A water softener is a specialized filtration system that can address those issues. Water softeners use an ion exchange process to replace calcium and magnesium ions with sodium or potassium ions, effectively reducing water hardness. Some benefits of installing a water softener are preventing scale build-up in your pipes and on appliances, experiencing softer skin and hair, enjoying a more efficient appliance output, reducing energy consumption and utility bills, cleaner dishes and clothing, and reducing plumbing repairs.

Note: If you need a softener system but don’t want to deal with salt refills, NH Tap has an excellent service program that takes care of all that for you!

PFAS Filtration

PFAS are a group of artificial chemicals in some household products and industrial applications. New Hampshire has experienced several PFAS contamination sites that have spilled this chemical into the environment. Because it is known as the forever chemical and does not disappear, PFAS has entered many water supplies throughout the state through rain and runoff. With NH having many elevated health risks, we are passionate about installing PFAS systems to improve the future of our state’s residents. Some whole home water filtration systems come with dedicated PFAS filtration stages to remove these harmful substances effectively. NH Tap also provides a standalone whole-home PFAS system to ensure your water is 99.9% free of this dangerous chemical.

UV Water Filtration

Ultraviolet or UV water filtration is a powerful method to disinfect water and eliminate harmful microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, and protozoa. UV water filtration exposes water to UV light which disrupts the DNA of the microorganisms, rendering them unable to reproduce and effectively neutralizing them. This system is an excellent benefit for well-water homes facing this problem. It provides chemical-free disinfection, a highly effective rate to eliminate bacteria and viruses, and requires minimal maintenance, with periodic Replacements of the UV lamp needed. Ultimately, if your water is at risk for contamination from bacteria and viruses, this is the gold standard to take care of your water.

Choosing the Right Water Filtration for You

Whether you rely on well or city water, you must be aware of potential contaminants entering your home or business. Investing in a suitable water filtration system will ensure that your family or clients remain healthy for the days ahead. This guide to water filtration can be a valuable tool to help you understand your options for water filtration. By embracing one of these technologies, you can have peace of mind knowing you have truly clean water.

Take the first step and schedule your water test today!