*Gravity Filter Recommendations* *1. Best Overall: Big Berkey* → Buy Here: bigberkeywaterfilters.com/affiliates/aff_tools/boswater/tool/text_links/3 - Use code “BOS5” for 5% off! *2. Best for Nitrate + Best Budget Pick: Purewell* → Buy Here: amzn.to/4bNmXyM *3. Possibly the Best for Waterborne Pathogens (Aside from Berkey): British Berkefeld* → Buy Here: amzn.to/48JG4Yo
Is it just me or are there other people wondering why there are seven filtration devices on here when all she does is talk about Berkey? It’s like a big berkey ad.
The Berkey did best in our lab testing and there were so many things to address. We also cover the Purewell after the Berkey. And we quickly talk about the Doulton (British Berkefeld) towards the end of the video. That said, I understand where you are coming from, but if you check the lab data you will find that the other systems really didn't do a great job. I guess we should have explained that in the video.
it's _Almost IMPOSSIBLE_ to find a *TRULY Objective* "Review" of these dang Filters. *THEY ALL* sound like commercials just Selling the things. I'm trying (NOW) to find independent Testers to :RATE: the various systems/filters ..... So many RUclips channels are probably _PAID_ 'advertisments' for specific brands. -------------- they almost NEVER have any real (independently tested) Lab Results. .... they're SELLING something................... _(NOT Testing it Publicly)_ I suppose some kind of "Ultimate Test" could be done by some _Water Guru-Gangster_ who can actually build his own Carbon Filters--- vs the "Big Names" and/or Alternative Filters. re-performing the _Claimed_ "Lab Results" that's the kind of Independent tester that's be nice to find. *To test Chemicals in the water* You'd probably need a Spectrum Analyzer, or take the water to a Lab with a spectrum analyser. Most people can get rid of *Particulates and Bacteria/Viruses* ... But Chemicals? .... that is a bit harder to Test for. (or to get OUT of the water) *But distilling water may **_BEGIN_** to help get rid of some (most?) volatiles*
We also cover the Purewell in detail. Reviewing all 7 products would have taken hours, and most people wouldn't be interested in watching a video that long. I'm not saying that I don't see your point, but we're trying to keep our videos short so that they appeal to a broader audience. And you can always check our Google Sheet with the full analysis including lab data!
Do you have a review of the aquamark lx water filter from Avalon? I’m trying to find the best water filter/dispenser that I’m able to connect directly to my sink/plumbing so I can avoid needing to have one with a tank. I stumbled upon your channel and am loving all the content!
Hiya, maybe you can advise. I'm trying to learn more about Carbon filters (Granular media), just installed 1 for our brewing water to reduce chlorine and make the water taste better etc. I'm currently on the 3rd filter from the supplier and it does indeed remove the chlorine smell but it makes all water smell and taste like soot leaving a powdery feeling in the mouth. So basically it makes our water taste worse than unfiltered and I don't think the manufacturer has a clue. I've already wasted quite a few thousand liters of water flushing it through! Any tips on what carbon filtered water should taste like would be appreciated. I'm in the UK.
In the beginning, it is normal for a carbon filter to leach some of its fibers into the water. But you said you've flushed a few thousand liters already so this shouldn't be happening. You shouldn't taste the carbon at all because it shouldn't really be in the filtered water. If I were you, I'd try a different filter.
We've been filtering water for about 20 years. For those complaining of Aluminum in their water w/flouride removal filters, and still want a gravity system there is a workaround we used back when we were on city water. Expensive but you can diy it at a discount. It's a 2 tier system, 1st system (atop fridge, or somewhere above and over 2nd lower system) is standard 2 chambers w/ black to flouride filters Rather than drinking that de-fluoridated water with Aluminum in bottom chamber, drain it directly into the upper chamber of the 2nd system that contains Berk black filters only. The lower chamber of your 2nd system ahould now be relatively flouride and aluminum free. For decent flow this works with a total of 4black filters and 2 flouride filters. The first system's chambers (or both) can be diy'd with food grade buckets if $ is an issue. Great channel. Thanks for your vids.
@@boswater6065Good Q. Did not test. I deep researched what ever was available online at the time, including others discussing their own test results but this was about 15 years ago and dont recall whether I found definitive info on Aluminum clearence on the black Berk filter. We stopped that method long ago as we were then no longer exposed to purposefully flouridated water as we then lived outside the US, a few years ago returned and on well water now. Look forward to more of your work. Appreciate your attention to detail.
Gravity filters are designed to remove certain pathogens from perfectly clear water such a mountain stream. If there is any silt in the water they will plug up and not allow water to flow through. You can scrub the cartridge, but soon you will reduce the thickness of the media and then it will not remove pathogens. YOU ABSOLUTELY MUST PRE-FILTER THE WATER UNTIL IT IS PERFECTLY CLEAR. This can be done by a combination of settling, flocculation, sand filtering, and/or common cartridge type sediment filters that are easily available. If you don't believe this, take out all but one of your ceramic cartridges, plug the other holes, add some dirty water like what you will have to use during a crisis, see how long it takes to plug up your ceramic cartridge. You will ruin one cartridge but you will know the truth! Another issue: if there is water in a ceramic cartridge, even a little, and that cartridge is allowed to freeze, a fine crack can occur that will allow pathogens through. You may not know it as you cannot see the crack. NEVER ALLOW YOU CARTRIDGES TO FREEZE!
Did you run a test at the end of life for the filters? What good is a filter if it stops filtering after a day or week? It would be harder to do, but seems essential to ensure the filters continue working as advertised.
I agree. But unfortunately our resources are limited, and if you think about how long it takes to filter hundreds of gallons with even a single gravity water filter, it would have taken months with 7 different models. So again, I agree with what you're saying, but it's just not possible for us right now.
Thank you for the thorough video. I am curious if you've heard of the Nikken gravity water filter. I inherited one and am curious how it compares to other gravity and RO systems. Thanks!
I have a Berkey and switched to Epic Pure's Nanofilter pitcher for convenience and they seemed to have similar claims. I know most water pitchers don't have the same claims as the Epic Pure nano filter but I would like to see it compared to a bigger system like the Berkey
Glysophates removal is important (as well as other). Size is important due to limited space. Most with a stand does not slide under cabinets. Have cats. Do not want to set on edge due to cats and ability to knock over.
Hey guys could you please give a review to a more recent RO filter? It’s called the Bluevua RO100ROPOT-Lite(UV). It’s the cheapest one I’ve seen anywhere ($200) and I bet there’s gonna be a ton of people who buy it. Love the work you guys do, thanks!
Been waiting for this so creating it! I currently have the waterdrop g3 ro under the sink but am afraid that it is putting nanoplastics in the water. Will probably now go with Berkey.
Yes, several people have said this. But really, it wasn't supposed to be one. I guess we should have done a better job explaining the filtration results of the other gravity water filters which really weren't great.
I understand, but there are so many different viruses that you'd had to test for and there is no way that we'd find a water source that would contain them all. Also, we strictly advise against using any of the gravity water filters to remove viruses. With viruses, you have to remove pretty much all of them or you could still get sick, and viruses are extremely small and difficult to remove via size exclusion. Disinfection would be the way to go here.
Hi! Love your informative videos…have you ever looked at The Water Machine gravity water purifier? They claim their filters filter fluoride without the need of additional filters like the Berkey. Thank you in advance for any help.
Their product description page says the system uses "black carbon filters" which seems to be regular activated carbon. Based on our lab testing, I highly doubt that you'll achieve a very high fluoride reduction rate using one of those. But I could be wrong and we've never actually tested this water filter model.
Why not run your water filters through with 500 gallons, or more, then send the samples to get tested. That would be more relevant. Your recommendation to change the filter at around 500 gallons is just a guess-timation. No disrespect intended.
You are right - 500 gal is only a guess. The reason why we didn't run 500 gallons through each system before testing was that, based on our speed test, this would have taken around 80 days of continuous filtration per system. Also, every water supply differs. So while our lab-testing can give us a basic idea of a filter's capabilities to remove contamination, you will see different results with a different water supply - even if there are the same contaminants, because they probably exist at different levels. And removing a contaminant at 10 mg/L for 500 gallons is totally different than removing it at 1 mg/L for 500 gallons. Hope this makes sense!
This video is rigorous with solid logic and explanations. And the fact that you took a controversial stance and argued it well is beyond commendable. You should be proud.
Berkey's fluoride filters are optional, though. Based on our lab testing, filtration performance is pretty similar - although keep in mind that we can only test for a limited number of contaminants. The Berkey is much more costly upfront. In the long run, I'd say they are quite similar provided that you would replace the Berkey filters much sooner than every 3,000 gallons. But the Black Berkey filters are often out of stock.
I am confused by this: If I get any specialized filter, say fluoride, then wouldn't I have to have all of the filters be fluoride? If so, then what other filtering does a fluoride filter actual filter? If not, how can the non-fluoride filters be helping? Just a bit confused here
I'm not sure if I understand all your questions. So, the fluoride filters are usually addon filters. So you have the regular filters like the Black Berkey filter elements and you add the fluoride filters to them. If a fluoride filter is based on AA, it will remove fluoride, arsenic, and also selenium but that's pretty much it afaik. Hope this helps!
Initially it looked like this would be a thorough review of multiple water filters , however from minute 4 to minute 19 all you talked about Berkey filters. Started looking suspiciously like a Berky advertisement......
That's because the filtration results of the other filters were so bad. But you are not the first person to say this so I guess we should have done a better job explaining this.
Yeah I found out about this after watching a Project Farm video years ago, absolutely shocked the first time, and Im shocked again they havent fixed/amended it STILL 🤯
Excellent video, although may i ask, could you please test with chlorine and chloramines in the future? They are about the most toxic substances in our water, especially chloramines (chlorine bonded to ammonia - they use this in many states). I am so lost trying to work out what water filter to use in California where they have fluoride, and chloramines, nobody does any tests with chloramines and they are becoming more and more common as cities switch from chlorine to chloramines.
Thank you! We would love to test for chloramines but unfortunately it's incredibly expensive, so we simply cannot afford to test for them right now (same as with microplastics for example). Did you confirm with your water utility that they are indeed using chloramine?
@@boswater6065 Thanks yes i confirmed Chloramines are in use here, i bought a Chloramine test kit from Hanna Instruments that included "free chlorine" and "total chlorine" test kits, and the results from my own testing showed a high total chlorine and a zero free chlorine, which is a 100% positive for chloramine use (as the chlorine molecules are bound to ammonia so not "free"), and from what i read very hard to filter out unlike regular free chlorine.
In that case I'd consider a water filter that uses catalytic carbon. Maybe check out our under sink RO comparison video. It includes 3 systems that use catalytic carbon.
Good question. For the British Berkefeld (Doulton) the concentration was 3% higher than before. I think this is just natural fluctuation. As we said, this type of before vs after testing is not an exact science. As for the Purewell with a 47% higher fluoride concentration compared to the unfiltered water, I really don't know. Might be fluctuation. The thing is, I don't know of any filter media that uses fluoride. Maybe you have an answer?
Which brand/water filter are you using right now? Btw, not a Berkey commercial. We also cover the Purewell and the British Berkefeld (a bit). But I agree, we should have structured the video differently. The reason why we don't cover the rest is because we weren't exactly blown away by the lab results they could achieve.
@@boswater6065 In the process of choosing now. The problem, is that there is no consistancy between different forms of information. Every form of media shows different.nrand names as being better than the other.
I understand. In our opinion, the main problem is the lack of NSF certifications. Because with all the lab testing that people do nowadays, it always varies based on their water supply and how they test - and that might lead to different results. But if there was a system with NSF certifications, that wouldn't be a problem at all. Maybe look for a different type of filter?
Is the benzene leaching from the ProOne filter a concern? That's pretty carcinogenic stuff isn't it? How the heck did benzene leach out of a water filter? That's very disappointing as i am currently using ProOne filters in my Berkey and they were very expensive, i wanted filters that would do fluroride without the risk of aluminum leeching, but benzene is much much worse. It feels like you really can't win with these water filters.
Please keep in mind that we did not repeat the lab testing to confirm our findings and that the benzene leaching might be a false positive. That said, we saw similar results testing the ProOne pitcher. So based on our lab results, both ProOne models had apparently leached benzene into the filtered water, and these were the only 2 cases out of all 39 water filters we've tested so far with this issue. Could still be coincidence but personally I highly doubt it. Now, is this a concern? As usual, we used the strictest public health goal we could find and for benzene that was defined by the OEHHA: 0.15 ppb or µm/l. The OEHHA lists the following health risk category: "Carcinogenicity (leukemia)". However, they also say that the actual cancer risk level at 0.15 ppb is "10^-6 from lifetime exposure". 10 to the power of -6 = 0.0001%. In other words, if you'd consume benzene in drinking water at 0.15 ppb throughout your life, you'd still only have a cancer risk of 0.0001% according to the OEHHA. The lab report for the ProOne gravity system said 0.72 ppb so much higher than 0.15 ppb. But we assume that this leaching only happens while the filter element is still new. We know of one other lab test for the ProOne gravity filter done by the Water Filter Guru, and he didn't find any benzene, and he had primed the filters to 100 gallons before testing so any benzene might have been flushed out by then. In the end you need to decide for yourself what you make out of this. Hope this helps!
I've concluded all gravity feed filters are over-rated. The filters simply do not last nearly as long as claimed. The fact Berkey uses aluminum to remove fluoride is sad. I have ditched my gravity feed for a multi-stage RO system then remineralize.
Easily the most concise video on this. Hurrican Helene victim here and saw ways to do a cheaper version of a Berkey, but then the filters are as much or more than buying the whole system. Don't understand'
Yes, the price for the Black Berkey filters has gone up. I'm assuming that's because they are out of stock - at least with all the official Berkey dealers I know.
Filtering tapwater is really not a test! Most tapwater is micro tested before it hit your sink. What everybody really wants to know is how well did it do with water? That’s not from the city, pond creeks, lakes, water that off critters hikers campers are going to be using. What were worried the most about is bacterial viruses, and unless I miss something you didn’t do any kind of testing for bacteria or viruses
I see where you are coming from with your comment. But there are many different types of bacteria, cyst, and viruses that you might stumble upon with microbiologically unsafe water. So unless you know which of them you're facing when sourcing water from a specific pond or creek etc. which I doubt, it would have been required for our testing to include all of them. Also, filtering germs requires pretty much 100% removal or the water is still unsafe. So as explained in the video, the safest method to treat microbiologically unsafe water is disinfection.
As mentioned in the video, just boil or disinfect the water before you pour it through the gravity filter. Then you don't have to worry about the bacteria and viruses.
To be fair, we also cover the Purewell and the British Berkefeld (a bit). But I agree, we should have structured the video differently. The reason why we don't cover the rest is because we weren't exactly blown away by the lab results they could achieve.
No, it's not paid advertisement. I agree, we could have done a better job covering the other filters really quick, but we just didn't like their filtration results as mentioned in the video.
I strongly disagree. The Berkey did best in our lab testing but there was a lot that needed to be discussed about it. Besides, we also covered the Purewell. And at almost 23 minutes we felt that the video was already too long to also cover the other systems. That said, you can check our Google sheet for the full analysis of each of them.
I just watched a video that seemed to make that claim too. I noticed they used alot of hearsay instead of lab results as they gave their recommendations
![Gunna - HIM ALL ALONG [Official Visualizer]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/HiCxoDeo0hc/mqdefault.jpg)
*Gravity Filter Recommendations*
*1. Best Overall: Big Berkey*
→ Buy Here: bigberkeywaterfilters.com/affiliates/aff_tools/boswater/tool/text_links/3 - Use code “BOS5” for 5% off!
*2. Best for Nitrate + Best Budget Pick: Purewell*
→ Buy Here: amzn.to/4bNmXyM
*3. Possibly the Best for Waterborne Pathogens (Aside from Berkey): British Berkefeld*
→ Buy Here: amzn.to/48JG4Yo
Nah, Berkey is done. Refusal to test 3rd party, to certify, and now lawsuits. Trash. We went with ProOne but might go to reverse osmosis soon.
Is it just me or are there other people wondering why there are seven filtration devices on here when all she does is talk about Berkey? It’s like a big berkey ad.
The Berkey did best in our lab testing and there were so many things to address. We also cover the Purewell after the Berkey. And we quickly talk about the Doulton (British Berkefeld) towards the end of the video. That said, I understand where you are coming from, but if you check the lab data you will find that the other systems really didn't do a great job. I guess we should have explained that in the video.
it's _Almost IMPOSSIBLE_ to find a *TRULY Objective* "Review" of these dang Filters. *THEY ALL* sound like commercials just Selling the things. I'm trying (NOW) to find independent Testers to :RATE: the various systems/filters ..... So many RUclips channels are probably _PAID_ 'advertisments' for specific brands.
-------------- they almost NEVER have any real (independently tested) Lab Results.
.... they're SELLING something................... _(NOT Testing it Publicly)_
I suppose some kind of "Ultimate Test" could be done by some _Water Guru-Gangster_ who can actually build his own Carbon Filters--- vs the "Big Names" and/or Alternative Filters. re-performing the _Claimed_ "Lab Results"
that's the kind of Independent tester that's be nice to find.
*To test Chemicals in the water* You'd probably need a Spectrum Analyzer, or take the water to a Lab with a spectrum analyser. Most people can get rid of *Particulates and Bacteria/Viruses* ... But Chemicals?
.... that is a bit harder to Test for. (or to get OUT of the water)
*But distilling water may **_BEGIN_** to help get rid of some (most?) volatiles*
I thought this is a review of all the the other products it seem like it's just a review for Berkey only lol
We also cover the Purewell in detail. Reviewing all 7 products would have taken hours, and most people wouldn't be interested in watching a video that long. I'm not saying that I don't see your point, but we're trying to keep our videos short so that they appeal to a broader audience. And you can always check our Google Sheet with the full analysis including lab data!
did you not look at the lab results??
@@AJRenneyI couldn’t bring up the lab results…link not found
Do you have a review of the aquamark lx water filter from Avalon? I’m trying to find the best water filter/dispenser that I’m able to connect directly to my sink/plumbing so I can avoid needing to have one with a tank. I stumbled upon your channel and am loving all the content!
Thank you for this! The water community needs more third party testing and clarity. Another wonderful video
Nothing beats the clay made filters we have in Brazil!!
Should be filtering river, pond, creak etc. not city treated water. This is not a true safety test. Do this test using the above
Hiya, maybe you can advise.
I'm trying to learn more about Carbon filters (Granular media), just installed 1 for our brewing water to reduce chlorine and make the water taste better etc. I'm currently on the 3rd filter from the supplier and it does indeed remove the chlorine smell but it makes all water smell and taste like soot leaving a powdery feeling in the mouth. So basically it makes our water taste worse than unfiltered and I don't think the manufacturer has a clue. I've already wasted quite a few thousand liters of water flushing it through! Any tips on what carbon filtered water should taste like would be appreciated. I'm in the UK.
In the beginning, it is normal for a carbon filter to leach some of its fibers into the water. But you said you've flushed a few thousand liters already so this shouldn't be happening. You shouldn't taste the carbon at all because it shouldn't really be in the filtered water. If I were you, I'd try a different filter.
@@boswater6065 Thanks very much. I think a different filter / manufacturer is definitely in order. Cheers
We've been filtering water for about 20 years. For those complaining of Aluminum in their water w/flouride removal filters, and still want a gravity system there is a workaround we used back when we were on city water.
Expensive but you can diy it at a discount.
It's a 2 tier system, 1st system (atop fridge, or somewhere above and over 2nd lower system) is standard 2 chambers w/ black to flouride filters
Rather than drinking that de-fluoridated water with Aluminum in bottom chamber, drain it directly into the upper chamber of the 2nd system that contains Berk black filters only.
The lower chamber of your 2nd system ahould now be relatively flouride and aluminum free.
For decent flow this works with a total of 4black filters and 2 flouride filters.
The first system's chambers (or both) can be diy'd with food grade buckets if $ is an issue.
Great channel. Thanks for your vids.
Thanks so much for sharing. Did you by any chance ever test how effective Berkey's Black filter elements are at removing aluminum?
@@boswater6065Good Q. Did not test. I deep researched what ever was available online at the time, including others discussing their own test results but this was about 15 years ago and dont recall whether I found definitive info on Aluminum clearence on the black Berk filter.
We stopped that method long ago as we were then no longer exposed to purposefully flouridated water as we then lived outside the US, a few years ago returned and on well water now.
Look forward to more of your work. Appreciate your attention to detail.
Amazing video, sussed the channel videos as well. Great work, thoroughness and methodology, SUBBED!
Thank you very much!
great video one of the best i have seen so far god bless you =)
Outstanding, science-based analysis. Great video!
Thank you!
Horrible video. Just a promotion for Berkey. Don’t waste your time like it did me.
Great spreadsheet, very helpful. I am sure this took a lot of effort to put together.
Thank you! Glad it was helpful! Yes, it did. :)
Gravity filters are designed to remove certain pathogens from perfectly clear water such a mountain stream. If there is any silt in the water they will plug up and not allow water to flow through. You can scrub the cartridge, but soon you will reduce the thickness of the media and then it will not remove pathogens. YOU ABSOLUTELY MUST PRE-FILTER THE WATER UNTIL IT IS PERFECTLY CLEAR. This can be done by a combination of settling, flocculation, sand filtering, and/or common cartridge type sediment filters that are easily available. If you don't believe this, take out all but one of your ceramic cartridges, plug the other holes, add some dirty water like what you will have to use during a crisis, see how long it takes to plug up your ceramic cartridge. You will ruin one cartridge but you will know the truth!
Another issue: if there is water in a ceramic cartridge, even a little, and that cartridge is allowed to freeze, a fine crack can occur that will allow pathogens through. You may not know it as you cannot see the crack. NEVER ALLOW YOU CARTRIDGES TO FREEZE!
Did you run a test at the end of life for the filters? What good is a filter if it stops filtering after a day or week?
It would be harder to do, but seems essential to ensure the filters continue working as advertised.
I agree. But unfortunately our resources are limited, and if you think about how long it takes to filter hundreds of gallons with even a single gravity water filter, it would have taken months with 7 different models. So again, I agree with what you're saying, but it's just not possible for us right now.
Have y’all tested any glass counter top filters? Or anything on stainless steel versus glass?
Only system I can think of right now is the AquaTru Carafe which uses a glass carafe to collect the RO water.
Thank you for the thorough video. I am curious if you've heard of the Nikken gravity water filter. I inherited one and am curious how it compares to other gravity and RO systems. Thanks!
You're welcome! No, we haven't heard of it but it looks very similar to the Santevia - that's all I can say really.
I have a Berkey and switched to Epic Pure's Nanofilter pitcher for convenience and they seemed to have similar claims. I know most water pitchers don't have the same claims as the Epic Pure nano filter but I would like to see it compared to a bigger system like the Berkey
Thanks for your input!
Glysophates removal is important (as well as other). Size is important due to limited space. Most with a stand does not slide under cabinets. Have cats. Do not want to set on edge due to cats and ability to knock over.
Are Berkey water filters interchangeable? If I have another counter top filtration system can I change over to Berkey filters?
Depends on the other countertop filter you have I guess, but generally I'd say you can.
Hey guys could you please give a review to a more recent RO filter? It’s called the Bluevua RO100ROPOT-Lite(UV). It’s the cheapest one I’ve seen anywhere ($200) and I bet there’s gonna be a ton of people who buy it. Love the work you guys do, thanks!
This one is on our list already. Thank you for your kind words!
Been waiting for this so creating it! I currently have the waterdrop g3 ro under the sink but am afraid that it is putting nanoplastics in the water. Will probably now go with Berkey.
Glad we could help!
Great video, thank you
Glad you liked it!
It actually sounds like a commercial for Berkeley… 🧐
Yes, several people have said this. But really, it wasn't supposed to be one. I guess we should have done a better job explaining the filtration results of the other gravity water filters which really weren't great.
My problem with your testing is the fact that you used tap water rather than non-tap water. What about viruses
I understand, but there are so many different viruses that you'd had to test for and there is no way that we'd find a water source that would contain them all. Also, we strictly advise against using any of the gravity water filters to remove viruses. With viruses, you have to remove pretty much all of them or you could still get sick, and viruses are extremely small and difficult to remove via size exclusion. Disinfection would be the way to go here.
Nice video Red.
Hi! Love your informative videos…have you ever looked at The Water Machine gravity water purifier? They claim their filters filter fluoride without the need of additional filters like the Berkey. Thank you in advance for any help.
Their product description page says the system uses "black carbon filters" which seems to be regular activated carbon. Based on our lab testing, I highly doubt that you'll achieve a very high fluoride reduction rate using one of those. But I could be wrong and we've never actually tested this water filter model.
I have a Aqua Rain gravity water filter I bought in 1999. Will you test this brand next time?
I've added it to our list!
May i make a suggestion in your next round of gravity testing? Please include the Aquacera Cerametix filter.
Absolutely - I've added the system to our list!
H, any info on PH levels regarding these filters?
Kind Regards
It's included in the Google Sheet in the filtration results tab.
Why not run your water filters through with 500 gallons, or more, then send the samples to get tested. That would be more relevant. Your recommendation to change the filter at around 500 gallons is just a guess-timation. No disrespect intended.
You are right - 500 gal is only a guess. The reason why we didn't run 500 gallons through each system before testing was that, based on our speed test, this would have taken around 80 days of continuous filtration per system. Also, every water supply differs. So while our lab-testing can give us a basic idea of a filter's capabilities to remove contamination, you will see different results with a different water supply - even if there are the same contaminants, because they probably exist at different levels. And removing a contaminant at 10 mg/L for 500 gallons is totally different than removing it at 1 mg/L for 500 gallons. Hope this makes sense!
This video is rigorous with solid logic and explanations. And the fact that you took a controversial stance and argued it well is beyond commendable. You should be proud.
Nothing But An Ad For Berkey Alone ? ….How Deceptive !
We also cover the Purewell and we provide our full analysis including lab reports for everyone to check out.
Excellent video. Can you please help me decide between a berkey or clearly filtered Water pitcher.
Thank you! Hm, I think this is more a question of personal preference. Are you looking for anything specific?
For quality and cost.
Maybe the clearly filtered pitcher since I don't want to mess with berkey fluoride filters
Berkey's fluoride filters are optional, though. Based on our lab testing, filtration performance is pretty similar - although keep in mind that we can only test for a limited number of contaminants. The Berkey is much more costly upfront. In the long run, I'd say they are quite similar provided that you would replace the Berkey filters much sooner than every 3,000 gallons. But the Black Berkey filters are often out of stock.
Thank you so much. Am leaning towards the pitcher but will need to review your data.
I am confused by this: If I get any specialized filter, say fluoride, then wouldn't I have to have all of the filters be fluoride? If so, then what other filtering does a fluoride filter actual filter? If not, how can the non-fluoride filters be helping? Just a bit confused here
I'm not sure if I understand all your questions. So, the fluoride filters are usually addon filters. So you have the regular filters like the Black Berkey filter elements and you add the fluoride filters to them. If a fluoride filter is based on AA, it will remove fluoride, arsenic, and also selenium but that's pretty much it afaik. Hope this helps!
@@boswater6065 Addon, OK, so the fluoride filters are attached to the base filters' outlet? Got it, thanks.
I switched to BOROUX from Berkey, and my family loves it!
Never heard of it, but I'll check it out!
@@boswater6065 Please do a review on it:)
@Anna-Bee I've added it to our list but I can't promise a review anytime soon!
Initially it looked like this would be a thorough review of multiple water filters , however from minute 4 to minute 19 all you talked about Berkey filters. Started looking suspiciously like a Berky advertisement......
That's because the filtration results of the other filters were so bad. But you are not the first person to say this so I guess we should have done a better job explaining this.
You can't even get filters for Berkey right now, so...
It seems like they are in and out of stock every other week or so...
@@boswater6065 They in a dispute with the EPA. Berkey filters are not available unless you buy the whole system.
At least recently, on bigberkeywaterfilters.com they are in and out of stock every other week.
So ive been drinking flouride and aluminum....thanks berkey 😠
Yeah I found out about this after watching a Project Farm video years ago, absolutely shocked the first time, and Im shocked again they havent fixed/amended it STILL 🤯
Excellent video, although may i ask, could you please test with chlorine and chloramines in the future? They are about the most toxic substances in our water, especially chloramines (chlorine bonded to ammonia - they use this in many states). I am so lost trying to work out what water filter to use in California where they have fluoride, and chloramines, nobody does any tests with chloramines and they are becoming more and more common as cities switch from chlorine to chloramines.
Thank you! We would love to test for chloramines but unfortunately it's incredibly expensive, so we simply cannot afford to test for them right now (same as with microplastics for example). Did you confirm with your water utility that they are indeed using chloramine?
@@boswater6065 Thanks yes i confirmed Chloramines are in use here, i bought a Chloramine test kit from Hanna Instruments that included "free chlorine" and "total chlorine" test kits, and the results from my own testing showed a high total chlorine and a zero free chlorine, which is a 100% positive for chloramine use (as the chlorine molecules are bound to ammonia so not "free"), and from what i read very hard to filter out unlike regular free chlorine.
In that case I'd consider a water filter that uses catalytic carbon. Maybe check out our under sink RO comparison video. It includes 3 systems that use catalytic carbon.
@@boswater6065 the downstream effects would cost more.
Can we talk about how some of these INCREASED in fluoride?!?! How does THAT happen?! 😮
Good question. For the British Berkefeld (Doulton) the concentration was 3% higher than before. I think this is just natural fluctuation. As we said, this type of before vs after testing is not an exact science. As for the Purewell with a 47% higher fluoride concentration compared to the unfiltered water, I really don't know. Might be fluctuation. The thing is, I don't know of any filter media that uses fluoride. Maybe you have an answer?
Wish you had tested the 4Patriot Pure Ultimate system.
This one is on our list for our next round of testing.
Lolol this is a Berkey commercial.Now. I will never get a Berkey because they are a dishonest company. This video shows this to be a fact.
Which brand/water filter are you using right now? Btw, not a Berkey commercial. We also cover the Purewell and the British Berkefeld (a bit). But I agree, we should have structured the video differently. The reason why we don't cover the rest is because we weren't exactly blown away by the lab results they could achieve.
@@boswater6065 In the process of choosing now. The problem, is that there is no consistancy between different forms of information. Every form of media shows different.nrand names as being better than the other.
I understand. In our opinion, the main problem is the lack of NSF certifications. Because with all the lab testing that people do nowadays, it always varies based on their water supply and how they test - and that might lead to different results. But if there was a system with NSF certifications, that wouldn't be a problem at all. Maybe look for a different type of filter?
@@boswater6065 That is a good point. I thank you for your input.
Absolutely!
Is the benzene leaching from the ProOne filter a concern? That's pretty carcinogenic stuff isn't it? How the heck did benzene leach out of a water filter?
That's very disappointing as i am currently using ProOne filters in my Berkey and they were very expensive, i wanted filters that would do fluroride without the risk of aluminum leeching, but benzene is much much worse. It feels like you really can't win with these water filters.
Please keep in mind that we did not repeat the lab testing to confirm our findings and that the benzene leaching might be a false positive. That said, we saw similar results testing the ProOne pitcher. So based on our lab results, both ProOne models had apparently leached benzene into the filtered water, and these were the only 2 cases out of all 39 water filters we've tested so far with this issue. Could still be coincidence but personally I highly doubt it.
Now, is this a concern? As usual, we used the strictest public health goal we could find and for benzene that was defined by the OEHHA: 0.15 ppb or µm/l. The OEHHA lists the following health risk category: "Carcinogenicity (leukemia)". However, they also say that the actual cancer risk level at 0.15 ppb is "10^-6 from lifetime exposure". 10 to the power of -6 = 0.0001%. In other words, if you'd consume benzene in drinking water at 0.15 ppb throughout your life, you'd still only have a cancer risk of 0.0001% according to the OEHHA.
The lab report for the ProOne gravity system said 0.72 ppb so much higher than 0.15 ppb. But we assume that this leaching only happens while the filter element is still new. We know of one other lab test for the ProOne gravity filter done by the Water Filter Guru, and he didn't find any benzene, and he had primed the filters to 100 gallons before testing so any benzene might have been flushed out by then.
In the end you need to decide for yourself what you make out of this. Hope this helps!
@@boswater6065 That does help, many thanks for your informative reply!
I made my own berkey for $40, plus filter.
Would love to learn more!
I've concluded all gravity feed filters are over-rated. The filters simply do not last nearly as long as claimed. The fact Berkey uses aluminum to remove fluoride is sad. I have ditched my gravity feed for a multi-stage RO system then remineralize.
Easily the most concise video on this. Hurrican Helene victim here and saw ways to do a cheaper version of a Berkey, but then the filters are as much or more than buying the whole system. Don't understand'
Yes, the price for the Black Berkey filters has gone up. I'm assuming that's because they are out of stock - at least with all the official Berkey dealers I know.
Funny that you recommend berkey but others who did LAB TESTING said it's not a good system.
Would love to take a look at their results. Could you please share who you are referring to?
Filtering tapwater is really not a test! Most tapwater is micro tested before it hit your sink. What everybody really wants to know is how well did it do with water? That’s not from the city, pond creeks, lakes, water that off critters hikers campers are going to be using. What were worried the most about is bacterial viruses, and unless I miss something you didn’t do any kind of testing for bacteria or viruses
I see where you are coming from with your comment. But there are many different types of bacteria, cyst, and viruses that you might stumble upon with microbiologically unsafe water. So unless you know which of them you're facing when sourcing water from a specific pond or creek etc. which I doubt, it would have been required for our testing to include all of them. Also, filtering germs requires pretty much 100% removal or the water is still unsafe. So as explained in the video, the safest method to treat microbiologically unsafe water is disinfection.
As mentioned in the video, just boil or disinfect the water before you pour it through the gravity filter. Then you don't have to worry about the bacteria and viruses.
What happened to the rest. All she is talking about is berkey.
To be fair, we also cover the Purewell and the British Berkefeld (a bit). But I agree, we should have structured the video differently. The reason why we don't cover the rest is because we weren't exactly blown away by the lab results they could achieve.
Why did she not tell us the review of the other filtration systems? This might be paid advertisement by Berkeley.
No, it's not paid advertisement. I agree, we could have done a better job covering the other filters really quick, but we just didn't like their filtration results as mentioned in the video.
Ad for Berkey lol what happened to the others?
I strongly disagree. The Berkey did best in our lab testing but there was a lot that needed to be discussed about it. Besides, we also covered the Purewell. And at almost 23 minutes we felt that the video was already too long to also cover the other systems. That said, you can check our Google sheet for the full analysis of each of them.
This is confusing. Some other videos are showing the waterdrop as the best.
Do you have some examples? And did they lab test their unit as well?
I just watched a video that seemed to make that claim too. I noticed they used alot of hearsay instead of lab results as they gave their recommendations
@@boswater6065 please do your DD and find that information
What a sharp sounding voice -
Talk too fast
Thank you for the feedback.