What Are the Pros and Cons of Carbon Filters?
Carbon filters can improve the taste of drinking water. Aside from the benefits of carbon filtration systems, there are a few drawbacks. Comparing the pros and cons of carbon filters is helpful when weighing out a possible investment.
At Monkey Wrench Plumbing, Heating & Air, we know that every home has different water needs. Since 2007, we’ve assisted thousands of homeowners with understanding the advantages and disadvantages of water filters, including carbon filtration.
After years of working with carbon filtration systems, we’ve narrowed down the pros and cons of carbon filters.
Pros
- Removes various contaminants
- Improves water quality
- Carbon filters are environmentally friendly
Cons
- Doesn’t address other contaminants
- Routine maintenance required
After reviewing the benefits and drawbacks of carbon filters, you will be better positioned to decide if this system is a suitable choice for your home.
What Are the Pros of Carbon Filters?
A carbon filter is designed to improve tap water quality in a home. Despite being tested annually to meet strict standards and considered safe to drink, tap water can still contain contaminants. Not all water tastes the same, so carbon filters help ensure the water entering a home becomes higher quality.
One of the ways carbon filters improve the quality of water is by removing specific contaminants.
Carbon Filters Remove Various Contaminants
Carbon filters can eliminate a variety of contaminants along with volatile organic compounds (VOCs) found in water. Some contaminants occur naturally, while others are a product of industrial and agricultural contamination. Here’s a list of the impurities a carbon filter can remove.
- Disinfectants such as bleach
- Pesticides
- Herbicides
- Insecticides
- Hydrogen Sulfide (rotten egg odor)
- Chlorine
- Chloramine
When water enters the carbon filter, the contaminants are automatically attracted to the activated carbon inside the filter cartridge. This process, also known as adsorption, is 90% to 99% effective in removing the targeted contaminants.
Some contaminants, like pesticides, are present in small amounts, so the chances of it causing symptoms such as an upset stomach are low. Still, even if the percentages of these contaminants are low, it’s best to address them with a carbon filter.
Other contaminants like chlorine are actually added to drinking water as a disinfectant. Even though municipal water sources add safe amounts of chlorine, it may impact its taste. By removing these contaminants from water, carbon filters can also improve its taste.
Carbon Filtration Improves Water Taste
With a carbon filter installation, you’ll notice a significant improvement in your home’s drinking water. Thanks to its design, carbon filters address contaminants that affect the taste of water.
Contaminants such as chlorine and hydrogen sulfide can make tap water smell. Water shouldn’t have an odor, so carbon filtration helps eliminate any unwanted tastes and smells.
Improved drinking water can also be used to cook or make coffee and other beverages like tea. With better-tasting water, some homeowners have reported to Monkey Wrench Plumbing, Heating & Air that their water drinking habits have also increased.
By having more access to high-quality drinking water, homeowners will not have to purchase cases of bottled water continuously. Fewer water bottles mean less chance of plastic pollution, which is another benefit of owning a carbon filter.
Carbon Filters are Environmentally Friendly
Carbon filters can also have a positive environmental impact. By providing better-tasting water with a turn of a faucet, homeowners can eliminate plastic use by drinking their carbon-filtered water instead of bottled.
All used plastic water bottles should be recycled. Yet, unfortunately, a lot of it doesn’t and ends up polluting the environment.
Besides eliminating reliance on plastic water bottles, carbon filters are environmentally friendly with the materials used to make them. The carbon substances inside the filter are usually made up of coconut shells and other organic materials that are heated up to form activated carbon.
Carbon filter manufacturers tend to lean toward using organic materials because they’re more sustainable than other options, like charcoal. When charcoal is used to make activated carbon, it generates pollution.
Environmentally friendly and providing better-tasting water, carbon filters can benefit any home, but it isn’t the perfect water filter. There are a few cons worth knowing about before you decide to have one installed in your home.
What Are the Cons of Carbon Filters?
Carbon filters have fewer drawbacks than benefits. Still, by knowing what the cons are, you can weigh them out with the pros.
Homeowners can also know what to expect when it comes to possible drawbacks when owning a carbon filter. One of the first cons homeowners should be aware of is the limitations of carbon filters, which we will examine further in the following section.
Carbon Filters Are Ineffective Against Certain Contaminants
There are a couple of contaminants that carbon filters are not designed to remove. Some of the impurities that carbon filters cannot remove include.
- Suspended dissolved solids like dirt, rust, sand, and other sediments
- Heavy metals such as lead and mercury
- Bacteria and viruses
Despite its limited capacity to remove these contaminants, carbon filters can be installed alongside other filters that address other water impurities. A sediment filter can help remove physical particles, and an ultraviolet water filter can effectively kill viruses, bacteria, and germs in the water.
Carbon filters are also not able to address minerals that cause hard water. Water softeners and anti-scale systems like Flow-Tech can address issues caused by hard water. These systems sometimes offer a post-carbon water filter to improve the water quality further.
Whether it’s a stand-alone filtration system or installed alongside other water treatment options, carbon filters require routine maintenance.
Carbon Filters Require Routine Replacement
Every water filtration system requires some maintenance, and carbon filters aren’t any different. For carbon water filters, it’s essential to clean and replace the filter cartridge so that it can continue to function efficiently.
It is recommended to replace a carbon filter monthly, every few months, or yearly depending on the size and capacity of the filter. Always refer to the manufacturer’s manual, which should come with a carbon filter, for information on when to replace the filter.
In most cases, homeowners are responsible for replacing their carbon filters unless a technician is contracted. Failing to maintain a filter replacement may result in the failure of the operation of the carbon filter.
Is a Carbon Water Filtration System Right for Me?
Carbon filtration systems have more pros than cons and are trusted by different homeowners and companies to provide better-tasting water. Now that you know the advantages and drawbacks of owning a carbon filter, you can determine if it’s a suitable option for your home.
From installing whole-house carbon filters to helping homeowners choose the right filter replacement, we at Monkey Wrench Plumbing, Heating & Air have seen how water filtration can benefit any home. Although not all houses are built the same, we’re confident in how carbon filtration improves water quality anywhere in the Los Angeles area.
Contact us using one of the buttons below if you have any questions regarding carbon water filters. You can also book an appointment through our water filtration scheduler.
Carbon filters are just one of the different filtration methods available. Learn more about how carbon filters compare to other systems, such as sediment filters, to better understand how carbon filtration works and decide if it’s right for your home.