3 ladybugs Posted January 5, 2018 Share Posted January 5, 2018 We just got our billionth (not quite but feels like it) notice that something bad is high in our water. The latest notice said that we had elevated Halo acidic Acids (DH said that one of those words is spelled wrong). We have NO control over our water as we get it from a neighboring township and that township votes on the water that they own, thus giving us no say in our water. Sometimes we don't even get bills on time. We just get past due notices and no bill. I live in New Jersey so imagine Tony Soprano is in control of your water. He gets to it when he gets to it and safety is not always the #1 priority. So we have been drinking bottled water (Poland Spring) from Costco for over a year now (might be 2 I can't remember at this point). We cook with it and we drink it. This has many problems. We have to store this water. We buy it by about 12 gallons at a time (comes in 6 gallon boxes that have 1 gallon each containers in it), sometimes I get 18 gallons if I think it will fit into the van. Then we bring it home and put it in our basement, taking up room down there. Then everyday we go down, bring up 2 gallons and use that for about 1.5 days then do it again and again. This is getting old. We need a more permanent solution. I have been looking at getting a Berkey. At this point I am thinking of getting the added filter just to be safe. We have NO problem with fluoride. However I don't want the toxic chemical d'jour to not be filtered out because we don't mind fluoride. I would rather my children get it from other sources at this point. So is Berkey our only option? Has anyone had experience with something else that works just as well if not better? At this point I am worried about my family's safety so I would like to get the best from the get go. Price is always a consideration but not as much for this. If you have a "get me by option" and a "dream" option for me to consider please tell me. So if you were me, what would you get and why? I should add that we are a family of 4 that fosters. We are licenced for an infant and a young child. Our children (bios) are 4 and 9. We also have a dog and 4 hermit crabs (that we have had for over 2 years... so we must be doing something right with them ;) ). Oh and moving is not an option. For all it's faults, I really do love New Jersey and DH works here and can't really move with his job (already commuting a long ways) not to mention with fostering it is a nightmare to move and keep doing that. Thank you for your help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AMJ Posted January 5, 2018 Share Posted January 5, 2018 Have you looked into Reverse Osmosis systems? We have one installed on our kitchen sink. It has a separate tap for the RO water. We use RO water for the fish tank, drinking, and cooking, and we use the tap water for washing up, watering plants, and boiling spaghetti. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bensmom Posted January 5, 2018 Share Posted January 5, 2018 I love, love, love my Berkey (with fluoride filters). We have had ours several years and my only regret is not getting a larger size. (We are a family of 3 but because I use it for cooking water not just drinking, we use much more than I anticipated.) 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3 ladybugs Posted January 5, 2018 Author Share Posted January 5, 2018 I love, love, love my Berkey (with fluoride filters). We have had ours several years and my only regret is not getting a larger size. (We are a family of 3 but because I use it for cooking water not just drinking, we use much more than I anticipated.) What size did you get, and what size do you wish you would have got? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted January 5, 2018 Share Posted January 5, 2018 (edited) We have a tap filter (PUR). Would that work for your needs? I have no desire to use kitchen space for a large container of water. Edited January 5, 2018 by regentrude Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3 ladybugs Posted January 5, 2018 Author Share Posted January 5, 2018 We have a tap filter (PUR). Would that work for your needs? I have no desire to use kitchen space for a large container of water. Hmm... I don't see that chemical I listed on this list. https://www.pur.com/why-pur/filter-comparison My DH is a biochemist and he is working from home today because of the storm so I will ask him at lunch though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted January 5, 2018 Share Posted January 5, 2018 (edited) They mean Haloacetic acids. It's a class of substances, not a single chemical. The table only contains one of them (Tribromoacetic acid). Based on the other substances the filter filters out, I would assume it should filter the other HAAs as well. What I found from a quick google search was that activated carbon filters do. Edited January 5, 2018 by regentrude 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liz CA Posted January 5, 2018 Share Posted January 5, 2018 What size did you get, and what size do you wish you would have got? We have the Big Berkey and there are only two of us. I'd get the bigger one for more people - or maybe we use a lot of water. Since the Berkey does not need anything to work, you can put it anywhere in the kitchen. It does not need to sit on the counter taking up space. Mine sits across the room but is easily filled and water is dispensed into pots, cups, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guinevere Posted January 5, 2018 Share Posted January 5, 2018 We love our Berkey! We were getting noticed of things in our water, and we kept having stomach problems. After we got the Berkey, we didn't have any more problems. We have the biggest one, and we do ok with it. We are a family of 8. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mbelle Posted January 5, 2018 Share Posted January 5, 2018 Our city water is terrible and it's very dirty. We have been using a three gallon Berkey with floride filters for several years. I would like a bigger one as we are constantly refilling. I do love the Berkey though! Our dream option is a whole house filter with reverse osmosis. We may be able to get that this year! We smell like chlorine and our eyes are really red when we get out of the shower. My parents had terrible water too. It was often blue and also over chlorinated. They got a whole house reverse osmosis and love it. Their skin is much better. They got something extra on the kitchen sink for drinking water. I'm not sure what that is. I do wonder about mineral content in a reverse osmosis system and if there is enough for health and teeth? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magnificent_baby Posted January 5, 2018 Share Posted January 5, 2018 We had a Culligan reverse osmosis system. It was pricey but loved it. Got rid of it when we moved and had city water but I wish we would have kept it. It's pricey but was reliable and very happy with it. There are different models you can choose from, which is nice depending on your needs and budget. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Familia Posted January 5, 2018 Share Posted January 5, 2018 Alexapure available at mypatriotsupply and, I imagine, elsewhere. Takes out the bad, leaves in the good for taste, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elizabeth86 Posted January 5, 2018 Share Posted January 5, 2018 Following as we are always getting one of those notices as well. Our water tastes terrible too. I am always amazed to hear that people actually drink tap water. I guess it's not so bad everywhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Random Posted January 5, 2018 Share Posted January 5, 2018 I wholeheartedly recommend the Berkey. Is there a reason you're looking for other options? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3 ladybugs Posted January 5, 2018 Author Share Posted January 5, 2018 I wholeheartedly recommend the Berkey. Is there a reason you're looking for other options? I am only looking to make sure I am getting what I need. I would hate to fork over $400 for something that takes up my very expensive counter space (not actually expensive, but I have very little of it) that isn't exactly what I need. I just want to be sure so I am looking for opinions. If you have a Berkey, where do you have it typically? I am looking at getting a Royal based on what I am seeing on here. It seems big but maybe I am looking at it wrong. There are very few days now that we don't go and get 2 gallons of water from our basement, if we were to increase our water intake because of ease of use (easier then pouring 1 gallon jugs) then I am sure we would need the Royal at that point. I have a counter that doesn't have any plugs (we installed it, there is a plug next to it). I could put it there, but it has an upper cabinet at standard height, so I am not sure it would fit. Also I am SURE the state would require us to secure it somehow and I am trying to figure out how that would work. Hmm.... maybe we really need to consider the pantry remodel that we were going to do. See how the 'might as well's" factor in. :scared: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ksr5377 Posted January 6, 2018 Share Posted January 6, 2018 You can put in your own RO filter system for drinking water for under $400. I love ours and wish I would have priced it years ago. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prairiewindmomma Posted January 6, 2018 Share Posted January 6, 2018 We bought our reverse osmosis unit off Amazon for under $300. They have both tabletop and under cabinet models. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted January 6, 2018 Share Posted January 6, 2018 Have you looked into Reverse Osmosis systems? We have one installed on our kitchen sink. It has a separate tap for the RO water. We use RO water for the fish tank, drinking, and cooking, and we use the tap water for washing up, watering plants, and boiling spaghetti. My parents had one at their old house, worked great as far as I know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted January 6, 2018 Share Posted January 6, 2018 (edited) Following as we are always getting one of those notices as well. Our water tastes terrible too. I am always amazed to hear that people actually drink tap water. I guess it's not so bad everywhere. Mine is perfectly fine. I mean some people say they don't care for it, but I grew up on it and it's fine.I prefer it to the taste of bottled water...it has more minerals I guess. I drink it all the time. Others drink tap for taste reasons but it's perfectly safe. I've never ever gotten a notice of any problems with it other than say, if there is a hurricane and temporary loss of power or once a broken water main due to construction. But never just high levels of something or whatever. I actually naively didn't realize what a problem tap water was in other places until Flint hit the news. Edited January 6, 2018 by ktgrok 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bensmom Posted January 8, 2018 Share Posted January 8, 2018 We have the Imperial which holds 3.25 gallons. While it sounds kind of crazy, even to myself, I would buy the Crown which holds 6 gallons if I had it to do over, even though we are only a family of three. Maybe it is my imagination, but it seems the fluoride filters may slow the filtration process down and we empty our 3.25 gallons every day and I have to refill before the day is over. My ds and dh are for some weird reason incapable of refilling the Berkey when they see that they have emptied it with their water bottles and all too often I come to get a drink or prepare dinner and the Berkey is near empty and it takes time to refill. I have never actually timed how long it takes to refill. I am usually in a hurry emptying it as it refills😉 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bensmom Posted January 8, 2018 Share Posted January 8, 2018 Another weird consideration with the Berkey is the size (specifically the height of the canister). Our Berkey cannot sit on our kitchen counters because there isn't a place without an upper cabinet and it is too tall to fit under the upper cabinet. We have a bench that we put it on which makes it a lovely height for pouring water into the top, but you have to bend or squat down to fill your glass, pot etc. To fill the Berkey, I carry a pitcher of water at a time from my sink. It is such a small thing, but if we ever build a home or remodel a kitchen, I will plan a more convenient height for my Berkey and ensure a pot-filler faucet or spray wand is within reach. Such a first-world problem, I know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kewb Posted January 8, 2018 Share Posted January 8, 2018 Also in NJ. My dh built me a Big Berkey. He got 2 large stock pots. Drilled 4 holes in one. After a lot of research we went with Daulton filters. NJ water does not have flouride added so we don't have flouride filters. We have a water cooler and the Berkey sits next to it on a stool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3 ladybugs Posted January 8, 2018 Author Share Posted January 8, 2018 I am not worried about the fluoride I am worried about chemicals that are the size of Fluoride that they are not telling us we have in our water till days, weeks, months after the fact. I found out that my in-laws who live in New Mexico, paid $6000 for a whole house water filtration system. I couldn't believe it when I heard it. I am not sure I want to go to that extreme but I also don't want to get cancer again. The first time nearly killed me. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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