What Does A Brita Filter Do

woman pouring water into kettle in kitchen using Brita water filter

Brita filters can help turn contaminated tap water into healthier drinking water.

Image Credit: Westend61/Westend61/GettyImages

Having make clean drinking water isn't just important for the sake of groovy taste. Contaminants commonly found in drinking water, including chemicals and organic materials, tin can pose serious health risks. This is why water filtration systems, like Brita, are so popular.

Brita water filters can provide a way to remove contaminants from drinking water, ensuring the h2o is safe to potable.

Drinking contaminated water tin take firsthand health effects, such as nausea and dizziness. But sure contaminants are as well linked with long-term furnishings, such as an increased risk of cancer, nervous system disorders and liver and kidney damage, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

While the U.S. has one of the safest drinking water supplies in the globe, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), contamination can still occur.

How Do Brita Filters Work?

Brita filters piece of work by using an activated charcoal and ion exchange filtering organisation. Although the verbal filtration process Brita uses is "patented," a look at how a typical activated charcoal and ion exchange filtering system functions can give you lot a full general idea of how the process works.

In this process, the pores of the activated charcoal trap larger particles, and positively charged materials in the carbon filter attract negatively charged ions in smaller water contaminants, causing them to stick to the filter, co-ordinate to water filter company Tapp Water. The size of the mesh screen in the filter determines its effectiveness.

The Brita company articles standalone filters and installed water filtration systems. Standalone filters include portable pitchers and dispensers. Installed water filtration systems include faucet filtration and refrigerator water filters.

While Brita products don't provide inherent wellness benefits, they may help reduce the take chances of future health bug stemming from impairment due to pollutants in water.

Are Brita Filters Safe?

Brita filters are effective at removing contaminants from drinking water. Brita products are certified by the National Sanitation Foundation (NSF), which ways they come across the requirements for providing prophylactic drinking water.

Brita filters are also certified under the Water Quality Clan (WQA) Gold Seal Product Certification Program. Products with WQA'southward Aureate Seal are noted as meeting or exceeding industry standards for specified contaminant reduction, structural integrity and material safety.

How effective Brita filters are depends on whether they are used properly. This means they must be used according to manufacturer's guidelines and the filters must be replaced regularly.

Tip

No matter what brand of water filter you choose, yous'll desire to check that it is certified past the National Sanitation Foundation, according to the CDC. The NSF certification shows that the product has been evaluated and approved for safe. Yous tin take a look at the best NSF-certified water filters at WaterFilterData.org.

Replacing Your Brita Filter

In order for Brita products to remain effective, their filters must exist replaced according to manufacturing guidelines.

Brita filters are designed to filter out impurities from your water; however, if you do not modify your Brita filter at the recommended time, information technology may be less effective.

If you see tiny carbon pieces within of your bullpen or glass, your filter may need to be inverse.

Almost h2o filters need to be replaced after they have filtered 40 gallons of h2o, which takes about two months in a typical household, according to Waterful.org. How often yous replace the h2o filter will depend on other factors, including:

How much h2o you lot potable
What type of filtration system y'all have
The water'due south overall hardness
Your water's contamination level

Brita makes different h2o filters, some of which require replacement more frequently than others. How oftentimes you alter your Brita filter depends on the specific product you're using and how much you apply information technology. Many plastic Brita pitchers come equipped with an indicator that volition point when it's time to supplant the filter.

The nautical chart below is based on Brita's suggestions for replacing your filter; exist sure to also read the manufacturer's guidelines and pay attention to whatsoever indicators on the products. Note: The timeframes for replacing filters are averages for near households.

Brita Model	Filter Replacement by Gallons	Filter Replacement by Time
Everyday Water Pitcher with Longlast+ Filter	120 gallons	Every six months
Grand Water Pitcher	40 gallons	Every two months
Cascade Stream Water Pitcher	40 gallons	Every 2 months
Metro Pitcher with Longlast+ Filter	120 gallons	Every half-dozen months

What Does Brita Filter Out?

There are many types of Brita products on the market, and each one'due south ability to filter certain materials will vary, then it's of import to cheque the NSF-certification. Co-ordinate to Brita, sure systems will filter the post-obit:

Asbestos
Benzene
Cadmium
Chlorine
Copper
Lead
Mercury
Zinc

Some people accept concerns that filtering water will remove fluoride, a water additive that promotes strong teeth. According to its manufacturers, Brita retains a healthy level of fluoride in the filtered water.

Atomic number 82 contamination is often a chief concern when it comes to drinking tap water, according to the Atomic number 82 Education and Abatement Design Grouping. So, do Brita filters remove pb?

Inquiry has plant that Brita'due south filtering systems consistently filtered eighty percentage or more of both lead and copper, according to the Lead Didactics and Abatement Pattern Grouping. When used properly, Brita filters see regulatory guidelines.

Both BritaFaucet Systems and Brita Longlast+ Filters help to reduce 99 percent of lead present in tap water, co-ordinate to Brita. "If your household water source contains levels of pb that are above the EPA'southward maximum level, these Brita filters tin can exist used to provide yous with safer water for drinking and cooking," the make'due south website reads.

How to Choose a H2o Filter

In that location are several factors to take into consideration when buying a water filtration arrangement.

It's of import to find out which kinds of contaminants your water contains before choosing a filter, according to Consumer Reports. If your principal concern is gustatory modality, some models are designed specifically to ameliorate the flavor of your H2O.

If contaminants are a concern, however, yous'll need to choose a model that meets your needs.

If yous utilize a public water system, contact your supplier to ask about water testing results. The EPA besides lists certified water testing labs by state. If you get water from a well, the CDC recommends contacting your local health department for assistance in locating an bureau qualified to test your well water. Local health departments can often examination well water free of charge too, according to the EPA.

Brita also recommends determining water quality before purchasing a water filtration organisation. Once you are enlightened of the materials and chemicals in your drinking water, you will be in a better position to purchase the best organization for your needs.

Bonus Benefits of H2o Filters

Drinking water regularly has many health benefits. H2o filters tin can make h2o taste better, which may brand you more than likely to drink it.

Water filters tin can also benefit the environment by reducing the amount of plastic bottles used and discarded. When you switch to a filtration system, you can replace upwards to 1,800 single-apply plastic bottles per year, according to Brita.

The brand has partnered with Terracycle, a global leader in recycling, to keep Brita products out of landfills. The program helps people recycle Brita filters, pitchers, dispensers, bottles, faucet systems and packaging.