When choosing a water purification system for your home, many people ask the question, “Which is better, RO water or distilled water?” Both systems are great at purifying your drinking water. But in all honesty, purchasing either a reverse osmosis (RO) system versus a distilled water system depends solely on what it is you are wanting.
In essence, all water filtration systems are not equal.
About Reverse Osmosis (RO) Water Systems
Reverse Osmosis (RO) water systems use high pressure to force water through a semi-permeable membrane. It is great at removing salts, bacteria, organic materials, and even some viruses. You do have to replace the membrane to ensure your RO system is removing impurities from your water like it is intended.
About Distilled Water Systems
Distilled water systems are much more effective at removing impurities from your drinking water. In essence, the system boils your water so that much of it evaporates, and it condenses (as clouds do) leaving behind 99.9% of impurities, and then collects as your drinking water. Distilled water systems remove all the impurities RO water systems do, and then some, including:
Bacteria
Viruses
Lead
Arsenic
Pesticides
Chlorine
Salt
Uranium
Nitrates
Pharmaceuticals
Yes, there are pharmaceuticals in your drinking water – you can read about them here.
Pros and Cons of Reverse Osmosis Water
One downside to RO water is that it doesn’t remove contaminants completely. For one, during a chemical spill, you may have to still boil your water.
Another disadvantage to an RO water system is clogging – this typically happens when your system isn’t maintained correctly. This can damage the overall system. However, you can invest in a pre-filter to protect your RO system.
Another downside is that it takes time for the water to pass through the semi-permeable membrane. If you want a lot of RO water quickly, it’s not going to happen.
Another thing is maintenance. This could be a pro or a con depending on how you look at it. One, you could add it to your household maintenance schedule and stay on top of it, or hire a water company such as Aquasani to maintain your RO water system for you. It is affordable, quick and you can forget about needing to stay on top of your RO water system!
However, despite these cons it does have the ability to remove 95-99% of total dissolved solids (TDS), and it greatly improves the smell, taste and appearance of your water.
The RO filtration process consumes no additional energy.
RO water is also very affordable, costing only pennies per gallon
Another upside is that some people claim cooking with it creates better-tasting food.
Pros and Cons of Distilled Water Systems
One good thing about distilled water systems is that it is so pure due to the fact that water evaporates at a lower rate than its additives.
It is also considered to be the purest type of water as it safely removes contaminants and prevents water borne diseases.
Another advantage of distilled water systems is that they are less expensive than buying water by the gallon.
That being said, many distilled water systems use a high consumption of energy which can show on your electric bills.
The water distillation process can take longer than say RO water.
Some also argue that distilled water doesn’t taste as good as other forms of purified water. And others argue that distilled water leeches minerals like magnesium from the body.
In summary, depending on what it is you are wanting for your home, family or office. One of the recommendations we make is to check the EWG website for the tap water in your area. From here, you can easily see the contaminants in your area, and can make a more readily-researched decision!
About Aquasani in Springfield, Mo.
Aquasani is an authorized dealer for Rainsoft, WaterLogic, & JavaSmart. Based in Springfield, Mo., Aquasani services areas in the Ozarks including Jefferson City, Springfield, Mo., Ozark, Nixa, Rogersville, Republic, Joplin, Branson and even Harrison, Arkansas, and Bentonville. In essence, we service Mid-Missouri, Southwest Missouri, and Northwest Arkansas, and have been servicing these areas since 2006. We offer home water softener systems, drinking water filtration systems, whole house air cleaner systems, problem-solving water filtration systems and we also offer a coffee service to businesses in these above-mentioned areas as well.
The coffee service business is simple: an office purchases coffee from us, and we provide the coffee maker/dispenser, deliver the coffee to the office as often as needed, and we even clean the coffee makers monthly.
We specialize in water filtration for both commercial businesses and residential homes. If that isn’t enough, we provide free trials for our coffee and water cooler services. If you would like a free estimate, schedule an appointment with us by calling (417) 881-4000 and one of our Aquasani teammates will sort you out!
