How Does a Whole House Water Filter Work?

Life is all about enjoying the little things: putting the collar on your dog before a long walk; fresh linens on the bed before you sleep; the smell of sunscreen before your day at the beach. But notice that you can’t enjoy those moments without ensuring a little added protection before they happen. The same goes for enjoying clean, healthy water.

Before you determine whether or not a whole house filter is right for you and your family (or which whole house filter, for that matter), you’ll need to learn the basics about how it works.

A whole house water filter is a system that is installed at the main water line of a home to provide filtered water throughout the entire house, including every faucet, shower, and appliance that connects to pipes like a washer. These systems are “point of entry (POE)” filters, because they remove contaminants at the point that water enters your home.

A whole house water filter provides clean water for the entire home — not just your kitchen faucet. This includes when you shower or bathe, when you brush your teeth in the morning, when you wash your vegetables before cooking, or when you refill your pet’s water bowl.. In essence, the water filter becomes a safeguard for all of the faucets, showerheads, and water-connected appliances in your house. These systems work to prevent contaminated water from entering the home for all of the uses we mentioned above, and more. That being said, how it actually works is fairly simple.

Most whole house water filters clean your water via a three-step process. First, a sediment pre-filter removes larger particles, then copper-zinc (KDF) and activated carbon filter treats the water, and finally the post-filter further polishes the water.

Copper-zinc (KDF) is also used to aid in the reduction of chlorine and to inhibit the growth of algae and bacteria in the tank. 

Activated carbon is also the most popular water filtration media on the market. It’s essentially made up of organic material with high carbon content (like wood, coal, or coconut shells). When it’s heated up (in such a way that it doesn’t burn), it results in char. That char is then treated to create a porous material that binds to impurities, pulling them out of the water. Moreover, the Activated carbon method comes recommended by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to give you that extra layer of protection from a wide variety of contaminants that might still be present in your water supply.