Crystal Quest Whole House Water Filter, Water Softener, & Sediment Filtration System - Stainless Steel

 

In stage 1, water flows through a 20" sediment filter cartridge that removes sediment, silt, sand and dirt. Also extends the life of water softener, water filters, and prevents damage to control valves or pumps

In stages 2 and 3, water flows through a bed of media made of a special high-purity alloy blend of two dissimilar metals - copper and zinc KDF-55D ®, and KDF-85D ® . KDF is a major advancement in water treatment technology that works on the electro-chemical and spontaneous-oxidation-reduction (REDOX) principles. Chlorine is instantaneously and almost inexhaustibly oxidized.

Tests on KDF/GAC cartridge have shown 99+% chlorine removal past 20,000 gallons of water. In comparison, carbon cartridges of comparable volumes drop below 90% effectiveness after only 4,000 gallons.

Iron and hydrogen sulfide are oxidized into insoluble matter and attach to the surface of the media. Heavy metals such as lead, mercury, copper, nickel, chromium, cadmium, aluminum, and other dissolved metals are removed from the water by the electrochemical process. They are attracted to the surface of the media, much like a magnet. The media inhibits bacterial growth throughout the entire unit In fact, it has been shown to be reduced up to 90%, eliminating the need for silver, which is commonly used in carbon-only filters (silver is considered a pesticide by the EPA and, as such, must be registered with them).

Is copper or zinc added to the water in any significant amount? No! On 2.3 ppm chlorinated water, <0.05 mg/l copper and only 0.46 mg/l zinc were measured. The EPA aesthetic levels are 1.0 mg/l for copper and 5.0 mg/l for zinc. Both zinc and copper are essential minerals for good health - the FDA recommends a daily intake of 15 mg of zinc and 2 mg of copper.

In stage 4, water flows through granulated activated carbon (GAC). GAC is universally recognized and widely used as an effective adsorbent for a wide variety of organic contaminants, such as chlorine (99.9%), chemicals linked to cancer (THM's, benzine) pesticides, herbicides, insecticides, volatile organic compounds (VOC's), PCB's, MTBE's and hundreds of other chemical contaminants that may be present in water, bad taste, and odors from your drinking water.

Carbon is extremely porous and provides a large surface area for contaminants to collect. Carbon-only filters must also use their capacity for chlorine removal, resulting in a shortened life. They also may use a bituminous coal carbon, which is good at removing chlorine, but not as effective at removing chemicals. We use a high-grade coconut shell carbon that is most effective at removing chemicals. Coconut shell carbon provides a significantly higher volume of micro-pores than either coal, wood or lignite based carbon. As a result, it is more effective than other carbon types in removing trihalomethanes (THM's) and other chemicals from municipally supplied water. Since our REDOX media removes the chlorine before it reaches the carbon, the carbon capacity is not wasted on chlorine and is free to concentrate more effectively on organic contaminants.

In Stage 5, water flows through an ion exchange mineral tank and brine water conditioner. The mineral tank contains CQ-WSR-1000, which is a high capacity premium grade bead form conventional gel polystyrene sulphonate cation exchange resin designed for use in industrial or household water conditioning equipment. It removes the hardness ions, e.g. calcium and magnesium (lime), replacing them with sodium ions. When the resin bed is exhausted and hardness ions begin to break through, capacity is restored by regeneration with common salt.

In stage 6, water flows through a Sediment mineral tank, which efficiently removes sediment and suspended matter down to the 20 micron range. The tank is filled with the sediment removing media, CQ-S100. CQ-S100 Sediment media is a non-hydrous silicon dioxide media which can be used as a highly efficient filter media for the reduction of suspended matter. CQ-S100® has many outstanding advantages over the more common granular filter medias used for suspended solids reduction. It's fractured edges and irregular surface provides a high surface area and complex flow path for efficient removal of suspended matter through out the filter bed, typically reducing suspended solids down to the 20-40 micron range. CQ-S100's larger particle size creates less pressure loss through the filter and allows deeper sediment penetration into the bed for higher sediment loading and longer filter runs. This large and irregular shape prevents the screening and caking of sediment in the top several inches of the filter bed as happens in the typical sand filter, thus preventing a rapid build up of head loss and blinding problems. CQ-S100’s light weight means lower backwash rates and better bed expansion to release trapped sediment and rinse the filter media during the backwash cycle. This ideal combination of particle shape, size and density makes it a good choice where quality water filtration and water conservation are important.

In Stage 7, Water flows through a 20" solid carbon cartridge for removing volatile organic carbon compounds (VOC's), insecticides, pesticides and industrial solvents.