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Fluoride in your Water
Fluoride occurs naturally in ground water
Many natural ground waters worldwide contain fluoride in quantities from 0.1ppm (Parts per million) to as high as 12ppm and fluoride is commonly found in volcanic soils. An example of this is the roadside spring at the top of the Kaimai Hill on SH29 between Hamilton and Tauranga, New Zealand. The water from this spring contains fluoride that has dissolved into the water as it passed through the volcanic rocks of the Kaimai range.
Often local water authorities adjust the level of fluoride up or down to obtain the 'ideal' trace amount which is claimed to be between 0.7 and 1.2ppm. We do not wish to enter this debate but rather point out that the 'treatment' can sometimes be worse than the 'disease'.
Be wary of companies claiming to take out fluoride with a standard system
If you are not certain about another manufacturers claims then ask us, or an independant expert. Basically fluoride removal is totally dependant on the time it spends in contact with the filter media. So, for a normal wholehouse filter at 10 litres/min (shower rate) virtually none will be removed. Another factor often overlooked is the nature of the water itself, as variations in pH and mineral content can greatly effect the efficiency of Carbon or Aluminium removal methods.
Read more below.....
There are several methods of removing fluoride from water, but to remove a significant amount is slow & expensive.
1. Treatment with Alum, Alumina, Actival or other aluminium based media will usually remove up to 98% of the fluoride, but is slow and presents a major problem for the consumer (see below).
2. Reverse Osmosis (RO), will remove almost all contaminants including fluoride.
3. Distillation, where all contaminants are removed and pure (distilled) water is produced.
4. Carbon media has been shown to remove fluoride but the results are not consistent. Bone Char Charcoal is more effective, but as it is commonly produced from cattle bones in third world countries it could pose a health risk.
5. KDF Media is more effective than GAC Carbon, but still will not remove enough at higher flow rates.
The Pros and Cons of Fluoride removal methods
1. Treatment with Aluminium based media is the most common option, but it's slow and aluminium represents a far bigger health hazard to humans than fluoride. Thus removing fluoride and replacing it with something worse is not an option for most health concious people.
2. Reverse Osmosis (RO) is very effective, but it is extremely slow and only really practical for drinking water only, thus exposure to fluoride and other contaminants will continue throughout the rest of your house.
3. Distillation produces pure water, but it's expensive to run and it is only practical for small quantities of drinking water meaning you are still exposed to the contaminants throughout the rest of your home.
4. KDF/Granular Activated Carbon (GAC) cartridges as in our RTS-1020 system do reduce fluoride, but because it is flow-rate dependent it cannot be guaranteed. NB. Kiwipure Ltd do not make any claim to remove fluoride with our GAC/KDF filter.
Note: All the above methods are slow and impractical for a wholehouse supply. The faster the flow rate, the less fluoride is removed. Carbon filtration may remove up to 50% of the fluoride but this would be at a drip feed rate. At normal flow rates virtually none will be removed.
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