Types of Water Purifier In India and How Do They Work
Last Updated on 2019-04-04 by Shivam Setia
Are you looking to buy a new water purifier for your home or office? Hold on and read what different types of water purifier offer and which water purifier suits best for your needs. First we have listed the types of water purifiers and then we will go into details of what all these water purifiers offer.
Types of water purifier available in India:
- UV
- UV + RO
- UV + RO + UF
Let’s look at what each of these widely used technologies of water purifier means
1. UV Water Purifiers
UV method of water purification uses Ultra Violet light to clean the water by killing the germs, bacteria and other harmful microorganisms. This purification process is very simple and effective and kills around 99.99% of harmful organisms. There is a tiny lamp inside the purifier that produces UV rays to which the water is exposed, due to which the growth of the harmful organism is restricted and are finally eliminated.
This UV water purifier technique is ideal only for water with low Total Dissolved Solid (TDS). Get the TDS of your water in your area using this TDS Meter.
This purification technique cannot reduce the TDS of water and hence for hard water (that have high TDS i.e 500 and above) are filtered through other techniques. With increasing impurities and hardness of water, there has been new advanced technology incorporated that involves a higher level of purification.
2. UV + RO Water Purifiers
This type of water purifier has an additional layer of purification called RO, which relies on the Reverse Osmosis technique to purify the water. In the RO layer, the water is passed under pressure through very fine pores of the semi-permeable membrane. This technique is effective is filtering out the dissolved salts, impurities like heavy metals, and other microbes.
This technique to purify water can be used for water with TDS ranged between 500-2000.
So the RO technique is useful as it is able to reduce the TDS in the water to an extent that is safe for drinking and UV technique kills germs and other bacteria, so the combined effort of UV + RO outputs a clean and safe drinking water.
3. UV + RO + UF Water Purifiers
This type of water purifier further adds a filtration layer called the UF (Ultra-Filtration) layer. This layer has slightly large pores in its membrane than the RO layer and is used to block and remove bacteria and viruses. UF layer is not capable of removing chemicals.
Here the UV and UF layer combined reduce the bacteria and viruses, while the RO layer removes the small particles, through its semi-permeable membrane. The reduction in TDS happens in this(RO) stage of this multi-layered water purifier.
So as per the water quality in your area and the TDS it has, you can make a decision to install which type of water purifier in your home or office. In most of the cases, the UV + RO water purifier are used.
The candles used in all these water purifier needs to be cleaned regularly in around 2-3 months to remove the sediments deposited in them. These candles have a lifeline of around a year, but it totally depends on the water quality in your area. If the water is of very poor quality, the candle might need frequent cleaning and replacement.
Let us now see what does this TDS level of the water indicate in terms of whether it is safe for drinking or not.
| TDS Level (Milligram/Litter) | Inference |
| Less than 50 |
Lacks important Minerals - Not suitable for drinking |
| 50 - 150 | Acceptable for Drinking (Excellent) |
| 150 - 250 | Acceptable for Drinking (Good, Healthiest in regard to cardiovascular diseases) |
| 250 - 350 | Acceptable for Drinking (Good, Healthy in regard to cardiovascular diseases) |
| 350 - 500 | Fair |
| 500 - 900 | Less Acceptable for Drinking |
| 900 -1200 | Least Acceptable for Drinking |
| 1200 - 2000 | Unacceptable |
| Greater than 2000 | Unacceptable |
Different Stages of Purification in a Water Purifier:
You might have heard of a water purifier having multiple layers of purification. Following are the common purification stages seen in various water purifier
- Sediment Filter – This is the first stage through which the water is passed. This sediment filter is meant to remove fine and coarse particulates from water.
- Pre-carbon Block Filter Cum Absorber – This layer is used to absorb chlorine and harmful pesticides. It is also used to absorb bad taste, color and odor causing elements in the water
- Antiscalant Cartridge – This layer help improves the purification and life of the membrane by preventing scaling on the water purifier membrane layers
- Reverse Osmosis (RO) Membrane – As discussed above, this is the most important layer of purification, as this membrane removes harmful chemicals such as pesticides, heavy metals, reduces hardness and also removes salt present in the water. It is also responsible for removing bacteria and viruses.
- Ultraviolet (UV) Disinfection – This is the fifth layer of purification and it makes water safe for drinking by disinfecting from water-borne disease-causing bacteria, protozoa and other harmful microorganisms.
- Ultra-filtration Cartridge – This layer is responsible to remove bacteria, cysts and harmful pollutants from water. It also enhances the clarity of water by blocking the suspended particles
- Silver-impregnated Post-carbon Filter – This is the last stage and improves the taste and quality of water by removing organic impurities.
We hope we have been able to tell you the basic difference between the technologies available for water purification, to help you make wiser choice of water purifiers.
Now that you know the types of water purifiers and how they work, take a look at the list of best water purifier under 10000 and Best Water Purifiers under 15000 in India.
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