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In order to be sure which contaminants your water contains, it is best to get a sample of your water professionally tested in a laboratory.
Commonly occurring, potentially harmful contaminants in mains water around the world include:
- Pathogenic Bacteria
- Cryptosporidium, Giardia, and other cysts
- Chlorine (taste & odour)
- Lead
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Common pathogenic bacteria found in water supplies include:
- E-coli
- Salmonella
- Legionella
- Cholera
- Salmonella Typhi (Typhoid)
- Shigella
- Klebsiella |
These bacteria are not often found in chlorinated mains water supplies, but are often found in unchlorinated private water supplies, and stored water. Stored water, whether it is in a water tank or a bottle, is the perfect breeding ground for bacteria. It does not take long for the bacteria to multiply sufficiently to reach infective dose (disease causing) levels.
Pathogenic bacteria are responsible for many of the common types of potentially fatal water-borne disease around the world. Doulton® and British Berkefeld® water filters have been proven by independent laboratory testing to be highly effective against pathogenic bacteria.
| Bacteria |
% Reduction |
Illness Caused |
Symptoms |
| Salmonella typhus |
>99.999% |
Typhoid Fever |
Fever, headaches, apathy, weakness, abdominal pain, and a rose coloured skin rash. |
| Shigella |
>99.999% |
Shigellosis or Bacterial Dysentery |
Abdominal pain, fever, diarrhoea, mucus and blood in excreta. |
| Vibrio cholerae |
>99.99% |
Cholera |
Nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhoea, severe dehydration followed by collapse, shock and in many cases death |
| Klebsiella Tarragona |
>99.999% |
Gastroenterocolitis |
Diarrhoea and abdominal cramps |
| E-coli |
>99.999% |
Gastroenterocolitis |
Diarrhoea and abdominal cramps |
Which Filter?
Any Doulton® or British Berkefeld® filter. (Sterasyl™, Super Sterasyl™, Carbosyl™, Supercarb™, Ultracarb™) All our filters have Absolute filtration ratings (defined as >99.99%) of 0.9 microns, which is more than sufficient to remove most pathogenic bacteria. Please note: these filters are not available for sale in California.
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| CRYPTOSPORIDIUM, GIARDIA, AND OTHER CYSTS: |
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Water-borne cysts such as Cryptosporidium and Giardia are very common in water supplies all over the world. These cysts are particularly worrying because: |
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They can be found in human and animal faeces, so it is relatively easy for them to find their way into water supplies. |
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They have a low infective dose. In other words, you do not have to ingest many cysts to become ill. |
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They can cause problems of the stomach and digestive tract, including potentially life-threatening diarrhoea. |
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They are resistant to chlorine and other chemicals, so traditional water treatment methods are not sufficient to guard against them. |
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They can survive for long periods in the environment. |
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The simplest and best way to get rid of cysts is by using absolute filtration of less than 1 micron (1 thousandth of a millimetre).
Doulton® or British Berkefeld® water filters are the ideal solution. Independent testing has shown that they remove >99.999% of Cryptosporidium and Giardia cysts.
Which Filter?
Any Doulton® or British Berkefeld® filter All our filters have Absolute filtration ratings (defined as >99.99%) of 0.9 microns, which is more than sufficient to remove most cysts.
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In many areas of the world, chlorine is added to mains water in the treatment works in order to disinfect the water and minimise bacteria growth in the water distribution network. Chlorine is extremely effective at killing bacteria, but unfortunately there are a number of drawbacks to its use:
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The dead bacteria are NOT removed from the water. Most people would not like the idea of swallowing large numbers of micro organisms, whether or not they are dead. |
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Chlorine can react with organics in the water to produce trihalomethanes (THMs). These are known carcinogens (i.e. they can cause cancer). |
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It has an unpleasant taste. |
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Activated carbon is the best way to remove chlorine. FICL has developed a range of filters which combine the benefits of a ceramic filter with added activated carbon to remove chlorine.
Which Filter?
For mains supplies, use Supercarb™ or Ultracarb™. For gravity filters, use Super Sterasyl™
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The source of rust particles in water is usually old iron pipe work, which is especially common in places with mains supplies dating back many years.
Other particles of numerous types commonly found in mains water come from the pipes used to transport the water and from the original source. The size and number of these particles depends very much on the nature of the water source and of the water distribution network. Despite the best efforts of the water treatment companies there is likely to be some particulate contamination in mains water, even if it is not visible to the naked eye.
Independent testing has verified that Doulton® or British Berkefeld® water filters effectively remove >99.99% of particulate; that is, 0.9 microns or larger, and 99.9% of particulate in the range of 0.5 to 0.8 microns is reduced. For water with heavy particle contamination, a pre-filter should be fitted before the ceramic filter. This will prevent premature clogging of the ceramic filter.
Which Filter?
Any Doulton® or British Berkefeld® filter. All our filters have Absolute filtration ratings (defined as >99.99%) of 0.9 microns, which is more than sufficient to remove particles of all kinds.
For water with a very high concentration of large particles a 5 micron pre-filter is also available from FICL and can be fitted in series with the ceramic filter.
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The very harmful effects of lead especially for children and pregnant women are well known. It can cause mental and physical retardation, behavioural problems, and learning difficulties in children. In adults, too much lead can cause high blood pressure, strokes, and heart disease. In men it can adversely affect sperm counts.
Lead does not tend to be present naturally in water supplies. It leaches into water from lead pipes in older houses, and from lead solder used to join other types of metal pipes in newer houses. Even very small quantities are harmful.
Which Filter?
Ultracarb™.
Ultracarb™ filters contain a special ion exchange resin which specifically removes lead.
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For further information with regard to product performance claims, please consult the Performance and Frequently Asked Questions pages. If your question cannot be answered on these pages, please contact the FICL sales department.
Please Note: Certain restrictions apply to the sale and marketing of Doulton® and British Berkefeld® water filters in the states of Iowa, Massachusetts, and Wisconsin. In these states, under the Doulton® brand name, only the HIP Ultracarb, HIP Ultracarb Inline, and Slimline Ultracarb elements are available for sale. See the Performance page for specific product performance claims in these states. Certain restrictions apply to California alone. For details of products available for sale in California, please click here.
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