The RO Industry's Dirty Secrets: Lies Big Brands Tell You About Water and How to Choose Wisely!

Confused by the endless water purifier options? Unsure if RO is necessary for your home? Feeling skeptical about claims made about Alkaline water or Copper water? Worried about hidden costs, confusing jargon, or misleading marketing by brands? 

You're not alone in this struggle. Let's be honest – water purifiers are confusing, with every brand boasting superiority! This article dives deep into the often-complex world of water purification, exposing industry myths and empowering you to make informed decisions for your family's health. 

This way, you will be equipped with the knowledge to navigate the water purifier market like a pro. Also, you’ll learn the truth about RO water purifiers, mineral water, and common marketing tactics. By the end, you'll feel confident in choosing the purifier that safeguards your family's well-being. 

But before that, let’s understand the basics - Purification Technologies!

Why is choosing the right water purifying technology so important?

Jal Hi Jeevan Hai (Water is life!)
There can’t be a stronger statement than this, when it comes to the importance of water. Hence, you should know what you’ll be drinking after installing a water purifier.

There are several filtration technologies available in the market, and most people are confused (some are scammed too). To choose the best purification technology, you need to understand both the quality of your water as well as the available purification technologies.

Don’t worry, we have made it easy to understand. Read on to find out!

Different Water Purifying Technologies Available in the Market

1. Reverse Osmosis (RO): Today, for most people, a water purifier means RO. It is a powerful technology that can purify even the most contaminated water. The water passes under high pressure through a semipermeable membrane and removes 95% to 98% of the dissolved impurities. What you get is ‘almost’ pure, sweet, transparent water, without essential natural minerals. Confused? Please read on!
2. Nanofiltration (NF): NF works on the same principle as RO, but with a small difference that membranes have pore sizes from 1-10 nanometers, just LARGER than that in reverse osmosis. So, you might ask, “How does the larger pores help?” By simply NOT filtering the essential minerals, and let you taste the water that you used to drink in your childhood. Remember the taste? Let the nostalgia roll in. 
3. Ultrafiltration (UF): Ultrafiltration purifies the water without using pressure. In this type of filtration, the water passes through a hollow fiber membrane with a pore size of 0.01 microns and it removes the impurities from the water without changing its natural mineral content. This technology is very similar to plant tissues absorbing purified water from the dirty subsoil. UF is much cheaper, but it has one downside: it cannot be used in places with very hard water. This is why we always impose ‘Know your Water’. Know the TDS content!
   
4. UV Chambers: While previous purification methods excel in many ways, they might not always catch everything, especially microscopic organisms that can sneak through after the membrane stage. This is where UV filters step in, providing an essential final layer of protection. Inside the chamber, powerful UV light disrupts the DNA of tiny bacteria and viruses, rendering them harmless. For ultimate peace of mind, consider adding a UV chamber as the final stage of your water purification system, ensuring no unwanted guests slip through the cracks.

But above all, KNOW YOUR WATER!

By ‘Know your Water’, we mean you must know the TDS of your water! Because by now you know about water purification technologies available in the market, but how would you determine which technology is best for you? The answer is very simple. All you need is a TDS meter. Let's quickly understand what TDS is and why it is important. 

 

What is TDS? 

TDS is the most misunderstood term in this space and has often been termed as the viscous villain. TDS or Total Dissolved Solids in drinking water is the amount of dissolved impurities such as metals, minerals, salts, ions in a particular volume of water. Most people think that the lower the TDS, the better the water, right? WRONG!

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the ideal TDS of drinking water should be between 100-300. However, TDS less than 100 is not acceptable at all as it is devoid of most minerals.

While this summary provides a foundation, understanding your unique water is crucial. For an in-depth exploration, read this article: Know Your Water - A complete guide to drinking water quality

 

How packaged mineral water companies are fooling you!!

• It is sad to know (and frustrates us to the core) that the packaged ‘mineral’ water most of us consume has a TDS of only about 15-20 which is ridiculously insane. This is because RO technology purifies the hardest of water, so most of the companies just have to set up one plant and they are ready to roll. They just give you demineralized pure water or rather waterless water for their own profits.
  
  
• We must say, we’re not totally against RO. It’s a phenomenal technology that was actually developed mainly for the Marines to make saltwater drinkable. The technology was meant for survival, not everyday home consumption! Call it a brilliant marketing gimmick that a whole generation is raised over RO, calling it the best tech, selling it to everyone (to most of them who don’t need it). We call it, A PURE CASE OF CAPITALISM!
  

• Then, there are some companies that are providing mineral water with a TDS of about 250 but it’s sold at pocket ripping prices. Days are not far when these mineral waters would be sold at jewellery shops (Just Kidding, kind of!)

 

The Right Technology for the TDS of your water supply

Let’s sort this process out. Before choosing the water purifier, know the TDS of your water first. You can use a TDS meter to check the TDS of your tap water. Now, if the TDS comes out to be less than 1200, you do not need an RO water purifying system. Using RO will significantly decrease the TDS level and you will be missing out on minerals and water won't be water anymore. It will just become a thirst-quenching liquid.

Let us make things simpler for you:

1. If TDS < 200, you may choose to not use NF or RO at all and just rely on MF or UF filtration. You may also choose to use 20% rejection NF just to be sure of getting rid of occasional impurities in case the source of your water is not reliable.
   
   
2. If TDS < 1500, you can go for Nanofiltration Technology to get quality drinking water with healthy levels of TDS. Also, you must choose between NF - 20/40/60/80 carefully based on your supply water quality. Ask the experts first! We mean, ask us ;)
   
   
3. If TDS > 1500, we highly recommend, you must go for an RO filter with a rejection rate of 95%+. Surely you will lose out on minerals, but the output would still come in a good TDS range which is healthy for drinking.

 

Reasons why you should not trust blindly!!

Let's empower ourselves about how some brands have made a mess out of this marketplace by creating products just to build out a business with their only profit making notion and marketing tactics. They are making money out of people’s unawareness. 

1. All in One - Some companies (even local brands) claim to provide you with the purest of water by giving RO + UV + UF + NF + MF + TDS Adjuster - all in one. Name any fancy technology and they’ll add it in your purifier.  Just think - Once the water is passed through a strainer with smaller holes, there is no point in passing it through a strainer with larger holes. For example - You should not need a UF with RO as RO has smaller pores as compared to UF. So, something is totally fishy!
   
   
2. TDS Controller - Trust us, TDS controller is a SCAM! When these so called companies found out about people being aware of the fact that RO gives very low TDS water, they came up with this very silly (or shall we say smart marketing tactic) concept of a TDS controller. It’s nothing but a bypass valve and it just mixes a part of very low RO water with your normal tap water. And what you get at the end is high TDS water. Does it make sense to you? NO! Same we feel.
   
   
3. UV Chambers - Next up is UV Chambers. Many local brands have started to sell UV-based water purifiers with non-anodized aluminium chambers in them which are not food-grade.
   The problem with aluminium is that it releases aluminium oxides, which are known to damage the brain. They should only be made of Anodized Aluminium or Stainless steel.
   
   
4. Local Filters - If you're using local ROs - You should be even more aware because it is simply not possible to provide a water filter with UV+UF+TDS controller + RO+ Alkaline for just ₹5000/-. Ah! Don’t even let us start. These purifiers use low-quality filters and plastic which is not food safe. On top of that,  Demineralized water is highly reactive and has the potential to even dissolve plastic slowly. Consuming such water is carcinogenic and can cause cancer.
   
   
5. 20+ Stage Filtration - Another very common feature claimed by these companies is the n-stage filter process. It's nothing more than a marketing gimmick to make a profit out of unaware customers. No matter how impure or hard the water is, a water purifier doesn't require some 20-25 filtration process.
   
   
6. RO for Every TDS Level- WHO rates water with TDS between 100 to 300 as excellent for drinking. If your source water has TDS<1200, we recommend you to go for technologies like Nanofiltration (NF), which works very similar to RO technology (but better). It reduces TDS only by 20% to 80% and they waste much less water as compared to RO. This technology is developed and promoted by the Bhabha Atomic research center (BARC) in India.
7. Alkaline Filters - Trust us, Alkaline Filters are just another buzzword in this market space. Don't fall for this as well. RO water is slightly acidic. To curb this, these companies have come up with alkaline cartridges, which change the Ph of the water chemically which is not what you want. Want to know if alkaline water is actually good for your health or not? Read this.

 

As promised, we are sure you now know the real game behind this “enticing water purifier market”, and how these companies are ripping pockets out of the common man's fear and innocence. Do not get fooled, BE AN AWARE CUSTOMER, AND SHOP RIGHT!

Peore provides you with personalised water purification services for your house needs. We believe in providing no-gimmick, affordable and tailor-made services with regards to your safety, so you and your family drink high-quality and mineral-rich water.

Founded by IIT alum, we want to make a difference in the water purifier market minus the gimmicks! Check our products today!