Water Quality Guides

The average American family wastes 10,000 gallons of water annually from household leaks alone. Simple, cost-effective upgrades can save families $380+ per year while cutting water use by 20-30%.

Distilled water and reverse osmosis (RO) purified water both remove contaminants but through fundamentally different processes with distinct tradeoffs. Distillation achieves higher purity (99.9%+ removal, 1-5 ppm TDS) but consumes 3.0-3.5 kWh per gallon at a cost of $0.54-$0.68 per gallon, while RO systems remove 93-99% of contaminants at just $0.03-$0.10 per gallon with minimal electricity but waste 4:1 to 2:1 water ratios.

Over 15 million American households rely on private wells for drinking water—but unlike public water systems, well owners are solely responsible for testing water quality and ensuring safety.

Most houseplants thrive with tap water containing less than 500 mg/L total dissolved solids and pH between 6.5-7.5, which describes typical municipal water across 85% of the United States.

Chlorine makes tap water safe to drink, but you might want to remove it anyway—for better taste, fish tanks, bread making, or reducing potential byproduct exposure.

The metallic or chemical taste in your tap water rarely indicates danger—it's usually chlorine, minerals, or temperature issues you can fix for pennies per gallon.

Brown or rust-colored tap water is generally unsafe to drink until you determine the cause—unlike yellow water, brown discoloration indicates higher contamination levels or recent disturbances.

Yellow or orange tap water almost always means iron or rust, not sewage or dangerous contamination. While unsettling to see, discolored water typically poses minimal health risks.

That swimming pool smell means your water is actually safer, not contaminated. But when water smells like rotten eggs, algae, or metal, different problems demand attention.

Cloudy tap water is usually harmless air bubbles, not contamination. But persistent cloudiness signals suspended particles that require investigation.

Boiling water for 1 minute kills 99.999% of bacteria, viruses, and parasites according to EPA emergency water treatment guidelines, but it does nothing to remove chemical contaminants like lead, pesticides, or PFAS 'forever chemicals.'

Making distilled water at home costs about $0.30 per gallon in electricity and filters—100 times more expensive than tap water but 75% cheaper than store-bought distilled water at $1.25 per gallon.

Municipal water systems add 0.5-4.0 mg/L of chlorine to prevent waterborne disease, keeping levels high enough to kill pathogens but below the EPA's Maximum Residual Disinfectant Level of 4.0 mg/L.

Tap water from EPA-regulated municipal systems contains beneficial minerals that can provide 8-31% of your daily intake, costs about $0.003 per gallon, and is generally safe for drinking when it meets federal standards.

NSF International water filter certifications provide the most reliable third-party verification that a water filter actually removes what manufacturers claim.

Every summer, millions of Americans receive a dense, jargon-filled document about their drinking water quality—and most immediately file it in the recycling bin.

If your tap water is safe for you to drink, it's generally safe for your cats and dogs too. But pets with urinary issues, those living in areas with lead pipes, and animals refusing to drink may benefit from filtered water.

You can use tap water in your CPAP humidifier for one emergency night—but you absolutely should clean the chamber thoroughly the next morning. All major manufacturers recommend distilled water only.