{"_dataset":{"name":"Marketed filter contaminant claims scored against certification listings","description":"Every contaminant-removal claim the product corpus records as marketed, scored against the certification listings that do or do not carry it. Joined from the marketed claim inward, which is the direction that makes a claim with no listing visible at all.","license":"CC BY 4.0","licenseUrl":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/","citation":"TapWaterData Editorial. \"Marketed contaminant claims, scored against the certification listings that carry them.\" Data read through 2026-09-16. Licensed under CC BY 4.0. https://www.tapwaterdata.com/research/filter-certification-gap","datePublished":"2026-09-20","dateModified":"2026-09-16","studyUrl":"https://www.tapwaterdata.com/research/filter-certification-gap","methodologyUrl":"https://www.tapwaterdata.com/research/filter-certification-gap/methodology","downloadUrl":"https://www.tapwaterdata.com/research/filter-certification-gap/dataset.json","regenerateWith":"bun run apps/website/scripts/certifications/study/build-study-artifact.ts","scope":"A \"not listed\" verdict means no IAPMO R&T, NSF International and WQA Gold Seal listing this study read carries the contaminant. It does not mean uncertified: CSA Group, ICC and UL Solutions are accredited for drinking water treatment units and this corpus holds none of their listings.","aggregateWithheld":"469 unmapped contaminant term(s) across 806 claim entries carry no verdict at all — the per-claim outcomes below cover 776 of 1582 claim entries, so no study-level rate may be published until the queue is cleared"},"study":{"_meta":{"name":"certification-gap-study","description":"Every contaminant-removal claim the product corpus records as marketed, scored against the certification listings that do or do not carry it. Joined from the marketed claim inward, which is the direction that makes a claim with no listing visible at all.","generator":"apps/website/scripts/certifications/study/build-study-artifact.ts","regenerateWith":"bun run apps/website/scripts/certifications/study/build-study-artifact.ts","inputs":{"corpus":"apps/website/data/products/records/*.json","vocabulary":"apps/website/scripts/filter-data/contaminant-claim-map.ts","engine":"apps/website/scripts/certifications/study/cross-reference.ts"},"recordsScanned":174,"marketedClaimsReadThrough":"2026-09-16","listingsVerifiedThrough":"2026-09-16","directoriesCheckedThrough":"2026-09-16","derivedFrom":"2026-09-16","provenance":"Derived from apps/website/data/products/records/*.json (174 records, read through 2026-09-16) by apps/website/scripts/certifications/study/build-study-artifact.ts. Regenerate with: bun run apps/website/scripts/certifications/study/build-study-artifact.ts","scope":"A \"not listed\" verdict means no IAPMO R&T, NSF International and WQA Gold Seal listing this study read carries the contaminant. It does not mean uncertified: CSA Group, ICC and UL Solutions are accredited for drinking water treatment units and this corpus holds none of their listings."},"corpus":{"productsScanned":174,"productPagesScanned":131,"elementPagesScanned":43,"claimEntriesScanned":1453,"claimsExtracted":776,"productsWithZeroExtractableClaims":46,"productsWithNoMarketingClaims":3},"outcomes":{"verified":274,"notListed":488,"notDeterminable":14,"total":776},"verifiedVia":{"listing":190,"attestation":84},"notDeterminableByReason":[{"reason":"category-granularity-no-attestation","claims":0},{"reason":"listing-found-claims-unread","claims":14},{"reason":"uncorroborated-absence","claims":0}],"directoriesWithPositiveControl":["IAPMO","NSF","WQA"],"reviewQueue":{"status":"open","distinctTerms":469,"claimEntries":806,"terms":["1 000 harmful substances unspecified","1 1 1 trichloro 2 propanone","1 1 1 trichloroethane","1 1 2 2 tetrachloroethane","1 1 2 trichloroethane","1 1 dichloro 2 propanone","1 1 dichloroethylene","1 2 4 trichlorobenzene","1 2 dichloroethane","1 2 dichloropropane","1 4 dioxane","155 contaminants general","2 4 5 tp silvex","2 4 d","2 4 d reduction","200 commonly found contaminants","200 typical contaminants","250 typical contaminants","30 contaminants including lead and microplastics","32 potentially harmful contaminants","386 contaminants","50 impurities","60 contaminants","64 contaminants whole circle rc100 system not rf 20 alone","70 contaminants including lead","75 contaminants general","75 contaminants unspecified","78 contaminants","78 contaminants aggregate","78 contaminants overall","84 contaminants aggregate claim","88 contaminants overall claim 2023 wording","89 contaminants including fluoride paired system claim","89 contaminants overall claim","90 contaminants aggregate claim","acidic or low ph water","aesthetic and scale parameters tds chlorine taste and odor chloramine scale turbidity","aesthetic chlorine atrazine barium benzene cadmium chlorobenzene copper cysts dcpb endrin fluoride hexavalent and trivalent chromium lead methoxychlor pentavalent arsenic radium trihalomethanes and 2 4 d","alachlor","algae","alkaline minerals calcium and magnesium","aluminum","ameobic","arsenic 3","arsenic 3 arsenic 5 barium cadmium chromium 3 chromium 6 copper fluoride lead radioactivity selenium turbidity","arsenic 5","arsenic and inorganic arsenic compounds fluoride","arsenic lead parasitic cysts and copper","arsenic pentavalent","arsenic plus 3","arsenic plus 5","asbestos benzene formaldehyde lindane trichloromethane chlordane pfoa and pfos","asbestos elite ob06","asbestos reduction","atenolol","atrazine herbicide reduction","bacteria and parasites brand s own testing protocol claim not a certifier listing","bacteria e coli salmonella","bacteria e g e coli salmonella","bacteria e g e coli salmonella cholera typhoid","bacterial growth within the filter media","barium ba","beneficial minerals","benzene elite ob06","benzene reduction","bicarbonate","biological contaminants general","bisphenol a","bisphenol a and other industrial pollutants","bisphenol a bpa","bisphenol a bpa asbestos mercury lead and benzene","boron","bottled water displacement","bpa","bpa all components","bpa bottle and filter components","bromochloroacetonitrile","bromodichloromethane","bromoform","cadmium at ph 6 5","cadmium at ph 8 5","cadmium cd","cadmium chromium copper lead mercury aluminum and other heavy metals","cadmium elite ob06","cadmium in some brita filters","cadmium original standard ob03","calcium","calcium and magnesium addition","calcium and magnesium hardness minerals","carbamazepine","carbofuran","carbofuran reduction","carbon tetrachloride","carcinogens unspecified","certification claim amazon listing attribute","chemical and physical substances aggregate","chemical and physical substances basic filter","chemical and physical substances pur plus","chloramine free available","chloramine pesticides herbicides and other organic contaminants","chloramine taste and odor","chloramine taste and odor reduction","chloride","chlorine 170 gallon mwf","chlorine and heavy metals","chlorine and odors","chlorine and water soluble heavy metals","chlorine bacteria and algae","chlorine chloramine ckc1 pf sibling cartridge","chlorine chloramines taste and odour","chlorine chloramines vocs thms pesticides sulfur heavy metals hydrogen sulfide iron oxides dirt sediment and odors","chlorine fluoride heavy metals rust and other impurities combined","chlorine fluoride odours and sediment replacement element set","chlorine free available","chlorine in shower steam","chlorine lead pfas microplastics and pesticides aggregate","chlorine mercury and other heavy metals chemical contaminants sediment","chlorine microplastics lead and mercury brand certification statement","chlorine odor sediment heavy metals","chlorine organic chemical matter and odor","chlorine resistant cysts lead select pharmaceuticals and 50 other impurities","chlorine resistant impurities","chlorine taste and odor across brita filters","chlorine taste and odor elite ob06","chlorine taste and odor marketed as nsf ansi 42 lead marketed as tested to nsf ansi 53 material safety marketed as nsf ansi 372","chlorine taste and odor original standard ob03","chlorine taste and odor particulates cysts lead mercury pesticides insecticides bpa asbestos pharmaceuticals","chlorine taste and odor reduction","chlorine taste and odor sediment and rust","chlorine taste and odor sediment rust heavy metals","chlorine taste and odor sediment rust other heavy metals","chlorine taste and odour lead content of the materials","chlorine taste odor","chlorine taste odor rust sand sediment","chlorine taste odor sediment","chlorobenzene","chlorodibromomethane","chloropicrin","chromate","chromium","chromium hexavalent chromium trivalent cadmium and cadmium compounds ferric oxide","cis 1 2 dichloroethylene","cis 1 3 dichloropropylene","claryum media aggregate","class i particulates","class i particulates elite ob06","colloids","color","contaminant count comparative","contaminant count comparison","contaminants","contaminants aggregate count claim","contaminants aggregate mechanism claim","contaminants comparison to a pitcher filter","contaminants fppwfu01 purepour pwf 1 not individually identified in this headline","contaminants general","contaminants generally","contaminants generally count claim","contaminants overall","contaminants unspecified","contaminants unspecified count claim","copper and zinc","copper at ph 6 5","copper at ph 8 5","copper cu","copper in some brita filters","copper original standard ob03","cyanide","cyst microspheres","cysts reduction","debris","deet","dibromoacetonitrile","dibromochloropropane dbcp","dichloroacetonitrile","dinoseb","dirt","dirt and odors","dissolved minerals retained rather than removed","emerging chemical contaminants","endrin","escherichia coli bacteriophage ms2","estrone","ethylbenzene","ethylene dibromide edb","fa15 ph","filter max es50 stage 4 mem es 50 arsenic bacteria chlorine lead fluoride chromium radium and more","filter max es50 stage 5 residual tank taste","filter set es stage 1 dust particles rust","filter set es stages 2 3 chlorine taste odor vocs","fine sediment","fluoride arsenic and other residual heavy metal ions","fluoride microplastics lead chromium 6 arsenic nitrates and heavy metals","fluoride retention in fluoridated municipal tap water","fluoride with the separately sold pf 2 elements","forever chemicals pfas","free chlorine","free chlorine and chloramine","fungi","general","general cleanliness and taste across the current pitcher family","general contaminants","general impurities","general unspecified contaminants 60 and ph","general water quality and taste","general water quality skin and hair effects","genx","glyphosate","haloacetic acids haa5","hard water impurities","hard water minerals","hardness calcium and magnesium","heavy metals","heavy metals and volatile organic compounds vocs","heavy metals chlorine and dissolved solids","heavy metals general","heavy metals including arsenic","heavy metals lead mercury","heavy metals lead mercury cadmium","heavy metals sediment and rust","heavy metals sediment rust soil and other impurities","heavy metals unspecified","heptachlor","heptachlor epoxide","heptachlor h 34 heptox","herbicides pesticides and other chemical compounds","herbicides pesticides organic solvents vocs detergents cloudiness silt sediment sedimentary minerals foul tastes and odors","hexachlorobutadiene","hexachlorocyclopentadiene","hexavalent chromium at ph 6 5","hexavalent chromium at ph 8 5","hydrogen sulfide","ibuprofen","impurities commonly found in private wells and city water","impurities general","impurities in the water path led uv c function","inorganic components metals and nonmetals","insecticides","iron","iron 2","iron and chlorine","iron and lead","iron manganese solids and turbidity","iron oxide rust water","iron sulfur and manganese","large particulates","lead asbestos chlorine organic chemical matter","lead asbestos chlorine taste and odor sediment and pharmaceuticals general","lead at ph 6 5","lead at ph 8 5","lead at ph 8 5 ppf951k","lead chlorine fluoride arsenic and other contaminants","lead chlorine herbicides pesticides bad taste odors turbidity","lead chlorine sand sediment and rust category level claim","lead elite ob06","lead forever chemicals and pesticides","lead in elite filter denali and tahoe configurations","lead in some brita filters","lead mercury barium copper radium 226 228 aluminum","lead mercury chromium iii cadmium copper and other heavy metals","lead pb","lead ph 6 5 170 gallon mwf","lead ph 8 5 170 gallon mwf","lead ph6 5","lead ph8 5","lead reduction","limescale","limescale scale buildup","lindane","lindane reduction a pesticide","linuron","magnesium","manganese","manganese 2","material safety lead free media","meprobamate","mercury at ph 6 5","mercury at ph 8 5","mercury elite ob06","mercury hg","mercury in some brita filters","mercury inorganic","mercury original standard ob03","mercury ph6 5","mercury ph8 5","mercury reduction","methoxychlor","metolachlor","microorganisms","microplastics and nominal particulate class i","microplastics particles 0 5 to 1 m","microplastics ppf951k","microplastics sand dirt turbidity","mineral addition","mineral build up","mineral content and ph","mineral scale","minerals remineralization not a contaminant reduction claim","minerals remineralization zinc calcium dietary iron magnesium potassium","more than 1 000 contaminants including pfas chlorine fluoride lead arsenic asbestos calcium and sodium","mro500 lead chlorine fluoride arsenic asbestos calcium sodium and other contaminants","mro600 lead chlorine fluoride arsenic hormones asbestos calcium sodium and other contaminants","mtbe","mtbes","multiple contaminant categories","multiple contaminants","multiple impurities including microplastics","naproxen","nickel","nitrate as n","nitrite","nitrite as n","nominal particulant class 1","nominal particulate class i","nonyl phenol","nonylphenol","o dichlorobenzene","odor bad taste and other impurities 1 3 micron filtration","organic contaminants and bacteria formation","organic impurities","over 1 000 impurities unspecified","overview 232 contaminants","p dichlorobenzene","p dichlorobenzene reduction","parasites e g giardia cryptosporidium","particles larger than 0 0001 micron","particulate 0 5 micron","particulate class i","particulate class i 0 5 to 1 micron","particulate class i particles 0 5 to 1 m","particulate class vi","particulate sediment","particulate sediment rust and floating objects","particulates class i","pcbs","pentachlorophenol","pentavalent arsenic","pentavalent arsenic as","per and polyfluoroalkyl substances pfas","perfluorooctanesulfonic acid","perfluorooctanesulfonic acid pfos","petroleum byproducts","petroleum products","pfas forever chemicals","pfas general","pfas pesticides herbicides and emerging chemical contaminants","pfas pfoa pfos ckc1 pf sibling cartridge","pfas pfoa pfos heavy metals chemical impurities sediment","pfas pfoa pfos pfc","pfbs","pfda","pfhpa","pfhxs","pfna","pfoa and pfos microplastics prescription drug residue and volatile organic compounds","pfoa pfos 170 gallon mwf","pfoa pfos chlorine lead fluoride and heavy metals","ph alkalinity of ro permeate","pharmaceutical by products","phenytoin","phosphate","plastic bottles displaced environmental","potassium","potentially harmful contaminants unspecified","ppf951k chlorine taste and odor","ppf951k lead at ph 6 5","ppf951k microplastics","ppf951k total pfas","protozoa","radioactive substances","radioactivity","radiologicals","red food coloring","remaining pollutants and odor","residual chlorine odors and organic materials","residual pollutants and odor carbon block polish stage","rf 9999 chlorine taste and odor","rf 9999 lead at ph 6 5","rf 9999 microplastics","rf 9999 total pfas","rust","rust sand and particulates","rust sediment and silt","salt","salt sodium chloride","sand","sand and sediment nominal particulate","sand rust particulates and suspended substances","sand silt and clay","sand silt rust and insoluble impurities","sand silt sediment rust and particles","scale","scale buildup","scale limescale","sediment","sediment and impurities","sediment appliance protection","sediment chlorine and other contaminants","sediment chlorine taste and odor","sediment dirt sand rust debris","sediment particulate","sediment rust and chlorine taste","sediment rust and dirt","sediment rust chlorine and chloramines","sediment rust dirt sand and large particles","sediment rust pesticides herbicides and industrial solvents","sediment rust tastes odors and herbicides","sediment scale dirt and rust","sediment solids","sediments rust tastes odors and herbicides","select pharmaceuticals","select pharmaceuticals ibuprofen progesterone atenolol trimethoprim fluoxetine","selenium se","service capacity","silt","silt rust sediment","silver","simazine","skin and hair outcome","sodium","sodium fluoride","soil","strontium","styrene","substances unspecified percentage claim","sulfate","sulfur","suspended solids","system wide certification claim","tap and fresh water contaminants general","taste odor and aesthetic water quality","tcep","tcpp","tds pfas chlorine fluoride lead copper sediment salt","tds pfoa pfos chlorine fluoride arsenic lead nitrate chromium vi copper sediment salt","tds pfoa pfos chlorine fluoride barium salt sediment chromium vi lead microplastics and odor","tds pfoa pfos chlorine fluoride lead sediment salt large particles","tds pfoa pfos chlorine salt arsenic heavy metals lead sediment odor chromium","tds pfoa pfos chlorine salt sediment lead odor","tetrachloroethylene","toluene","total coliforms","total coliforms microbial reduction","total impurities metals particles chlorine","total pfas ppf951k","total trihalomethanes tthms","toxaphene","toxaphene reduction","trans 1 2 dichloroethylene","tribromoacetic acid","trichloroacetonitrile","trihalomethanes inorganic minerals heavy metals pharmaceuticals pesticides vocs petroleum products perfluorinated chemicals rust silt sediment and radiologicals","trimethoprim","turbidity silt sand cloudiness","ultra fine sediment","unspecified other contaminants","untreated raw water sources","viruses e g rotavirus hepatitis a","viruses harmful chemicals heavy metals pesticides unspecified","voc printed certification claim","voc reduction","vocs chlorine and soluble contaminants","vocs lingering contaminants and chlorine taste and odor","vocs rocket fuel drug residues and pfoa pfos","vocs surrogate test as chloroform","volatile organic chemicals vocs","xylenes","xylenes total","zinc"]},"aggregate":null,"blockedBy":"469 unmapped contaminant term(s) across 806 claim entries carry no verdict at all — the per-claim outcomes below cover 776 of 1582 claim entries, so no study-level rate may be published until the queue is cleared"},"brandReverifications":[{"brand":"iSpring","productId":"ispring-rcc7ak","model":"RCC7AK","namesQueried":["iSpring Water Systems LLC (company id C0536866)","iSpring"],"reads":[{"directory":"NSF","query":"company id C0536866, NSF/ANSI 58","url":"https://info.nsf.org/Certified/DWTU/Listings.asp?Company=C0536866&Standard=058","httpStatus":200,"bytes":20586,"directoryStamp":"These NSF Official Listings are current as of Thursday, October 1, 2026 at 12:15 a.m. Eastern Time.","result":{"kind":"rows-returned","observations":[{"label":"model rows returned","count":14},{"label":"rows under the facility that certifies the RCC7AK","count":3},{"label":"rows reading \"Fluoride Reduction\", all under a different facility","count":7},{"label":"rows reading \"Mercury Reduction\"","count":0},{"label":"rows naming microplastics","count":0}],"rows":[{"model":"RCC7AK","claims":["TDS Reduction"]},{"model":"RCC7AK-UV","claims":["TDS Reduction"]},{"model":"RCC7AK-BN","claims":["Asbestos Reduction","Barium Reduction","Cadmium Reduction","Chromium (Trivalent) Reduction","Copper Reduction","Fluoride Reduction","Lead Reduction","Selenium Reduction","TDS Reduction"]},{"model":"RCC7AK-BLK","claims":["Asbestos Reduction","Barium Reduction","Cadmium Reduction","Chromium (Trivalent) Reduction","Copper Reduction","Fluoride Reduction","Lead Reduction","Selenium Reduction","TDS Reduction"]}]},"readOn":"2026-10-02"},{"directory":"NSF","query":"company id C0536866, NSF/ANSI 42","url":"https://info.nsf.org/Certified/DWTU/Listings.asp?Company=C0536866&Standard=042","httpStatus":200,"bytes":6827,"directoryStamp":"These NSF Official Listings are current as of Thursday, October 1, 2026 at 12:15 a.m. Eastern Time.","result":{"kind":"no-matching-products"},"readOn":"2026-10-02"},{"directory":"NSF","query":"company id C0536866, NSF/ANSI 53","url":"https://info.nsf.org/Certified/DWTU/Listings.asp?Company=C0536866&Standard=053","httpStatus":200,"bytes":6827,"directoryStamp":"These NSF Official Listings are current as of Thursday, October 1, 2026 at 12:15 a.m. Eastern Time.","result":{"kind":"no-matching-products"},"readOn":"2026-10-02"},{"directory":"NSF","query":"company id C0536866, NSF/ANSI 401","url":"https://info.nsf.org/Certified/DWTU/Listings.asp?Company=C0536866&Standard=401","httpStatus":200,"bytes":6827,"directoryStamp":"These NSF Official Listings are current as of Thursday, October 1, 2026 at 12:15 a.m. Eastern Time.","result":{"kind":"no-matching-products"},"readOn":"2026-10-02"},{"directory":"NSF","query":"manufacturer name \"iSpring\", every standard","url":"https://info.nsf.org/Certified/DWTU/Listings.asp?CompanyName=iSpring&submit1=Search","httpStatus":200,"bytes":20566,"directoryStamp":"These NSF Official Listings are current as of Thursday, October 1, 2026 at 12:15 a.m. Eastern Time.","result":{"kind":"rows-returned","observations":[{"label":"standards returned","count":1},{"label":"model rows returned","count":14}],"rows":[]},"readOn":"2026-10-02"}],"grade":"listing-read","corrects":"a-marketed-claim","finding":"NSF's listing for iSpring Water Systems LLC carries the RCC7AK under NSF/ANSI 58 for TDS Reduction and nothing else, and a manufacturer-name search across every standard returns the same single standard — iSpring holds no NSF/ANSI 42, 53 or 401 listing. Mercury and microplastics, both marketed for this model, appear on no iSpring row at any model. Fluoride does appear on iSpring rows, but not on this one: it is carried by the RCC7AK-BN, RCC7AK-BLK and the two UV-faucet siblings, which the listing certifies out of a different manufacturing facility from the plain RCC7AK. Those are separate certifications of separate products, not finishes of this one, so the fluoride the RCC7AK's own product page markets is not backed for the RCC7AK.","caveat":"This is a read of NSF only. IAPMO and WQA returned no listing for the RCC7AK when the corpus was built on 2026-08-30 and were not re-executed today, so no absence is asserted against them here, and none of these reads can speak for the accredited bodies this study does not index. One complication is recorded rather than resolved: the record notes that the Amazon destination it opened on 2026-08-30 resolved to the separately named RCC7AK-BN, which is why it assigns this product no ASIN at all. That observation is more than a month old, it was not re-executed today, and the claims scored here were read from iSpring's own RCC7AK page — so it cannot move a verdict about the RCC7AK, and it is published here as the open question it is."},{"brand":"Clearly Filtered","productId":"clearly-filtered-pitcher","model":"Water Pitcher","namesQueried":["Clearly Filtered, Inc. (company id C0872271)","Clearly Filtered"],"reads":[{"directory":"NSF","query":"company id C0872271, NSF/ANSI 42","url":"https://info.nsf.org/Certified/DWTU/Listings.asp?Company=C0872271&Standard=042","httpStatus":200,"bytes":10029,"directoryStamp":"These NSF Official Listings are current as of Thursday, October 1, 2026 at 12:15 a.m. Eastern Time.","result":{"kind":"rows-returned","observations":[{"label":"model rows returned","count":1}],"rows":[{"model":"Filtered Water Pitcher","claims":["Chlorine Reduction","Taste and Odor Reduction"]}]},"readOn":"2026-10-02"},{"directory":"NSF","query":"company id C0872271, NSF/ANSI 53","url":"https://info.nsf.org/Certified/DWTU/Listings.asp?Company=C0872271&Standard=053","httpStatus":200,"bytes":6827,"directoryStamp":"These NSF Official Listings are current as of Thursday, October 1, 2026 at 12:15 a.m. Eastern Time.","result":{"kind":"no-matching-products"},"readOn":"2026-10-02"},{"directory":"WQA","query":"Clearly Filtered, Inc. product detail page","url":"https://find.wqa.org/find-products/ctl/detail/mid/1054/cid/clearly_filtered_inc/sid/1?keyword=clearly%20filtered","httpStatus":200,"bytes":115764,"directoryStamp":null,"result":{"kind":"rows-returned","observations":[{"label":"product rows returned","count":2}],"rows":[{"model":"Clearly Filtered — Filtered Water Pitcher","claims":["Aesthetic Chlorine, Taste and Odor"]},{"model":"Affinity Filtration — Under Sink Filter","claims":["Aesthetic Chlorine, Taste and Odor"]}]},"readOn":"2026-10-02"}],"grade":"listing-read","corrects":"a-marketed-claim","finding":"Both directories that list this pitcher were read today and both carry the same two-claim scope: NSF/ANSI 42 for chlorine and for taste and odour. There is no NSF/ANSI 53 listing for the company. The product page the corpus read markets chlorine, fluoride, lead, arsenic and PFAS, so four of those five are outside every listing this study read.","caveat":"Clearly Filtered publishes independent laboratory results for the contaminants outside its listings. A claim with no listing is not automatically an unsubstantiated claim — the FTC's bar is competent and reliable scientific evidence, and third-party certification is one route to it rather than the only one. This study measures certification coverage of claims, not truthfulness."},{"brand":"APEC","productId":"apec-roes-50","model":"ROES-50","namesQueried":["APEC Water Systems","APEC"],"reads":[{"directory":"WQA","query":"APEC Water Systems product detail page, ROES-50","url":"https://find.wqa.org/find-products/ctl/detail/mid/1054/cid/apec_water_systems/sid/5/keyword/roes-50","httpStatus":200,"bytes":118281,"directoryStamp":null,"result":{"kind":"rows-returned","observations":[{"label":"product rows returned","count":1}],"rows":[{"model":"APEC ROES-50","claims":["TDS"]}]},"readOn":"2026-10-02"},{"directory":"NSF","query":"manufacturer name \"APEC\", every standard","url":"https://info.nsf.org/Certified/DWTU/Listings.asp?CompanyName=APEC&submit1=Search","httpStatus":200,"bytes":6801,"directoryStamp":"These NSF Official Listings are current as of Thursday, October 1, 2026 at 12:15 a.m. Eastern Time.","result":{"kind":"no-matching-products"},"readOn":"2026-10-02"}],"grade":"listing-read","corrects":"a-marketed-claim","finding":"WQA's own detail page for APEC Water Systems, read today, lists the ROES-50 under one reduction claim: TDS. NSF returns no matching product for APEC at all. The ROES-50 product page the corpus read publishes a contaminant table running to dozens of entries, from aluminium and arsenic to bacteria and barium.","caveat":"A reverse-osmosis membrane physically rejects far more than TDS; what is scoped here is what a certifier has verified and published, not what the unit does. APEC is certified — by WQA, to NSF/ANSI 58 — and the finding is about the breadth of the listing, not its existence."},{"brand":"Waterdrop","productId":"waterdrop-x16","model":"X16","namesQueried":["Waterdrop","Qingdao Ecopure Filter Co., Ltd"],"reads":[{"directory":"NSF","query":"manufacturer name \"Waterdrop\", every standard","url":"https://info.nsf.org/Certified/DWTU/Listings.asp?CompanyName=Waterdrop&submit1=Search","httpStatus":200,"bytes":6811,"directoryStamp":"These NSF Official Listings are current as of Thursday, October 1, 2026 at 12:15 a.m. Eastern Time.","result":{"kind":"no-matching-products"},"readOn":"2026-10-02"},{"directory":"NSF","query":"manufacturer name \"Qingdao Ecopure\", every standard","url":"https://info.nsf.org/Certified/DWTU/Listings.asp?CompanyName=Qingdao+Ecopure&submit1=Search","httpStatus":200,"bytes":1345257,"directoryStamp":"These NSF Official Listings are current as of Thursday, October 1, 2026 at 12:15 a.m. Eastern Time.","result":{"kind":"rows-returned","observations":[{"label":"model rows returned","count":2503},{"label":"rows whose model cell begins \"Waterdrop\"","count":555},{"label":"rows for the X16, X12, G3P600, G3P800 or K19","count":0}],"rows":[{"model":"Waterdrop ECF-7008S (one of the 555 rows)","claims":["Chlorine Reduction","Taste and Odor Reduction"]},{"model":"Waterdrop EFF-6002S (one of the 555 rows)","claims":["Cyst Reduction","Lead Reduction","Benzene Reduction","Carbofuran Reduction","Endrin Reduction","Mercury Reduction"]}]},"readOn":"2026-10-02"}],"grade":"listing-read","corrects":"this-study","finding":"Waterdrop is named here as a correction to this study's own method, not as a finding against the company. Searching NSF for the brand name returns no matching product; searching for its manufacturer, Qingdao Ecopure Filter Co., Ltd., returns a listing under NSF/ANSI 42, 53 and 401 in which hundreds of rows are Waterdrop-branded. A brand-level sentence reading \"Waterdrop has no NSF listing\" would therefore be false. The model-exact verdict survives it: no row in that listing is an X16, and the corpus's own evidence for the X16 is an IAPMO certificate carrying TDS, chlorine, taste and odour, and a lead-free materials row.","caveat":"An absence found under one name is not an absence. This is the second-query rule, and it is in this table because it changed an answer: the first query would have supported a brand-level claim the second query falsifies."},{"brand":"Aquagear","productId":"aquagear-pitcher","model":"Water Filter Pitcher","namesQueried":["Aquagear (trade name)","Aquagear (manufacturer name)"],"reads":[{"directory":"NSF","query":"trade name \"Aquagear\", every standard","url":"https://info.nsf.org/Certified/DWTU/Listings.asp?TradeName=Aquagear&submit3=Search","httpStatus":200,"bytes":6805,"directoryStamp":"These NSF Official Listings are current as of Thursday, October 1, 2026 at 12:15 a.m. Eastern Time.","result":{"kind":"no-matching-products"},"readOn":"2026-10-02"},{"directory":"NSF","query":"manufacturer name \"Aquagear\", every standard","url":"https://info.nsf.org/Certified/DWTU/Listings.asp?CompanyName=Aquagear&submit1=Search","httpStatus":200,"bytes":6809,"directoryStamp":"These NSF Official Listings are current as of Thursday, October 1, 2026 at 12:15 a.m. Eastern Time.","result":{"kind":"no-matching-products"},"readOn":"2026-10-02"}],"grade":"searched-no-listing","corrects":"a-marketed-claim","finding":"Two NSF queries today — trade name and manufacturer name — both return no matching product, against a positive control on the same host and script in the same run. The corpus holds no listed claim for this pitcher from any indexed body. Every claim on its record is written as an independent-laboratory measurement with a challenge concentration and a test method, which is the pattern this study counts as marketed-but-unlisted rather than as an unsupported assertion.","caveat":"Not listed is not untested and it is not false. Teymoorian and colleagues recorded the same position in a peer-reviewed comparison of pitcher filters: Aquagear is not NSF-certified for PFAS removal, and the manufacturer provides third-party performance data on its website."}]}