Puratap

[swifty_cole]

Im from Adelaide, South Australia, and we have this under sink water filter unit called a puratap.

Wondering if anyone else has one?

im not sure what other filters compare like but puratap have a .45 micron filter (from which i can gather is very good) and they're units are made from polyecetal, which is alot stronger than polypropolene, something about polypropolene stretching?

Anyway they come and change your filters for you every year and have a couple of different taps to chose from so in my opinion they rate pretty highly compared to what other companies offer here in Adelaide.

best thing ive bought for my kitchen so far.

[zoielouise]

Hey im from Norwood, Adelaide and we have a puratap! I agree, definately one of the better additions to the kitchen!

some of my friends had water filters with other companies and they always complained because they forgot when their filters were due and would go years without changing them, and one of my friends said she bought the unit and never heard from the company ever again! she didnt even know what type of filter she was meant to have or when to change it!

At least with puratap they call me every year to let me know, and the filters are only $69 for the carbon and sediment filter, and they get their servicemen to come and do it for you for free. So im pretty happy with the service and the filter.

[PRR]

> what other filters compare

PuraTap's marketing is very attractive, but their site is short on hard information.

Appears to be a standard 2-stage filter, probably a string coarse-filter and a carbon fine-filter, similar to these:

AquaPure AP-DWS1000 $340
Pentek US-1000 $120
OmniFilter OT32 $140
Pentek US-1500 $164

Adelaide's city water is muddy; PuraTap is made and marketed locally, apparently a lot of Adelaide folks use it.

Adelaide also has a problem with salt in the water, especially in the 2009 drought; I assume your local media is covering this story.

> they come and change your filters for you every year

It appears you are literally LOCKED-in to PuraTap, that it takes a key to open the filter housing. I change my own filters but yes it is a chore; I can see why many people would prefer to have it done for them.

> filters are only $69 for the carbon and sediment filter, and they get their servicemen to come and do it for you for free

I pay US $40-$60 for a coarse and fine set of similar size. But I'm a DIY guy. Another $20 to have someone come and do it (right) seems reasonable for a non-DIY person.

> a .45 micron filter (from which i can gather is very good)

1 micron takes out most visible muddiness and some germs. 0.5 micron is perhaps better. 0.45 micron is just a half-micron filter with a fancy-looking number.

The micron spec is not an exact thing. Such filters take out 99% of 10 micron particles, 90% of 1 micron stuff, 80% of 0.45 micron stuff.... or maybe only 50% of 0.45 micron. If your needs are critical you want to find the filter curve data AND know how big your problem-particles are. However I am sure PuraTap has selected their filters to suit your water and get the mud and smell out.

PuraTap's marketing suggests it takes out germs. Under US law such a claim would not be allowed. A half-micron (even "0.45 micron") filter may take out 90% or 99% of germs, but how germy is your water and how many leftover germs do you want to drink? In the US we need over 99.99% germ reduction to make a claim. Such filters are ether very slow (an hour per gallon) or very large and expensive. However I am sure Adelaide's SA Water uses sanitation to knock-out germs; chlorine or other strong oxidizers.

> made from polyecetal, which is alot stronger than polypropolene, something about polypropolene stretching?

Marketing puffery. Good filters used as intended don't "stretch". You could drive a truck over the heavy string-wound filters I use to take the brown out of my well-water. Even pleated "paper" filters will easily stand the pressure-drop of house or sink filtration.

All the poly plastics can be made to any size and strength needed. Filtering tap-water is not a tough job like some industrial filter applications with heat and chemicals. The choice of poly-this or poly-that (or paper or hemp or silk...) often comes down to availability of material and machinery. The US makes a lot of propylene. If PuraTap can get acetal locally, it may be better for them. I don't see why you care: if their filters did "stretch", customers would complain and they'd make better filters to keep their customers going steady.

If the quality, convenience, and cost seem good to you, it is.