While researching water filters for your home or kitchen, you may have come across filter systems that feature antimicrobial or antibacterial filters.
These filter cartridges are usually found in multi-stage filter systems such as reverse osmosis systems or other undersink filter systems, which usually feature high-durability cartridges that are replaceable less often than ordinary cartridges.
In this article, we’re discussing the role of bacteriostatic filter cartridges in multi-stage systems and their efficiency.
There’s a distinction to be made between filter cartridges that remove bacteria, viruses, or other microorganisms from water, thereby purifying water and making it fit for consumption, and bacteriostatic or antimicrobial filters, which prevent bacterial growth within the filter.
The filter media in many filter cartridges can be a breeding ground for bacteria since the filter can trap organic materials and other contaminants that can lead to bacterial growth.
In filter cartridges designed to be replaced every 3 months, bacteriostatic agents are certainly useful, but they’re not an absolute must.
Since these cartridges are replaced frequently, the risks of bacterial growth aren’t as high as for filters that are supposed to be replaced every 12 months or every 2 to 3 years.
In filter cartridges that are replaced every 12 months or even less frequently, having a filter cartridge infused with an antimicrobial agent is crucial in preventing re-contamination issues, potential health issues, and water taste and odour issues.
In fact, it is recommended that if any time during the use of your filter you notice sudden changes in the taste, appearance or odour of your filtered water, the first thing you should try is to replace your filters.
In these cases, the likely cause for these unwanted changes is caused by a build-up of contaminants within the filter media.
Once the filter media in your cartridges saturate with contaminants and bacterial colonies develop, the taste, appearance, odour and ultimately the healthiness of you filtered water may be affected.
Infusing filter cartridges with antimicrobial agents is a safe and reliable way of making sure that cartridges with a long service life don’t proliferate bacteria within the filter media and the resulting filtered water remains tasty, healthy and contaminant-free.
