There are lots of water filtration and purification methods, and also there are many companies that offer to provide the best water system in the market. One most common filter system is the Reverse Osmosis Water Filter System. It is popularly found in households, industries, and other places. RO is a very effective and efficient water filter.
Also, in this time of the covid-19 pandemic, keeping the virus away by drinking healthy and boosting your immunity is very crucial to fight this disease. Few experts have also mentioned categorically that healthy water is an effective way to keep your body hydrated and immunity boosted.
In this article, we will get rid of a few misconceptions regarding RO systems and what exactly the RO system removes from the water. We will specifically discuss if RO systems remove bacteria while filtering the process. We will also focus on what harmful elements and contaminants RO remove from the water.
Table of Contents
What Is Reverse Osmosis And Does It Remove Bacteria?
Reverse Osmosis is a water filtration system where the osmosis technique is used to filter water. RO contains a semi-permeable membrane that mainly filters out harmful bacteria and viruses. In a modern RO filter system, you will find other filters too, like Carbon filter, Ultra Violet (UV) filter, and a Sediment filter.
These filters perform a different function to remove contaminants. For instance, Carbon & Sediment filters help in removing chlorine, pesticides, etc. While the main filter, being RO membrane, removes all kinds of bacteria and viruses.
So now let’s come to the main question –
Does Ro Remove Bacteria?
A simple answer is YES! RO is very effective in removing bacteria from water. The RO membrane has pores of only about 0.01 microns, whereas Bacteria can be as small as 0.02 micron only.
So by this rate, it is confirmed that bacterias are blocked by the RO membrane. But, it is to be noted that if you want the bacterias to be removed effectively, then the RO membrane should be changed regularly, and Service the system whenever required.
According to a study report, it was observed that reverse osmosis systems have a very high efficiency when it comes to removing harmful elements from water.
Apart from only removing bacteria and viruses, RO also helps to remove other harmful dissolved solids from the water. It also helps refine the taste of purified water. Since the RO membrane is only 0.01 micron, it is capable of blocking most of the contaminants.
While other filters have 1 to 5 microns small pores and bacteria are up to 0.02 microns small, in this case, these subfilters cannot remove bacteria from the water. Don’t be mistaken; RO can never kill bacteria or viruses; it only blocks or removes bacteria from the water.
Moreover, keeping water for long, like in huge water tanks, redevelops bacteria, and they multiply. But in RO water, there is less chance of bacteria redeveloping because water tanks are not as huge as compared to other tanks.
A reference table on types of contaminants removed by RO
| REMOVES | TYPES OF IT. (EXAMPLES) |
|---|---|
| Bacteria | Campylobacter, Salmonella, Shigella, E.coli etc. |
| Viruses | Enteric, Hepatitis A, Norovirus, Rotavirus etc. |
| Protozoa | Cryptosporidium, Giardia etc. |
Now, it is very clear that bacteria won’t be able to pass the RO membrane because the membrane pores are smaller than that of bacteria, thus blocking the bacteria from entering the water.
This is why RO is considered the right choice for quality filtered water. This is also why it is widely used by individuals, industries, and other establishments.
Concluding Lines
It is clearly evident that Reverse Osmosis does remove bacteria as well as other harmful elements. It is an effective system to filter water. Since the RO system is a common and productive machine, that is why it is used worldwide; no matter how hard or bad the water is, RO will take care of all these. RO has been building trust for a reason.
So without a doubt, RO is indeed the perfect water filter you can go ahead with. It has multiple benefits and gives the required results. It is not too expensive nor too cumbersome. All you need is a good RO water system and regular filter maintenance.
A study has also shown that RO is a very effective machine in removing bacteria, viruses, protozoa, and other harmful elements. ”Good water, Good life.”
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