Sure Reverse Osmosis Offers Some Benefits, But Does It Have Any Disadvantages?

The disadvantages of reverse osmosis are numerous, but it must be kept in mind that RO is but one step in the purification process. So, if anyone ever asks you the question, "Does reverse osmosis make water safe to drink?" You can tell them, "Not by itself it doesn't."

The first place that you get to see the disadvantages of reverse osmosis is at the local water treatment facility. This is the main line of defense between the population of the town and the contaminants which threaten them. It becomes obvious very early in the process that this is only a semi-functional defensive front at best.

The way RO works is that highly pressurized water is forced through a porous membrane filter which in essence traps all seeable debris and removes it from the rushing water. While it does a great job of de-mineralizing the drinking water, there are more contaminants in the water that still need to be removed. Does reverse osmosis make water safe to drink?

No, and I'm going to show you why. RO is primarily designed for the specific tasks of demineralization and desalination on an industrial level. It can remove minerals from boiler plant water so that deposits don't build up inside the machinery, and it's good for improving the quality of rain water for crop irrigation purposes. It is simply not designed to decontaminate water, and that is one of the major disadvantages of reverse osmosis as it applies to our health.

The membrane filter used in RO is only capable of removing contaminants which are of a higher molecular weight than that of water. Most of the chemical contaminants found in the system are of equal weight to water, and much of the microscopic bacteria present have a weight of far less. These contaminants flow right through the membranes' grasp.

So, does reverse osmosis make water safe to drink? With all of the toxins that remain in our drinking water, the answer would have to be a resounding no. The disadvantages of reverse osmosis make it utterly incapable of providing us with clean, drinkable h20. Only with the addition of other filtering apparatus can RO complete its ill-assigned task.

In order for us to have a complete system of protection, we need to add a multi tiered filter system in order to contain the large variety of contaminants which the RO system was incapable of blocking. Another disadvantage of reverse osmosis we need to be aware of is a chemical added to protect us from parasitic infection, but which presents a grave health risk, chlorine.

Chlorine can easily be defeated through the use of an activated granular carbon filter. That, along with a multi media block will remove most if not all chemical threats from your water. Couple those with a micron filter for bacteria and an ion exchange unit for mineral and pH balance and you're set. Does reverse osmosis make water safe to drink? With a little help it can.

The disadvantages of reverse osmosis can actually be turned around to your advantage if you just know how.

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