Fresh water filtering

I am thinking of adding a filter or filtration system to my fresh water supply on board the boat. I would like to use the water that I have on board for everything even drinking. Tired of the extra bottles of water for drinking. Any suggestions? would I put the filters before or after the pump?
Thanks

I put a drinking water faucet at my galley sink. It's not really necessary if you keep your potable water system clean and fresh. I always drank from the tap on my boats. The problem is people come aboard and want filtered tap water in disposable plastic bottles. I thought having the filter would eliminate that, but I can tell some people still want that disposable bottle between them and their water. I just shake my head.

Anyway, it's an easy install. The filter mounts right on a bulkhead under the sink, and taps into the potable water lines feeding the cold water faucet. I can recommend doing that.

I put a small volume filter on several boats and an RV. It filtered to .5 micons and had a UV light to kill viruses. It had a small separate faucet. Wish I could remember the name but alas it has been purged from the memory bank… We used it for drinking, cooking, brushing teeth, etc. also rinsed dishes after washing them with water from the tank.

I decided to filter all the water from my water tanks. This is the filter housing I used:


It takes a 20 x 4.5" filter cartridge. This is the cartridge I used:


It's a carbon block style cartridge, but the cartridge is large enough to have a 10 GPM flow rate ( smaller cartridges wouldn't be enough to shower with). The carbon block filters the chlorine out of the water and any other objectionable tastes. I would replace mine annually but could probably have gone several years as the cartridge is so large and boat water consumption is low by necessity.

Ted

O C Diver said:

I decided to filter all the water from my water tanks. This is the filter housing I used:

150235 Pentek Whole House Filter System

Fits standard 1.5-inch water lines

www.discountfilterstore.com

It takes a 20 x 4.5" filter cartridge. This is the cartridge I used:

C2-02 Viqua Carbon Whole House Filter

Fits most 20 x 4.5-inch filter housings including the Viqua IHS12-D4 and IHS22-D4 water disinfection systems.

www.discountfilterstore.com

It's a carbon block style cartridge, but the cartridge is large enough to have a 10 GPM flow rate ( smaller cartridges wouldn't be enough to shower with). The carbon block filters the chlorine out of the water and any other objectionable tastes. I would replace mine annually but could probably have gone several years as the cartridge is so large and boat water consumption is low by necessity.

Ted

Click to expand...

Thanks! I’ve been looking for something to address the chlorine issue for the fresh water flush of my RO system.
As far as filtering for drinking, I added a separate faucet (like what was stated above) and a five stage filter under the sink. It filtered so well it affected the taste, so I added a sixth stage (alkaline filter) which adds minerals that your body needs and improves the taste.

We only put chlorinated municipal or (boat made) unchlorinated RO water in our tanks. Just a simple faucet mounted PUR filter on the kitchen faucet. It’s slower but more than adequate for coffee, tea, & filling our soda stream bottles.

I highly recommend this filter pitcher. Been using it full time for years as liveaboards. Filters are mailed to me on a subscription basis. It filters out far more objectionable content than any other system I've researched. Clearlyfiltered.com.

We flushed our entire FW system with a weak bleach solution and can now drink out of the tanks. We also have a little Brita filter pitcher (5 cup) that fits on the door of the fridge when we want really cold water. $20. I keep a couple of gallon plastic jugs of water onboard in case the FW pump goes out (I also carry a spare pump). The little individual plastic bottles have been outlawed on my boat.

I guess it depends on what one needs to filter out from their "potable" water.

I filter the water before or as it is being put into the tanks using a ceramic filter and before that a 5 mic filter.
That way the dirt does not get into the tanks.
The ceramic unit will have to replaced soon with a different mfgr. as the ones I was using have quit making them.

If you want to drink water from your tank (we did), I recommend cleaning your entire water system at least once per year. Unless you have metal tank(s) (which I did), you can use a bleach solution, followed by at least 2 full flushes (all filters removed from system for the cleaning). Peggy Hall has good instruction for this on this forum.
I also recommend a "prefilter" used when filling the tank, as well as being "fussy" what water you put in the tank. In this way, your tank, water lines, faucets, etc. will start each season "clean", and filtering using good water when filling will ensure clean, good tasting water.
I also used a separate "Nature's Pure" (Nature Pure® RS2QC) filter and separate faucet installed at the galley sink for drinking water.
Our onboard water was always clear, clean, good smelling, and tasted good.

Sediment filter on hose to fill, sediment filter from tanks, then carbon filter just to galley sink and ice maker.
Neither sediment filter has crud, but I still have to replace carbon filters when flow is slowed down.

You may want to get a TDS, total desolved solids, probe if you don't already have one, and check the water before you put it in your tank also.

We filter all of our onboard water at this point and use it for cooking, drinking, etc. I haven't limited it to just the galley sink or a separate faucet, as I placed the filters before the distribution lines (so even the hot water has been filtered).

When filling the tank water gets run through one of the XL Camco hose end filters to minimize sediment in the tank and as a first attempt at removing any funky tastes, etc. from various shore water sources. Then after water leaves the pump and pressure tank it goes through a set of three 4.5x10 filter housings. First one is a 1 micron sediment filter, the second is a granular carbon and KDF filter, and the third is a 0.5 micron carbon block. As long as you're not pushing too high a flow rate through the filters (which would require bigger carbon filters to get adequate contact time) then this will produce good tasting, safe drinking water from any source that's biologically safe and doesn't have any major contamination concerns.

For those in areas where winterizing is a reality, I've found that using the good propylene glycol antifreeze (not the cheap alcohol blended stuff) and making sure the concentration is at least 30% (after accounting for any dilution that happens when winterizing) through the whole system (I usually add a gallon or 2 of the -100* to 6 or so gallons of -50* stuff for the water system) keeps the system pretty clean. If you have too low a concentration the water system grows stuff, but an adequate concentration of PG prevents growth and the last couple of years I haven't even needed to bleach the system in the spring, just flush a bunch of chlorinated tap water through (a couple hundred gallons) to thoroughly flush out the lines, then install the new set of carbon filters. At that point the water always comes out tasting and smelling good.

Well I have chosen a different route. First my wife asked why our ice cubes didn't look clear. Then my RO mechanic recommended flushing the watermaker every two weeks. So I decided to only use RO water on the boat. My final filter into the tanks is a 0.5 micron carbon block. Water on board is always good now. My tankage typically allows me two to three weeks of my normal on the dock use before refilling. No I don't live aboard but I am on the boat every week unless traveling. My old Sea Recovery unit has water quality testing with about 8 LEDs indicating water quality metering. Now, it always shows max water quality. I have been doing this for a couple years.