Older Water Filter Harbors Bacteria to give water a better taste
There is a saying ‘old is gold’ and it has been proved once again by water filters. When it comes to cutting down the repugnant earthy taste of some tap water, older the water filter better is the taste — this fact has been discovered by scientists in
Gayle Newcombe — Research Leader at the Applied Chemistry Unit of the Australian Water Quality Center in Salisbury, South Australia gives further reasons, “Although adverse odors do not present a risk to human health, their presence often leads to a misconception that the water is unsafe for drinking.”
Gayle and her colleagues have investigated the effect of sand filters in extracting the most common earthy molecules, geosmin and methylisoborneol, from the water supply. These two compounds occur naturally in water and are non-toxic.
Demonstrating at the Australian Water Quality Center and Bridget McDowell in the
Testing sand filter material taken from working water treatment plants, the team found that sand taken from a 26-year old filter had a well-established biofilm and was able to remove any detectable traces of geosmin and MIB in less than two weeks. And on the other hand, Fresh filter sand with no biofilm was essentially ineffective, removing less than two-thirds of the geosmin and MIB even after several months of operation.
The team is now investigating how to accelerate the development of active biofilms for water purification. Now, this can be a challenge to water company to provide consumers fresh tasty water. If it is achieved, millions of people can have access to quality drinking water.