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Treating Your Arizona Drinking Water

01 October 2019

Papa Was a Rolling (Kidney) Stone - Don't Worry, This Too Shall Pass

You may have heard the water in Arizona is "crunchy" or "you can chew the water." In a sense that is true.

Arizonans get their water from a variety of sources. Tucson is the Central Arizona Project's (CAP) largest municipal customer followed by Phoenix, Scottsdale and Mesa. The Salt River Project (SRP) manages the Verde & Salt River water system that delivers 800,000 acre-feet of water across 375 square miles. Forty-three percent of our state's water is extracted from groundwater wells. It's also important to note that no city is dependent on a water single water source and it's not so far-fetched to think in some areas of Arizona, the water that fills your cup could have drops of water from CAP, SRP & groundwater combined. Rosie on the House Clean Water

In our water's long travel to our homes, it accumulates high levels of dissolved minerals like calcium and magnesium. If you buy your water from a city, it's purified for safe drinking, but still leaves a lot of floaters. Most of the water in Arizona is between 15 and 25 grains per gallon, which is considered "extremely hard" by the Arizona Water Quality Association. The hardness is really dissolved rock. The average family of four will have more than 15 pounds of rock per year in their water for each grain of hardness. Our water also contains high levels of total dissolved solids (TDS). In communities such as Globe, San Manuel and Green Valley, the water is affected by the mining industry and may have different levels of minerals.

Water suppliers must follow government guidelines as to the amount of contaminants allowed in water. "Yes, a certain level is allowable," said Mike Mattox, General Manager of Kinetico Water Systems.

Even low levels of arsenic are allowed to be in our water. Water suppliers periodically test the water and usually publish an annual report (often found on municipality or utility websites). You can check your area's water conditions over the past five years with Environmental Working Group's What's In Your Water program.

Regardless of the amount of minerals and other TDS, there are many benefits to installing a water treatment system in your home. From increasing the life of your appliances and plumbing fixtures to softer laundry, skin and hair. Also reduced spotting on dishes, less mineral build-up in tubs, showers and toilets and reducing cleaning time and environmentally unfriendly cleaning products.

Clearly, the most important benefit of water is better health. Water makes up two-thirds of the human body, and 75 percent of the human brain is water. There are limitless benefits to drinking water including:

Reducing headaches
Increasing metabolism and weight loss
Aiding in better digestion
Lubricating joints
Boosting the immune system
Increasing kidney function
Lowering the risk of bladder cancer
Increasing heart flow and function
Decreasing certain cancers
and so much more

"Because water is such an important nutrient and accounts for a significant portion of the human body's vital functions, drinking the highest quality water is one of the easiest ways to help stay healthy," said Mattox.

kineticogirl

It's important to note that water softeners alone can improve the "working water" throughout the home (water used for bathing, cleaning, laundry, etc.). However, softeners are not "purifiers" and are not designed to improve drinking water.

"A whole house filtration combination hybrid system will soften and remove chlorine, odors, and tastes from the water," said Mattox. "This would give you drinkable water throughout the home that is similar to having a refrigerator filter on the whole house."

How do you know what kind of water treatment system you need?

There are a variety of things to ask yourself and the dealer when considering adding a system to your home.

What is the hardness of your water?
What the size of your plumbing system?
What is the size and configuration of your home?
What is your estimated usage of water?
What is your budget?
Do you want a whole-home system or just the refrigerator and kitchen tap?
Can you buy or rent the system?
What is the manufacturer's warranty if you buy or rent?

Rosie's Water Treatment Consumer Guide

All of the Water Treatment Rosie-Certified Partners offer a variety of drinking water systems.
Kinetico Water Systems offers a variety of drinking water systems (all non-electric to save on electricity and still work when the power goes out). The K5 Drinking Water Station is their most advanced purified drinking water system. It is certified to remove more contaminants than any other system. It can produce more than 40 gallons of water a day—nearly three times the industry average – and uses less water than most systems.

Not-So-Fun Fact

Since we are talking about vital organs and small rocks, it turns out that kidney stones are 10 times as common now as they were in the early 1900's. Changes in the average American diet and fluoridation of drinking water, are believed to have contributed to the increased risk of kidney stone formation. Low fluid intake, particularly water, is a huge factor for increased risk of kidney stone formation. The American Urological Association even expanded the "kidney stone belt" to the Southwest United States, which means Arizona. Ouch! Really, Ouch!

Take care of the plumbing; yours and your home's. Remember, it's not enough to just drink more water, it's the quality of water of you drink. So drink the best water available to you and let the good times flow.

Podcast

Arizona is known for hard water. Kinetico talks about how their innovative systems soften the water for appliances to last longer and proper treatment for better tasting drinking water. They also discussed the advantages of installing a loop, and why 'pure water is not good for you' isn't quite true.

Kinetico Water Systems

Kinetico Water Systems' whole-house water treatment systems can benefit nearly every aspect of users' lives. They offer a free water analysis with a water filtration expert who will provide the data, so you can make an informed decision for your home. Call Kinetico Water today for more information and ask about their fall specials.

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Photo Credits:

Rosie on the House