Berkey Light Water Filter Questions

Question 1

I’m thinking about buying a Berkey Light Water Filter since I have very hard water where I live. Will this filter help remove the minerals and soften the water?

Accepted Answer

No, the Black Berkey filters will not remove the minerals from your water. This is actually beneficial as it is not a good idea to drink de-mineralised water over the long term, reverse osmosis will remove the minerals but the water is then de-mineralised. For a detailed comparison of Berkey purification and reverse osmosis please see: Reverse Osmosis/Distillation.

Question 2

Thank you for the Berkey water filter. I just wanted to ask about the filters. There is a small chip on the corner of one of them. Will this affect the function?

Accepted Answer

No this won't affect the functioning or the lifespan of the filter, it's quite common and happens during the production process. The Black Berkey filters are about twice as thick as standard gravity filter elements and have a built in redundancy. If the filters have passed the red food color test then you can be assured that they're working properly.

Question 3

I have a Berkey Light and wish to use it to filter water from a stream. I would like to pre-filter the water to get out any larger particles, little animals etc. if there are any, just to keep the Berkey filters as clean as possible. Do you have any equipment for this or advice on what I should use?

Accepted Answer

Yes, that's a very good idea to pre-filter larger particles etc. I would suggest setting up 2 pails one above the other, drilling small holes in the top one and then partly filling it with clean sand. To prevent sand leaking through the holes you may need to put in a fine wire mesh on the bottom as well. Then fill it with the stream water and then put the sand filtered water through the Berkey. If a bit of sand were to get into the upper chamber of the Berkey that's not a problem as it will sink to the bottom anyways. Alternatively you could also pre-filter with a piece of cheesecloth, although I would recommend the sand method.

Question 4

Does the Berkey Light system include a set of Black Berkey filters?

Accepted Answer

Yes, the  Berkey Light water filter system includes a set of Black Berkey filters and all necessary parts for immediate use. The Berkey Light can be expanded with one extra set of Black Berkey filters.

Question 5

What is the cost of delivery and where is the Berkey Light sent from?

Accepted Answer

All Berkey orders are sent from the Netherlands and it is free delivery to anywhere in the EU and UK.

Question 6

I have a waterbutt connected to the gutters on my house for collecting rainwater from the roof. Are the Black Berkey filters able to filter the rain water in the waterbutt safely?

Accepted Answer

Yes the Black Berkey filters can purify rain water into drinking water. Please make sure that if you collect it from a roof that the gutters and the waterbutt are as clean as possible. Rotting leaves and twigs release tannins into the water and excess tannins will prematurely clog the filters.

Question 7

I haven&rsquo;t used my Berkey Light for the past year and want to start using it again. Is it safe to use the Black Berkey filters or do I need new Black Berkey filters?

Accepted Answer

If the Black Berkey filters were allowed to dry out thoroughly before being put away in storage then the filters are safe to use again. You will need to prime the Black Berkey filters again as you did when you first set up the Berkey Light.

Question 8

Do the Black Berkey filters remove microplastics from the water?

Accepted Answer

Black Berkey filters laboratory test results show that the filters can extract waterborne pathogens down to the nanometer scale, in the tested range of 24-26 nanometers. 24-26 nanometers is .024 to .026 microns&hellip;in other words, much smaller than the plastic particles being found in water.An extensive investigation on microplastics in water found that these analyses caught particles of more than 2.5 microns in size,&rdquo; 2.5 microns would be 2.5 micrometers. A &ldquo;micron&rdquo; is an abbreviated term for &ldquo;micrometer&rdquo;, or a millionth of a meter (1/1,000,000 meters). Working down to a smaller scale 2.5 microns would be 2,500 nanometers.The fact that Black Berkey filters test results show that the filters can remove waterborne pathogens down to the nanometer scale, in the tested range of 24-26 nanometers, suggests that contaminants much larger in size such as microplastics should also be removed. Nonetheless, since actual testing of microplastics removal has not yet been conducted, the manufacturer can&rsquo;t officially make that claim.

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