So water in Flint, Michigan is poison, Chicago has a lead pipe problem, and according to one research study, over 50% of American consumers are using some form of filtration for their drinking water. More than half won’t drink the water out of their taps!
This is pretty much proof that Americans believe that they can’t trust their drinking water supplies. The Question remains — is that belief right or wrong?
What happened with Flint’s water supply?
Let’s get Flint out of the way first. Flint’s choice of water was not bad. They made a fiscally responsible decision to change sources which saved the taxpayers millions of dollars. Flint made a bad choice in the treatment of the water. It is a proven fact that lead pipes are a superior material for the conveyance of potable water over long periods of time (hundreds of years). They simply rarely deteriorate. They will, however, allow some lead molecules to leach into the water while the water is sitting in the pipe— unless the water is treated with an additive to coat the surface of the pipe, preventing the lead from leaching into the water. Flint had always used this additive, but when they switched from the Detroit water supply to the Flint River water supply, they made a concurrent decision to eliminate that additive to save even more money. The Flint River water was more aggressive which dissolved the coating off the pipes over time and lead began to leach into the domestic water supply of every building that has a lead service. Michigan and Flint politicians saw an opportunity to use this situation to get Federal Aid to replace the old services in Flint and rather than starting the coating process again, they are now getting “free” replacement services to all the buildings affected courtesy of you and I (the taxpayers).
That being said, what can the inhabitants of Mokena, Tinley Park, Orland Park, Frankfort and the likes do to protect their children from the type of disaster that is Flint?
The solution to contaminated water!
The first step is to recognize that, depending on the source water, your tap water may or may not be safe to drink. All municipalities are required to test water and report to their customers on a regular basis (usually yearly). At Yes! Plumbing in Tinley Park, IL, we are pretty confident that those reports are legitimate. But is “pretty sure” good enough?
Our General Manager doesn’t think so. He doesn’t think it’s worth risking his health and his family’s health on the “chance” that his water is suitable to drink, regardless of the reports, be they from Mokena, Orland Park ,Frankfort, Crete or wherever. Lead and other toxins can be absorbed through the skin and do not necessarily have to be ingested through drinking water to enter your body. Bathing, showering, and drinking water out of a glass washed in contaminated water can all lead to toxins entering your body. So he installed a whole house Reverse Osmosis (RO) System. His system is a very efficient system, producing one gallon of purified water for every gallon it discards (most systems discard almost 4 gallons for every gallon of purified water). His system pre-treats the water to remove substances harmful to membranes, and even adds back healthy minerals to the water (which not only benefits the health of persons drinking the water, but protects his copper water system at the same time). Yes! Plumbing customized his system to his home as they do with all the purification systems they install.
The whole house system is obviously the best for protecting your family and the maintenance utilizes commonly available parts. As a bonus, the system even includes a booster pump, so most folks see an increase in pressure at their faucets and showers. Yes! Plumbing services the RO systems they sell and provide yearly maintenance schedules to keep them in top notch condition. Whole house systems start at around $200/mo for well-qualified individuals, with complete installation included. Costs can vary depending on the water being purified, volumes of water needed for each household, and optional features the client may want to include.
For just drinking water, Yes! Plumbing has installed RO drinking water systems in towns like Mokena, Tinley Park, Orland Park, Frankfort, New Lenox and many more. These systems are much less expensive (starting at around $2,500 in total), and can still create safe drinking water for your family.
Other systems are available that perform tasks to specifically treat certain conditions like excess dissolved iron, larger particles in the water supply, and offensive smells. And of course, the old standby water softeners which will remove a small amount of iron and a substantial amount of mineral content.
Yes! Plumbing has live agents standing by 24/7 to answer questions or set up appointments. Please feel free to call (708) 847-7045 with any questions!