Whole House Water Filtration in Washington, IL

Which Filter Removes What?

Each filter does one job. Know the job before you choose the filter.

A softener is a different tool. It removes hardness minerals and nothing else, which is why our water softener installation page treats it separately.

What a Filtration Install Includes

An install covers the equipment that fits your result, the plumbing to carry it and the handover that keeps it working. The scope usually takes in:

• Reading your result. The utility report or lab test, and the problem you want solved.
• Main line equipment. Sediment housings or a carbon tank, cut in with a bypass near the main shutoff.
• A drinking water tap. Reverse osmosis under the sink with its own small faucet, if you want one.
• Drain connections. Backwashing tanks and RO units both need one.
• Start-up and handover. New media flushed, joints checked and the change schedule explained.

A filter treats what you test for. It does not repair a well, fix lead in a service line or replace disinfection after a bad bacteria result. Any ultraviolet unit needs clear water and power, so it follows the sediment stage. Lab fees belong to the lab, so budget for them apart from the install.

Should You Treat the Whole House or One Tap?

Treat the whole house for problems you notice everywhere, and one tap for the water you drink. A whole house carbon tank handles chlorine taste in the shower, laundry and every faucet. Reverse osmosis is built for small flows, so it fits one kitchen tap, with its own small faucet beside the sink.

Reverse osmosis sends concentrated reject water to the drain, so putting it on every line would waste a lot of water and slow the flow. Most homes that want the finest drinking water use both: a carbon tank on the main line, plus RO at the kitchen sink.

How Do You Pick a System From a Test Result?

Start from the result and let it pick the filter.

1. Get the report or test. City water has an annual water quality report from the utility. A private well needs a lab test.
2. Name the problem. Taste, sediment, staining, a specific contaminant, or bacteria.
3. Match it to a filter type. The table above shows what each one can and cannot do.
4. Check the certification. Look for NSF/ANSI 42, 53 or 58, whichever fits the claim, and check the listing for your contaminant.
5. Size it to the house. Flow rate and household use decide the tank and cartridge size.

We do not quote water quality numbers for any town. They vary by supply, and your own result is the one that matters.

What About Filtration for Private Wells in Woodford County?

Test first, because wells carry problems that taste does not reveal. Woodford County has many rural homes on private wells, and the Illinois Department of Public Health recommends testing for bacteria and nitrate every year and for metals every three years. Test again after flooding, a well repair, or a change in the water's taste, color or smell.

What the test finds sets the plan:

• Sediment or rust. A sediment filter and perhaps an iron-rated system.
• Bacteria. Disinfection, such as ultraviolet treatment, after the cause is dealt with.
• Nitrate. Reverse osmosis at the drinking tap is one option.
• Hardness. A softener, not a filter.

Your county health department can test for bacteria and nitrate. A private sewage system is separate, and septic tank pumping is another licensed trade. Our work stops at the house plumbing that feeds the system.

Which Rules Apply to Filter Equipment?

Filter equipment on a main line is plumbing work under the Illinois Plumbing License Law, 225 ILCS 320, and the Illinois Plumbing Code, 77 Ill. Adm. Code 890. Ask anyone you hire for the license number and check it on the IDPH lookup.

Permit needs vary, so ask the City of Washington on its inspection line, (309) 444-1122, weekdays 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, or your village hall elsewhere. Water quality rules sit with your supplier for city water. For a private well no utility report exists, so the owner decides, guided by IDPH testing advice, and that is why the lab result matters here.

What Does Filter Installation Involve?

The filter goes where the water needs treating, and it needs service access.

1. Choose the location. Main-line equipment goes near the main shutoff valve, after the pressure tank on a well.
2. Shut off and drain the water at the main shutoff valve.
3. Cut in the filter with a bypass, so you can service it without losing water to the house.
4. Connect the drain. Carbon tanks that backwash and RO systems both need a drain.
5. Run the RO tap. A small faucet is set in the sink or counter, with tubing to the unit.
6. Flush and check. We flush new media, check for leaks and show you how to change a cartridge.

What Does Filtration Cost, and What Does It Cost to Keep?

You get a clear, upfront quote for the work. These things move it:

• Equipment type. A sediment housing, a carbon tank and an RO set differ in parts and labor.
• Plumbing changes. A tight utility corner takes more time.
• Drain access. Backwashing tanks and RO units both need a nearby drain.
• Number of stages. More stages mean more filters and a bigger installation.
• The water itself. Gritty well water loads a cartridge faster than clean city water, so a test can change the hardware you buy.

We list variables, not prices, because no reliable local figure is on file for filtration and two systems with the same name can do very different jobs.

After install, the running cost is replacement cartridges, carbon media and RO membranes on the maker's schedule, plus a little water. Ask for the schedule in writing, so you know what the next year costs before you buy.