Water in California

Ever since the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) was passed by Congress back in 1974, many of our nation’s drinking water concerns have been alleviated.  There have been much stricter guidelines put into place that aim to protect the safety and integrity of our water supply.  Due to the tighter regulations, many water borne illnesses of the past have been all but eliminated, which causes some to question if independent water testing is really necessary.

In order to answer this question, let’s first take a look at how publicly supplied water is delivered to your home.  Once it has been tested and treated in a water treatment facility, it is then piped to a water holding tank in your town or city. Through a system utilizing gravity and electricity, water then passes through a labyrinth of pipes and tubes underground to eventually end up coming out of your tap.

The water that was treated and tested back at the treatment facility has now travelled through many miles of underground pipes to reach your home.  Is it possible, that the once treated water has become tainted along the way?  Of course it is!  We aren’t saying that all water is going to become contaminated on its way to your tap, however, there are a lot of unknown variables along the way that could affect the quality of your water – even the pipes in your own home.

So what criterion determines whether or not you should have your water tested?  We have compiled a basic list of questions that can help guide you in your decision.

• Does your water have a strange taste or odor?
• Does your water leave soap scum on bathroom fixtures?
• Do you have an existing water treatment system in place and wonder about its efficiency?
• Did you just move into your home and didn’t receive a water quality report? Click here if so!  http://water.epa.gov/drink/local/index.cfm
• Are you interested in installing a water filtration system in your home?
• Does your home have lead pipes or lead soldered joints?
• Do you have brass fixtures?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, you should definitely look into having your water tested.  Most home improvement stores sell basic water testing kits, however if you are going to go to the effort of having your water tested, we would recommend using a private water testing laboratory.  A certified water testing laboratory has the capability of testing for a much broader range of contaminants and will give you a better overview of your water quality.  The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has a link on their website you can use to find certified testing labs in your state.

Once you determine the condition of your water, you are in a much better position to choose a water filtration system that will compliment your unique water concerns or whether you need one at all.  Whichever way you decide to go, it is still recommended that you have your water tested to know the condition of the water you are drinking on a daily basis and prevent any health issue before they arise.

Get a free water test

Consumers are taking multiple steps in protecting their drinking water these days. From water pitchers with filters to home drinking water systems installed at the point-of-use, no one wants to deal with harmful drinking water contaminants known or unknown for that matter. Lead, chloroform, arsenic, nitrate, nitrite, radon, and E. coli bacteria are common in tap water. And bottled water is actually less regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency than municipal water supplies.

Some consumers are electing to install a faucet mount water filter. Each water filter has advantages and disadvantages. But how do you know which faucet mount water filter is the best? First, find one that will improve not only the taste of your water, but is also certified to remove the contaminants that are present in your particular water. Some come with electronic displays and are easier to use than others. Faucet-mounted filters let you switch between filtered and unfiltered water. They are affordable and simple to use, but as with any other product, there are some downsides as well.

Some of the least-effective models have slow water flow and they may not fit on all faucets. They may also get clogged if your family uses the filter often. A good rule of thumb is to fit the filter to your needs. If your family uses several gallons of water a day, faucet mounted filters may get clogged faster meaning more maintenance on your part. Claims vary, so some research is needed.

Even though faucet-mounted filters may seem like a great option, they still do not measure up to reverse osmosis (RO) drinking water systems  Although some have been proven to reduce contaminants, they still do not remove everything that our reverse osmosis drinking water systems do. Plus, a home drinking water system will last longer, making it a much more eco-friendly choice. Faucet mount filters are not permanent, leading to more plastic and cardboard waste upon replacement. When a filter needs replacing, it also stops doing as effective of a job. Our RO systems will turn your tap water into great-tasting, safe drinking water no matter your household demand. With contaminants reduced at the turn of the tap, you can enjoy the most cost-effective and filtration-effective water products. To learn more about our products, click here http://www.rayneoffullerton.com/ro_underthecounter.php.

“Drinking water is essential for our bodies to function properly.”  These words are not just empty rhetoric; it has been estimated that nearly 75 percent of Americans may suffer from chronic dehydration.  Chronic dehydration occurs when individuals go days without drinking the recommended minimum amount of water to keep their bodies properly hydrated.  When a person is chronically dehydrated, they begin to suffer some serious health complications including high blood pressure, fatigue, ulcers, headaches, weight gain and joint pain.

Our bodies are made up of approximately 60 percent water and this water helps to transport vital nutrients and oxygen throughout our system.  Water also supports other bodily fluids such as lymphatic fluid, cerebral spinal fluid, mucus and the fluids found in our eyes.  When our water levels are depleted we begin to feel the effects of mild dehydration such as a feeling of weakness, lethargy and oftentimes a headache.  These feelings intensify if dehydration worsens and will be followed by hallucinations and eventually death.

We are constantly losing water throughout the day and it must be replenished in order for our organs and even our cells to do their job.  Unfortunately, if an individual feels thirsty and they reach for a can of soda or a cup of coffee, they are contributing to the dehydration effect in their body.  The worst drink offenders contributing to dehydration are caffeinated beverages such as coffee and soda as well as alcohol.  The reason why they are so detrimental to our hydration is because they remove water on a cellular level.  We might think we are quenching our thirst but in reality we are making the situation worse.

Even drinking so called “healthy” drinks such as Gatorade and other electrolyte replacement drinks come with their own set of problems.  Ingesting too much potassium or sodium can lead to even greater electrolyte disturbances throughout the body instead of fixing the problem.  Drinking water is by far the best choice all around, it will help to balance your fluid levels, electrolyte levels and allow your body to run as efficiently as possible.

The amount of water an individual should drink on a daily basis varies; some experts recommend drinking ½ ounce of water per pound of body weight for an inactive person and 2/3 ounce of water per pound of body weight for an athletic person.  Others recommend drinking a minimum of eight to ten eight-ounce glasses of water per day.  Whatever your water intake, you should try and spread it throughout the day and evening for the best efficacy.  By eliminating chronic dehydration your body will run more efficiently and you will be surprised at how much better you feel and how much more energy you have.

You’ve invested a lot in your business and in turn, customer service. Could your business benefit even more from softened water? If you work or own a business like restaurants, health clubs, beauty salons, motels, hotels, resorts, condominiums, schools, hospitals, nursing homes, factories, laundries, office complexes, apartments, car washes, farms and dairies, you may be able to enjoy reduced mineral content and buildup through advanced water softening technology and efficient components.

What does all of this mean exactly? Well, when it comes to businesses, water is vital to production and is a powerful business asset as many companies have recently learned. It has saved some companies thousands of dollars in reduction in detergent and chemical costs as well as operating costs and production efficiency. Our industrial water softeners come in a variety of models so we can adjust to your business’s budget, water demands, sustainability goals and space.

Our commercial water softeners come in various models and prices. One popular water softener can help reduce energy consumption, reduce repair costs for appliances within the workplace and reduce the need for special chemicals for boilers and steam-handling equipment. Likewise, softened water in commercial settings can extend the service life of clothing, linens, fixtures and appliances.
Our most efficient model on the market today provides a continuous supply of soft water as well. Our patented design allows one tank to be completely exhausted before switching to the standby tank. Each tank can be regenerated twice per day, allowing any business to keep up with the need for soft water. No matter which model you choose, you will see that our water softeners are cost-effective with high-efficiency operation and are built to withstand force, usage and continuous regeneration.

Water coolers are popping up everywhere these days, they are no longer exclusively for the office. The reason we are seeing so many now in homes is because consumers are becoming more knowledgeable about the benefits of filtered water as well as the health and safety concerns surrounding unfiltered tap water. There is also the convenience factor as well, which encourages adults and children alike to drink more water which is much healthier than sugar or chemical-laden sodas and juices.

Homes that receive their water from private wells are especially vulnerable to water contaminants and the need for some sort of water filtration http://www.rayneoffullerton.com/index.php is often vital for safe drinking water. Publicly supplied water is much more controlled and is much safer than well water, however the chemicals used to treat municipal water can cause health issues over time and there is also the risk of possible contamination going unnoticed for long periods of time. Also, many homeowners say that even if they feel their tap water is safe enough to drink, they just don’t like the taste of the chemicals used to treat it.

Water coolers eliminate the risk of contamination and offer great tasting, safe, filtered drinking water which is the best form of hydration available. There are several different types of coolers available, so how do you choose the right one for your home? Let’s take a look at the pros and cons of the most readily available coolers on the market.

The most common one we see around is the standard dispenser with a huge water bottle on the top filled with distilled or filtered water. These do a great job of providing healthy water, and often come with both a cold and hot dispenser which make them convenient for getting a cold glass or water or making a cup of hot chocolate or tea.

The major drawback of these types of water coolers however, is the huge plastic water jug on top. Those jugs are cumbersome to say the least and trying to fit them into place on top of the dispenser can be quite a juggling act. Then there is the issue of storing the extra jugs so you always have a ready supply; they definitely aren’t small and won’t just slide into a corner somewhere. The environmental impact of a jug-type water cooler is quite significant as well. It takes upwards of 1000 years for a plastic bottle to break down and our landfills are already overflowing with plastic water bottles.

A bottleless water cooler is the newest thing to come out. They have different types of filtration systems, but most commonly a reverse osmosis filtration which produces great tasting, high quality drinking water. Bottleless water coolers can save as much as 25 – 50% over bottled water and their environmental impact is significantly smaller. They also offer hot and cold water at the touch of your finger and the only thing you will need to replace is the filter and most companies have regularly scheduled filtered changes so you don’t even need to worry about that.

If you don’t already have a water cooler or are looking to change the one you have, we would highly recommend the bottleless water coolers, they are much easier, more convenient, produce healthy filtered drinking water and are environmentally friendly.

Learn more about home water coolers

Drinking water quality is not something to take for granted, but many of us still do. We assume that water from both our private wells or from the tap and a municipal water system is safe to drink when we cannot take, smell or see anything wrong with it. However water that has not been treated with a reverse osmosis drinking water system could be at risk, as could the people drinking it on a daily basis.

Our reverse osmosis water filters are available for lease or purchase and for a low monthly fee and we take care of everything – maintenance, filters and repairs. But should you invest in a water filter if you are unsure if you need it? How will you know? Well for starters, even though the United States has some of the best drinking water in the world in comparison, there are still some public concerns that are justified. The New York Times revealed in one disturbing report that one in ten Americans have been exposed to drinking water that contains dangerous chemicals, including carcinogens in the tap water of major American cities and unsafe chemicals in drinking water wells in more rural areas. The primary reason, according to the report is that the laws intended to protect our water supplies, the Clean Water Act and the Safe Drinking Water Act, are not being enforced. In fact, researchers found, barely 3% of violations resulted in fines or other significant penalties by state officials responsible for enforcing the law.

These contaminants could be affecting the most at-risk people in your household, too. Pregnant women, babies, elderly, children or ill people could fall sick from drinking water contamination which could have been avoided with reverse osmosis. Most households have at least one of these people and they could benefit from high quality drinking water. Guarding your home from contaminants that can find their way into ground water or tap water is one of the best decisions you could make.

Similarly, private wells must run their own tests, especially for lead contamination, since lead is especially dangerous and levels can vary enormously from house to house. Wells, which are not typically regulated, are more likely to contain contaminants than municipal water systems. The E.P.A. advises that you test well water annually.
With an RO system, a little peace of mind goes a long way. No matter how at-risk you or someone in your household may be, an RO system can remove those harmful contaminants known or unknown before they begin to affect your life and your health.

Here in the United States we are accustomed to the convenience of turning on the tap and receiving fresh drinking water.  But how many consumers actually know anything about the process their drinking water goes through before it reaches their kitchen faucet?  The answer is very few.  Many Americans never give a thought to how their water is treated or what chemicals water treatment facilities add to rid our drinking water of contaminants. 

Let’s take a look at the most common steps water treatment facilities use to treat our drinking water supply.

• Coagulation and Flocculation
  Chemicals with a positive charge are added to the water supply and the positive charge of these chemicals then neutralize the negative charge of dirt and any other dissolved elements.  The large particles that are created from this process is called “floc”
• Sedimentation
  During this next step, the heavier floc will settle on the bottom of the supply tank.
• Filtration
  Now that the floc has settled, the clear water on the top is passed through water filters of various elements such as charcoal, sand and gravel.  This water is also filtered through several different size pores in order to remove any residual particulates like bacteria, viruses, parasites, dust and chemicals.
• Disinfection
  Once the water has been through the filtration process, a disinfectant is then added such as chlorine or chloramine to kill any remaining bacteria, viruses and parasites.  This chemical is also used keep germs at bay when it is piped out to the public.

As you can see this is quite a process our drinking water goes through to ensure it is safe to drink; and while the United States has one of the safest water supplies in the world, it is still not without flaws.  First and foremost is the addition of chemicals.  Their purpose is for cleaning and disinfecting and while they normally do a great job of that, we are left drinking the residual chemicals, which can cause some serious health problems.  Chlorine and Chloramine have both been associated with increased cancer risks.  Chlorine in particular can react with organic matter in the water and produce carcinogenic Trihalomethanes which are NOT filtered out at the supply source.

The only way to ensure our drinking water does not contain these residual chemicals and any by-products produced from them is by utilizing a home water filtration system.  There are drinking water systems available on the market that can filter out these unwanted chemicals as well as any many other contaminants that could have been missed in the initial filtration process.  We drink water all the time and it just makes sense that we know exactly what we are drinking and not taking the chance that our water is contaminated by any of these chemicals and by-products.

Even though the United States has some of the best drinking water in the world, we are often reminded that it is not perfect and we shouldn’t take it for granted. Too many consumers hear that they have treated drinking water and assume that is it totally safe. Residents without home drinking water systems or water filters may want to sit down when they hear the recent news from an article from Water Technology Online.

According to the article, the Center for the Biology of Chronic Diseases, the government should start spending money on research on the effect of treated water on the spread of latent viruses and cancer. If more research is recommended, are all EPA regulations up-to-date? The CBCD has acknowledged a recent study in the journal Food and Environmental Virology that found that “treated sewage, when discharged into the environment, can contain high levels of waterborne pathogenic viruses.” The Theory of Microcompetition with Foreign DNA explains how latent viruses in the body can lead to cancer.

These findings are probably not in your area, right? Well over three million people live in California’s Orange County where a “toilet to tap” system is undergoing a $150 million expansion, according to the release, and where cancer rates are significantly higher than the national average.

Is your water treated? Is it protected? Regularly having your tap water tested is important, as research shows only about 20-80% of these contaminants are removed during water treatment and the rest goes back into the environment. Our drinking water systems work to provide your household with a continuous flow of safer, pure drinking water right at the tap. Too many consumers assume that their treated drinking water is safe. Our high-effective drinking water filters and RO systems may be the last line of defense that your home needs against oncogenic cancer causing Human Papillomaviruses (HPVs) and Polyomaviruses (HPyVs). Contact us today to find which drinking water system would be the best investment for your household.

Companies have long used water coolers in their offices to supply their employees clean great tasting water at the touch of a button.  Employees have enjoyed conversations around the water cooler for … well, for as long as water coolers have been around.  Water coolers don’t just provide employees a place to hang out and chat however, companies have noticed an increase in productivity as well as overall health of their employees.  It’s a win-win situation and we have had the privilege of providing water coolers for … well, for as long as we have been in business.

When employees have an unlimited supply of fresh, cold or hot filtered water they tend to drink much more water than sugary soft drinks.  The problem with drinking soft drinks is that while they might get a temporary jump in alertness, when the crash hits soon after, productivity tends to decline along with the sugar.  When we are properly hydrated we tend to perform much better.  Studies have proven that drinking water throughout the day increases metabolism and helps individuals stay motivated.  It also increases brain activity, keeping them focused and productive without becoming sluggish.

Water coolers have come a long way since they were first introduced into the market.  Gone are the days where employees had to lug around heavy, cumbersome 5 gallon water jugs and try to finagle them into the proper spot way too high for comfortable maneuverability.  Companies also had to find a place to store the numerous bottles they needed, which take up an inordinately large amount of space.  Let’s not forget the environmental impact  of all that plastic as well; besides filling landfills with plastic that takes up to 1000 years to biodegrade, it also takes over 1.5 gallons of oil to manufacture, ship and store just ONE 5 gallon water bottle.

The Rayne Water Cooler is the future icon of the office water cooler. This bottleless water cooler provides superior, filtered water directly at the source without all the hassle and waste of the out-of-date 5 gallon water cooler.  It is an environmentally superior alternative that is more convenient and efficient than the old 5 gallon water cooler while still providing fresh, cold, filtered water that keeps employees powered throughout the day.

International tragedy could soon be felt by people here on the Western coast of the United States thanks to the arrival of radioactive ocean water heading our way. Japan’s Fukushima nuclear plant explosion cause tons of devastation in their own country, but now the coastline of California could be the next place for the effects to reach according to Chairwoman of U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Allison Macfarlane, Bloomberg reports. However, what concerns us most is that it seems that some government officials and the nuclear industry are downplaying the severity and danger of the contaminated ocean waters while scientists warn there is no such thing as safe radiation.

A recent report from the writing staff at Common Dreams discusses the situation that the West Coast is about to find themselves dealing with, no matter who denies it. While the levels are well under EPA drinking water standards, former nuclear industry executive Arnie Gundersen states that all radiation is unsafe and there is no non-harmful level. He also warns that the danger will only increase as the ocean water comes closer because this is not a one-time wave we are dealing with but contaminated and polluted ocean water that is still being affected. Even scientists warn that claims that radiation is not harmful are deceptive. Although some of the effects have been calculated for cancer risk in Japan, scientists admit that it is difficult to predict the cancer rates for those on North America’s west coast.  However, the cancer statistics that experts are working on do not take into account other potential health effects like heart disease and genetic damage that radioactive water can produce.

Experts may not show as much concern, but some west coast cities seem nervous. Is yours? According to the article, the San Francisco Bay area city of Fairfax, California passed a resolution for increased testing of coastal seafood and a reduction of radiation emissions from Fukushima. If your city doesn’t do anything to protect you, what can YOU do? Drinking water contamination is something we are familiar with and this is one more thing we are prepared to fight off for you. Our drinking water systems  reduce harmful contaminants and you can feel good knowing that your water is safe to drink even when things are beyond your control. Through the process of reverse osmosis, we reduce the levels of contaminants and offer you the most cost-effective way to provide your family with a continuous supply of safe drinking water. Fukushima has done enough damage overseas, so protect your home with one of our drinking water systems so it doesn’t do any unnecessary damage on our shores too.