We have well water which is a great relief after hearing the pesticide and
chlorination threads.  Still, we don't want to drink the softened water and
who knows what the neighbors are putting into the water table.  So we
purchased one of the dual filter Omni systems.  Cost was about $100 here in
the US.  It has a carbon filter, a heavy metals filter and a small spigot
that mounts on the sink.  Replacement filters every year cost about $10 for
the carbon and $30 for the heavy metals.   Flow is about 1 gallon per
minute.
 
I consider this one of my best investments to safeguard my family, pets and
bees.  Just pure, clean water.  You can use this on municipal systems, too.
 The carbon removes the chlorine.  A side advantage is that our house (built
about 17 years ago) used leaded solder for the water pipes.  Being a
chemist, I tested the water and found levels of lead in the regular water
that were above regulatory limits (this was the water sampled that sat in
the pipes overnight).  This system is pure compression fittings from the
filter to the spigot.
 
What a difference in taste, too.  City water now tastes acidic compared to
our filtered water.  If not for your bees, you may want to get one of these
systems for yourself just to avoid those harmless pesticides.
 
 
John Moote
 
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