When you turn on the tap, you probably don’t think twice about where that water has been before it fills your glass. Most of us assume that once water leaves a treatment plant, it’s clean and safe. But the truth is, the journey from its source to your sink is long and complicated…and along the way, your water can pick up a variety of unwanted passengers.
Understanding the lifecycle of tap water not only helps explain why the taste and quality vary, but also why having your own home water purification system is crucial for protecting your health and your home.
From Source to Treatment Plant
The lifecycle of tap water begins at a natural source such as: lakes, rivers, reservoirs, or groundwater wells. While these sources supply millions of households, they also collect everything from industrial runoff, pesticides, herbicides, animal waste, and heavy metals to naturally occurring substances like arsenic or nitrates.
At the municipal treatment plant, water goes through several steps, usually including:
- Screening & Coagulation: removing large debris like leaves and dirt.
- Filtration: typically through sand, gravel, or carbon, to reduce sediment and some contaminants.
- Disinfection: chlorine or chloramine is added to kill bacteria and viruses.
By the time water leaves the plant, it meets regulatory standards, but those standards are based on “acceptable” levels, not necessarily truly healthy ones.
The Journey Through Pipes
Even after leaving the treatment plant, tap water has a long road ahead. In many cities, pipes are decades (sometimes even a century) old. Along the way, water can pick up lead, rust, microplastics, and other contaminants from corroded infrastructure.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has noted that while water leaving the plant may be safe, the distribution system is often the weak link. For example, the crisis in Flint, Michigan highlighted how lead pipes can leach dangerous levels of contaminants directly into household water supplies.
At the Tap: The Final Destination
By the time water reaches your faucet, it has likely:
- Been treated with chlorine or chloramine, leaving behind taste and odor issues.
- Carried trace pharmaceuticals and chemicals that conventional treatment doesn’t remove.
- Picked up sediment, microplastics, and heavy metals from aging pipes.
So, while your water may look clear, its journey leaves behind more than you bargained for. And that’s where home water purification becomes essential.
Why a Home Water Purification System Matters
Relying on municipal treatment alone is like assuming every road is smooth, safe, and free of traffic just because the car was designed well, it ignores all the hazards along the way. A whole-house purification and point-of-use systems give you control over the final step in your water’s lifecycle: your home.
With Carico’s advanced system, you’re not just filtering your drinking water, you’re ensuring every drop of water that touches your life is cleaner, safer, and healthier.
Carico’s Whole-House System provides:
- Comprehensive contaminant removal: chlorine, VOCs, pesticides, herbicides, heavy metals, nitrates, pharmaceuticals, and even microplastics.
- Microbial protection: filtering E. coli, cryptosporidium, and viruses.
- Salt-free water conditioning: DS Composite™ + magnetic treatment softens water, prevents scale, and extends the life of your appliances.
- Non-electric efficiency: unlike many systems, Carico’s works without electricity, reducing failure risk and saving energy.
- Professional maintenance: a backwash every six months provided by our team keeps your system running flawlessly.
Plus, Carico includes the Ultra-Tech™ Point of Use 99.9% Drinking Water Filter, ensuring water at your kitchen tap is pure, refreshing, and safe for cooking and drinking.
Protecting Your Family and Your Future
Think of your home as the final chapter in water’s long lifecycle. Municipal systems do their part, but only you can guarantee that what flows through your pipes is the quality you want for your family. From cooking pasta to bathing your kids, water touches nearly every part of your day, and investing in a system that treats it at the source (your home) is one of the most impactful health decisions you can make.
Carico’s Whole-House Water Purification System, Point-of-use and Shower filters don’t just stop contaminants, they deliver peace of mind, better-tasting meals, softer skin and hair, and longer-lasting appliances.
Take Control of Your Water Today
Your water has traveled a long way to reach you. Don’t let the last step of its journey compromise your health and comfort. With Carico, you can make sure the water in your home is as pure, safe, and refreshing as it was meant to be.
Call your Carico sales representative today, or contact us directly by phone at 1-800-830-1020 or email us at: pr********@****co.com, to learn more about installing a Whole-House Water Purification System, a Point-of-use or a shower filter in your home. Cleaner water, healthier living, that’s the Carico difference.
