Choosing this product category(closest) as Aqua Guard Ultra is not listed here. I am back after a long time. I thought would share with you all my experience of water filter.
*I bought Aqua Guard Ultra water filter which uses membrane technology.
Why Membrane Technology?
*Thanks to MS. I was able to select this technology for my house. I live in Mysore and checked TDS a couple of times, which was all in range of around 450 ppm. Membrane technology is best suited for < 500 TDS levels. Also I have been using Aqua Guard’s conventional UV technology water filter and was somewhat not all that convinced with their clear purification as I continued to have some stomach problems and throat infections. Membrane technology removes all possible micro organisms(remember only 0.1 micron membrane can do this) including cysts. I was always worried that cysts may not be removed completely and hence I get frequent stomach upsets, when I used the UV filter. A 0.1 micron membrane technology practically removes all the unwanted particles and micro organisms simply becuase there is no micro organism small than 0.1 micron and hence cannot pass through this membrane.
Also RO uses 0.01 micron membrane which is too much of filteration, especially where there is no need to reduce TDS levels like in my case.(it is recommended that TDS level of upto 500 is safe for drinking water). If I use RO its like actually drinking distilled water and I for a moment thought my kidneys will get used to it and later wont function at all!.
*Why Aqua Guard?
*Well well, I know, I know. There have been a lot of write-up about poor quality of service from these guys and I do agree to it. But its I think only in metros and not in smaller cities like I live - Mysore. Here atlesat I have got fully satisfactory service from them so far(last 3 yrs of UV filter that I used).
It is important to buy a product which has a high response back up service, not just sales.
I did enquire a lot of other competitor products which I felt were available atleast 1 to 2 k lesser, but I was afraid of service as they all had to come from Bangalore or other different cities.
*Other points to note:
*1. Membrane technology doesn’t need electricity to filter your water. However it needs good water pressure. Please check this in advance.
This product is not wall mounted and is actually a storage device drum which can hold upto 8 litres of water.
The filtration is pretty slow. For 8 litres it takes more than 45 mins.
Greatest disadvantage is the water wastage. I suggest you store this waste water and reuse it for plants or other toilet needs. Also there should be extendable waste water outlets from this product so that we can directly ensure water reaches its intended place.
The tap that you operate is not all that user-friendly. A’T’ kind of tap is recommended for this so that the functioning is easier.
Water should stop automatically, once the drum fills. This doesn’t happen in this product.
Conclusion?
Go for membrane technology for sure after checking its viability at your house. However buy this product only if you feel they will give good service or if you have had good experience before or as I said if you are in secondary cities. Else go for any other make where you have good service back-up. Its been 2 months now and I am pretty satisfied with this product. Infact the water taste has improved(become sweeter:)). I will update this post if I have other experience to share on this product. C U till then