After a mild start to the new year the weather has suddenly turned very cold so what better way to warm up than with a nice cup of tea? Unfortunately your tap water can have a big effect on the taste and appearance of your cuppa. Here's why tea tastes better with filtered water...
Not just H2O, your tap water can contain many additional substances and contaminents all of which may impact the quality of your water. The biggest culprits in the taste and appearance of your cup of tea however are chlorine and the minerals which form limescale. Chlorine is used in the water treatment process in order to remove any harmful bacteria and keep your water germ free when it is on its way to your household. Unfortunately, although the health risks associated with chlorine are minimal, it can leave your tap water with an unpleasant taste and smell. Limescale is the compound which is formed when the mineral deposits of calcium and magnesium which are dissolved in your water are heated. A high mineral content in your water is what defines it as being hard water and levels of these minerals vary greatly throughout the UK, depending on the area in which you live. Limescale causes the chalky buildup which you can find on pipes, taps and heating elements around your home. You can find out more about the other contaminents in your tap water by reading our previous blog, What's In Your Water?
After water, tea is the second most consumed drink in the world so making the perfect cuppa is high up on a lot of people's lists! There’s definitely an art to making the perfect cup of tea which is far more than just boiling a kettle and dunking a tea bag. As tea is actually 98% water, the quality of the water you use is extremely important. As mentioned above, the chlorine in your tap water can leave it with an unpleasant taste and smell, like bleach, which certainly does not compliment the taste of your tea! Hard water and the build-up of limescale also both have a significant impact on the taste of tea, owing to a higher concentration of minerals such as calcium and magnesium that build-up over time. Hard water also makes the flavour compounds in tea harder to dissolve, which results in a weak-tasting brew. On top of this, the water will also have a scummy appearance. Not particularly appetising!
There's no doubt about it, a water filtration system is absolutely the way to go. A simple, undersink filtration cartridge will certainly make a huge difference but for the very best in water quaility you need a Reverse Osmosis system. Reverse Osmosis (RO) is a simple water filtration process which works by using pressure to force water through a semipermeable membrane in order to remove any impurities. The contaminants which are filtered out are flushed away and you are left with clean, great tasting drinking water. RO systems will remove common chemical contaminants such as lead, chlorine sodium, chromium and copper and can reduce fluoride, calcium, magnesium, arsenic, radium, sulfate, potassium, nitrate, and phosphorous. There are generally four stages to the RO process, each designed to filter out specific contaminants. Firstly, the mains water, driven by pressure, comes through a sediment filter which, as the name suggests, will filter out any sediment, dirt and silt before they reach the actual RO membrane (which is very delicate). Next, the water will pass through a carbon filter which will remove chlorine. This will improve both the taste and smell of the water and will also help to preserve the life of the RO membrane. The water now reaches the RO membrane, filtering out almost all other contaminants and allowing just water through. The final stage is another carbon filter which removes any taste or smell in the water, ensuring that the drinking water is the best that it can be. Domestic RO units are neat in design and can generally fit under your kitchen sink. Take a look at our range of Reverse Osmosis sytems online.
If you want to find out first-hand why tea tastes better with filtered water, please get in touch to arrange your home survey for a water filtration today.
