Can you drink the tap water? The answer in many parts of Latin America is No, not unless you want a nasty intestinal bug. In Ecuador, Nicaragua, Mexico, and during our first two months in Guatemala, we used bottled water. Now I’m kicking myself for not switching to an in-home filter system sooner.
The passive water filter we finally bought in June pairs an ancient method of filtering water using clay with an improvement developed by a Guatemalan biochemist and now used in the Americas, Africa, and Asia.
We chose the ugly plastic-bucket-and-spigot receptacle in part because it is the cheapest model available here. It cost 300 quetzales—about $40 US.
What would 
or 
do with our ugly bucket?
The other advantages of the plastic receptacle are just as important to me: it takes up little counter space and is light when empty, which allows for easier setup and cleaning.
If
- We don’t have to worry about running out of water
- The unit paid for itself in less than two months, solely on water savings
- Profits on our purchase helped defray costs of providing free or low-cost filters to rural schools and poor families, where the alternative likely would be drinking contaminated water or boiling water over a wood-burning fire, which pollutes the air and causes respiratory problems
- We didn’t need to buy large, bulky water bottles or a stand
- We no longer have to stay home for deliveries or carry home heavy bottles of water
- We reduced fossil fuel use because the water doesn’t have to be transported by vehicle from a bottling plant.
Now that I see how easy the filter is to use—and that the water tastes great—I know we should have made this purchase sooner. I had been concerned that the water would taste odd after filtration, but I haven’t noticed an odd taste except with the first few liters. Filtro’s instructions were to filter water through the system twice before drinking any; with the next filter purchase, we’ll run the water through three or four times.
We’ve been expats in Latin America for most of the last six years, and in that time we’ve paid for thousands of gallons of water, five gallons or twenty liters at a time. Certainly, our habit of moving internationally with just our luggage means we would have bought several filter systems by now, but even with that expense, we would have saved a lot of money.
Our upstairs neighbor uses a model with a clay receptacle, but it’s much heavier than ours as well as more expensive. The ceramic and enamelware models are also nice-looking but expensive. We wanted something that would pay for itself even if we didn’t stay in Guatemala very long.
Set-up and maintenance are easy
We rejected a different manufacturer’s system because its ceramic filter would have to be replaced frequently ... by special order.
Maintenance for our unit is simple: Fill and drain the unit several times before using. Clean the filter and container every three months, following specific instructions. Replace the filter every two years. My husband found cleaning the unit to be a quick, easy task the first time, and we noticed that water flowed more quickly through the filter after he cleaned it.
The unit holds twenty liters and filters one to two liters per hour. We keep a pitcher by the filter so we can quickly add a pitcher or two of tap water several times a day. I find that chore so much easier than planning my life around water deliveries or trips to get water.
One episode of giardia is one too many
If you’ve ever had a water-borne illness, as I have, you know the importance of clean drinking water. The irony is that the tap water here may be the best we’ve had in Latin America. Our water comes from a well on a wooded mountainside and was found free of contaminants in a past test, but unless we had the water tested frequently, how would I trust that it was safe, any more than I trust the city-supplied water we’ve had in other places? However, not everyone on the well filters the water, which makes me feel more confident as I rinse my toothbrush under the tap.
In tests, the type of filter we bought removed 98-100 percent of contaminants from water in rural Guatemala. The filter is composed of clay and sawdust and coated with colloidal silver after firing. The sawdust becomes activated charcoal during firing and improves the taste and smell of water. The other two ingredients filter contaminants; colloidal silver kills bacteria. Factories using the filter technology developed in Guatemala are now open on four continents.
A company that helps people--what a concept!
When we bought our filter, we didn’t know that Guatemalan-based Ecofiltro is, according to its website, a
social business whose mission is to reach 1 million rural families with clean water by the year 2020.
The company, formerly an NGO (nongovernmental organization), uses profits from sales in urban areas as well as donations to fund its school-based rural programs. The company also provides employment to artisans.
Spending money with a company such as Ecofiltro makes me feel good.
Note for curators: All information in the blog is in my own words and came from my own knowledge and experience or from Ecofiltro’s website. Photos are mine unless credited.
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