Houston has some of the most heavily treated tap water in Texas. That sounds good until you read what “treated” actually means. We’re not here to scare you; we’re here to tell you the truth your local big-box filter salesperson usually skips. At Repipe Solutions Inc, we’ve tested thousands of Houston tap water samples, and these are the nine things we see over and over again.
1. Chloramine
A chlorine-ammonia combo used to disinfect the supply. Effective against bacteria but a respiratory irritant in hot showers, and not removed by cheap standard carbon filters.
2. Calcium and Magnesium
Houston’s hard water runs 10 to 18 grains per gallon. Destroys water heaters, clogs tankless units, and wastes detergent.
3. Lead Traces
Mostly from old brass fixtures and galvanized stub-outs in homes built before 1986. Rare but present in roughly 8 percent of the Houston tap water samples we test.
4. PFAS Forever Chemicals
Detected in some Houston zip codes in recent EPA testing. Not removed by standard carbon. Requires specialty carbon blends.
5. Sediment and Iron Rust
Shed from aging city mains and stagnant branch lines. The reason your white towels turn pink.
6. Hydrogen Sulfide (The Scariest)
In certain Houston neighborhoods, trace hydrogen sulfide gas appears after pressure drops or main breaks, giving water a rotten egg smell and corroding copper pipes from the inside out.
7. Trihalomethanes (THMs)
Disinfection byproducts formed when chlorine reacts with organic matter. Regulated but present in almost every Houston tap water sample we test.
8. Microplastics
Detected in Houston municipal water, as in most U.S. cities. Good carbon catches most of them; cheap filters catch almost none.
9. Biofilm From Dead-End Lines
In cul-de-sac neighborhoods where water sits stagnant in branch pipes, bacteria and biofilm develop. Flushing helps temporarily. A whole home filter solves it permanently.
One System Handles All Nine
A properly specified whole home carbon plus catalytic filtration system handles 1 through 9 in a single install. Repipe Solutions Inc custom-designs systems based on the specific contaminants in your Houston neighborhood. Free testing anywhere in the Greater Houston Area. Call us today at 832-662-4288.
Bonus Insight
Many Houston homeowners assume that bottled water is automatically safer than tap, and that is not always true. Several major bottled water brands source their water from municipal systems and simply filter it before bottling. If you’re already paying for bottled water, you’re already paying for filtration. A whole home system delivers that same level of treatment to every tap in your home for a fraction of the long-term cost, and without the plastic waste.