When it comes to water filters, Brita is one of the most popular brands. But do Brita filters remove hardness?
Brita’s pitcher filters do not remove hardness from water. The Brita websites says that their filters remove some hardness, but they don’t say how much. My testing shows that Brita’s filters don’t remove any hardness from water.
In this blog post, we will discuss the answer to that question and also provide some information about what hardness is and what you can do to soften your water. We will also talk about the different types of Brita filters and how they work. So, if you’re interested in learning more about this topic, keep reading!
Read my articles about What Does Brita Not Filter Out and Do Pitcher Filters Remove Hardness and Minerals.
Table of Contents
Hardness – What is It?
Water hardness is defined by the amount of calcium and magnesium dissolved in the water. The more calcium and magnesium in the water, the harder it is. Hard water is not necessarily a bad thing – in fact, many people like the taste that the dissolved minerals provide. But it can cause some problems.
For example, hard water can make it difficult to get suds when you’re washing your hands or dishes. It can also leave a film on your shower door or a build-up on your faucets. And if you have hard water, you may find that your clothes don’t get as clean when you wash them.
Do Brita Filters Soften Hard Water
Brita filters do not remove hardness from water. They are designed to remove the following contaminants:
- chlorine
- mercury
- lead
- asbestos
- benzene
- copper
- cadmium
- zinc
Unfortunately, hardness is removed using an ion exchange process like water softening. Some Brita filters include ion exchange, but these only remove ions like copper, zinc, and cadmium, not magnesium or calcium (i.e. hardness).
Read my other articles about pitcher filters and hardness:
Do PUR Filters Remove Hardness?
Do ZeroWater Filters Remove Hardness? What You Need to Know
Check out my video that answers the question – Do Brita filters remove hardness.
How do Brita filters work
Brita’s pitcher filters use activated carbon and particle filters to improve the taste and quality of your water. The activated carbon filters out impurities like chlorine and other compounds that affect its taste. The particle filter removes sediment and other particles from the water.
While these filters do a great job of improving the taste and quality of your water, they don’t remove hardness.
Brita claims about removing hardness
What does Brita say on its website about removing hardness from drinking water?
Brita states that their filters remove some hardness, but they don’t say how much. They also do not list it as a contaminant that their filters remove. To me, this means they don’t expect any significant amount of hardness to be filtered out.
Brita filter models and hardness
Brita makes the following filters to purify water. Here is how each performs with hardness.
- Longlast+: does not remove hardness
- Standard: does not remove hardness
- Stream: does not remove hardness
- Faucet: does not remove hardness
Learn more about Brita filters and the contaminants they can remove from drinking water.
Is It OK to Use Hard Water with a Brita Filter
Brita filters can be used with hard water, but the dissolved minerals can deposit on the carbon filters and foul them. Over time, this will reduce the filter’s ability to remove impurities from your water. For this reason, it’s important to clean your Brita pitcher or faucet mount regularly.
If you have hard water, you will likely have to replace the filters more frequently than recommended by Brita. The harder your water is, the shorter the filter life will be.
How Do I Soften my Hard Water?
Fortunately, there are ways to soften hard water.
Water softener
One option is to use a water softener, which is a device that removes the calcium and magnesium from the water. This can be a good option if you have hard water and want to use it for drinking or cooking.
Bottled water
Another option is to use bottled water, which you can buy at most grocery stores. This is a good option if you only need to use a small amount of water for drinking or cooking.
Distillation
You can also use a distillation system to remove the hardness from your water. These units are typically more expensive, but they can be a good option if you want to remove hardness from large volumes of water.
FAQs
Which Brita filter works best with hard water?
None of them. Brita filters do not remove hardness from water.
Can I use a Brita filter with hard water?
Yes, but the dissolved minerals can deposit on the carbon filters and foul them. Over time, this will reduce the filter’s ability to remove impurities from your water.
Do Brita filters add minerals to water?
No. Brita filters do not add minerals to water.
Will scale build up in my Brita filter?
Yes. The dissolved minerals in hard water can deposit on the carbon filters and foul them. Over time, this will reduce the filter’s ability to remove impurities from your water.
Do PUR filters remove hardness?
While PUR filters can remove some hardness from water, they are not suitable for use as a water softener as they do not eliminate significant amounts of calcium or magnesium. After testing my PUR pitcher filter, I discovered that it could only remove approximately 15% of the hardness.
Final Take on Brita and Hard Water
Do Brita Filters Remove Hardness? It’s a question that has been asked time and again, does the popular water filter pitcher remove hardness from water? The answer, unfortunately is no. Brita filters use activated carbon which can help reduce some impurities in your water, but it will not soften hard water.
If you are looking to soften your hard water, there are a few options available to you. You can use a water softener, distillation system, or even a reverse osmosis filter. Thanks for reading!
Read my other articles about Brita filters:
Do Brita Filters Remove Fluoride? The Answer Might Surprise You
Do Brita Filters Remove PFAS – Real World Testing Data
Do Brita Filters Expire? The Answer May Surprise You
Brita Filters: Which models remove lead from drinking water?
Do Brita Filters Remove Chlorine? A Comprehensive Look