How is drinking water treated to remove nitrates?
Treatment methods such as anion exchange and reverse osmosis can remove nitrates from drinking water. Anion exchange uses equipment and technology similar to a water softener. It treats all the water for the home. The nitrates are removed from the water as they are exchanged for (harmless) chlorides. The chlorides are supplied from a salt tank which must be re-filled on a schedule. Reverse osmosis uses a membrane through which water (but not nitrates) can travel. The system is typically installed beneath the kitchen sink with a small tank holding the nitrate-free water. Water used for drinking and food preparation comes from this tank under the sink. If the well water is hard or contains too much iron, a softener or iron removal system must be installed before using the reverse osmosis system. Consult a water treatment specialist. You can locate one by looking in the yellow pages. After installation of either treatment listed above, it is strongly recommended that proper maintenance an
