Water treatment: important processes for clean water

Water is one of the most important elements on our planet and is a fundamental part of our life and well-being. However, access to clean water is not always possible. Water treatment is therefore a necessary measure to ensure that healthy and clean water is available for drinking, cooking and washing. Water treatment is a process that removes contaminants, chemicals, and pollutants from water. This article presents four different ways of water treatment, how rainwater can be treated into drinking water, and explains how water treatment works in more detail.

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Water treatment: four options

There are various types of water treatment that can be used depending on the area of application. Four common types of water treatment include:

drinking water treatment: This type of water treatment is designed to produce clean and safe drinking water. This can be achieved through various methods such as sedimentation, filtration, disinfection, and reverse osmosis.
Wastewater treatment: Wastewater treatment refers to the process of purifying wastewater before it is returned to the water cycle. This is usually achieved through various stages such as physical, chemical and biological purification.
Treat tap water: This method of water treatment refers to treating tap water to make it safe and drinkable. It is therefore closely linked to drinking water treatment. Treatment can be carried out by filtration, removal of pollutants and bacteria, and increasing the pH value.
drinking water purifier: A drinking water purifier is a device that is commonly used in homes and businesses to purify drinking water. There are various types of drinking water purifiers, such as reverse osmosis systems, activated carbon filters, and UV disinfection systems.

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How does rainwater become drinking water?

One resource-saving way to treat water is to turn rainwater into drinking water. Rainwater is produced when water, which evaporates from springs, streams, rivers, and lakes, rises into the sky, condenses, and returns to Earth as precipitation. This is the so-called water cycle. There is a widespread opinion that rainwater is very pure and healthy. But rainwater must also be thoroughly treated before it reaches drinking water quality, as drinking water quality is a fixed standard that must be met before the water — at least in many countries — is released as drinking water. This water not only lacks minerals that are important for the human body, such as calcium and magnesium, but rainwater can also contain bacteria. For these reasons, the use of rainwater in Germany is only permitted for the following uses:

to irrigate the garden
For use as washing machine water
as flush water in the toilet

Drinking water supplies in Germany must not be fed by rainwater. However, there are ways to treat rainwater to reduce the consumption of drinking water in the home:

filtration: The use of filters such as activated carbon filters or sedimentation filters can remove contaminants and pollutants from rainwater.
distillation: During distillation, the rainwater is heated and the steam is collected and condensed. This also removes the impurities and pollutants contained in rainwater and produces clean drinking water.
UV disinfection: A UV disinfection system can be used to remove bacteria and other microorganisms in rainwater.
reverse osmosis: Reverse osmosis is a process that uses a membrane to remove contaminants, pollutants, and bacteria from rainwater.

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Water treatment

Table of contents

Water treatment: four options

How does rainwater become drinking water?

How does water treatment work?

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The benefits of rainwater treatment

With increasing urbanization in the 19th century, there is a need for a closer look at drinking water requirements. In addition to high costs for building and maintaining the water infrastructure, there is the general difficulty of providing sufficient drinking water at all. The treatment of rainwater into drinking water or industrial water is therefore essential. By using treated rainwater for irrigation or toilet flushing, the consumption of high-quality drinking water can be reduced. Other benefits of rainwater treatment include:

sustainability: Using rainwater as drinking water is a sustainable alternative compared to using groundwater. This can help to reduce dependence on limited natural resources such as groundwater.
drinking water supply: In regions without sufficient groundwater resources, the use of rainwater can make economic and ecological sense.

Overall, treated rainwater can be a sustainable alternative to other water sources, particularly in areas with limited resources or high water prices.

The disadvantages of rainwater treatment

Although there are some benefits to treating rainwater, there are also disadvantages that should be considered:

Expensive investments: On the one hand, rainwater treatment can minimize costs if it is an addition to the finished, filtered end product drinking water. Getting there involves high costs: Installing water treatment systems can be very expensive and requires regular maintenance and cleaning. For companies or even private households, such an investment can represent a significant financial burden. It is therefore important to carefully weigh up costs and benefits.
Stormwater quality: The quality of rainwater varies greatly depending on location and environment. Various contaminants, such as air pollution or chemical residues, can significantly affect the quality of rainwater. It is therefore necessary to ensure that treatment plants can filter all types of contaminants from rainwater in order to produce safe and clean drinking water.
Regulations and permits: Depending on what the rainwater is to be used for, certain regulations must be observed in Germany.

The disadvantages mentioned may vary depending on location and individual circumstances. It is therefore advisable to obtain sufficient information before installing a rainwater treatment system and, if necessary, to consult experts.

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How does water treatment work?

Water treatment involves a series of processes and steps to remove contaminants from the water. Some exemplary steps in the water treatment process include:

pretreatment: In this step, the so-called raw water is freed from rough contaminants such as sand and stones.
Coagulation and flocculation: In the second step, chemicals are added to bring dirt particles together and form larger flakes.
sedimentation: The flakes settle on the ground and form a sludge deposit.
filtration: The water is pumped through various filter materials to remove finer contaminants.
disinfection: The water is then disinfected to kill bacteria and viruses. This can be achieved by adding chlorine and other disinfectants or by UV disinfection.
pH regulation: The pH value of the water is set to an acceptable range. For drinking water or tap water, the pH value is often set between 7.0 and 8.5.

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Water treatment with the AQON PURE lime protection system

Water treatment is an important process to ensure access to clean and safe water. There are various methods of water treatment that can be used depending on the area of application. In addition to the purposes described above for water treatment to produce drinking water, there is also water treatment to reduce calcium deposits.

If you too want to treat your drinking water or tap water at home to reduce calcium deposits, then a Lime protection system useful. AQON PURE offers you a state-of-the-art lime protection system at no running costs, which treats the water in your home using the so-called process of seed crystal formation. Find out now about the AQON PURE-Lime protection system.

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In addition, our technical service experts are also available to you personally by phone or e-mail for non-binding advice. Not a call center. No need to wait endlessly in a queue.

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