1) Multipure (USA) CC1 3 stage sub micron water purification cartridge is exclusive to Waterways’.
CC1 has the exclusive electrostatic outerwrap that combined with many other features make this cartridge so unique. There are 3 stages of purification:
Stage 1: Electrostatic removal of pollutants. The outerwrap is an electro-statically charged graded density prefilter. The outerwrap attracts and holds pollutants (that are filtered) to the outside of the cartridge. Because the wrap does not remove chlorine, the bacteria and other substances that have been removed are constantly disinfected by the incoming chlorinated water supply.This provides far superior filtration performance compared to standard carbon filters. In addition and equally importantly the wrap keeps the inner carbon block (chemicals removal component of CC1) spotlessly clean for the life of the cartridge. Simply put if the cartridge does not have the patented Multipure electrostatic wrap, the consumer will at some point be drinking water that has been through all the technology of having been filtered through a dirty sponge!
Stage 2: Sub micron filtration. CC1 filters down to 0.45 of 1 micron, or about a 20th of the size of a human hair. This ultra fine sub-micron filtration gives CC1 its superior heavy metals reduction performance. It is in fact one of the most highly rated copper and lead reduction cartridges available anywhere in the world. Some companies claim low micron performance but can’t substantiate their claims..ALWAYS ask to see the performance data before making comparisons.
Chemicals removal is becoming an increasingly important issue. Chlorine and its disinfection by-products (trihalomethanes) are progressively giving way to “chloramines” a potent mix of chlorine and ammonia that allow much higher levels of disinfection to be delivered to the kitchen tap (ammonia is added as a chlorine stabliser). “Iodoacetic acid” a disinfection by-product of chloraminated water- has been described by the American Enviromental Protection Agency as “the most toxic disinfection by-product ever tested” (Source “Water Safety” Lara Grinevitch, N.D.)
CC1 effectively removes them all in this case because of a synergy of activated carbons working together in the clean environment provided by the electrostatic outerwrap. (Activated carbon is carbon that has been chemically heated until it explodes. At this point it takes on a cellular structure with a much higher surface area than non activated carbons). Some carbons remove some chemicals better than others. That’s why CC1 has more than one type of activated carbon uniquely blended for maximum chemicals reduction performance.
Stage 3: Pharmaceutical grade membrane. There is a pharmaceutical grade membrane located at the core of CC1. This final stage membrane is a safeguard against carbon “migration” should the cartridge ever be damaged.
2)Performance/ Approvals.CC1 is Australian Standards approved (AS/NZS 3497 certificate number PST20072).
It has also been performance tested by Australian Government Analytical Laboratories. Giardia and cryptosporidium removal performance was confirmed by Massey University in New Zealand. CC1 is manufactured using the same recipe as the US (only) Multipure CB-6 cartridge which is featured on Multipure’s www.multipure.com web site. All Multipure carbon block filter cartridges are rated to US NSF/ANSI Standards 42 and 53 for both performance and materials from which the cartridges are manufactured.
As CC1 removes 100% of E-Coli bacteria it qualifies as a drinking water purifier rather than a drinking water filter. There is a very big difference between a filter and a purifier with only “filters” that remove 100% of bacteria qualifying as a “drinking water purifier”. The drinking water purifier status given to CC1 is one of its most powerful advantages.
Unique Seal. None of the performance claims of CC1 are worth anything if the design of the cartridge allows water to by-pass around it. CC1 water purifier posses
a positive screw in seal that is specifically designed to prevent water from by-passing the cartridge. This seal is demonstratably effective and is one of the reasons for CC1’s superior performance capabilities. CC1 cannot by-pass.
Housings. So why does Waterways’ use genuine US manufactured Pentek filter housings not one of the myriad of very much cheaper Chinese/Taiwanese products that to the uninitiated look so similar?
The job of a filter housing. Filter housings-particularly the undersink type-are subject to the extreme forces of full mains water pressure. While well designed filter housings will perform well for many, many years, inferior products can fail with obvious disastrous consequents. “Cheap” is not cheap when you are faced with the ramifications of a flooded home!
3) Copper in Drinking Water Can Cause Serious Health Problems
a) extract from a letter from Waterways 21/3/06 titled “Copper In Drinking Water”
“We confirm that a relatively high percentage of the samples that you sent to us (from various locations in and around Greater Metropolitan Perth) contained copper. Our testing did however reveal that where copper was identified it appeared to be the result of corrosion within the home (it was not present in incoming water supplies).
Copper in domestic water supplies can generally be attributed to corrosion of copper pipes within the home. Characteristically, copper will leave traces of blue/green staining on white sinks, tiles and toilet bowls etc.
Copper can be a cumulative heavy metal and is therefore best eliminated from water supplies that are used for drinking, cooking and showering. Australian Drinking Water Guidelines 1996 states that “Based on aesthetic considerations, the concentration of copper in drinking water should not exceed 1 mg/l”. Under the heading “Health Considerations” these guidelines state..”Copper is stored in the liver, brain and muscle tissue”. “High concentrations can also be found in the kidneys, heart and hair”.
Copper corrosion can be caused by many factors including the chemical structure of the incoming water supply, poor earthing of pipes within the home, the presence of dissimilar metals in the pipe-work infrastructure within the home and low pH etc. Because of the many varying factors influencing corrosion, it can be extremely difficult to control.
Note: The copper tests that we undertook were limited in number and our findings relate only to those tests conducted. This report does not imply that copper is present in all domestic water supplies in Perth.” Wes Burfitt, General Manager Waterways Products (Aust) Pty Ltd
b) extracts from “Nutritional Medicine: Fact or Fiction” Dr Igor Tabrizian
“In all the time I have been looking at copper, I have only found one patient with copper deficiency. However, I have found hundreds of people with excessive copper. What sort of problems did these people have? They fell into 5 categories. Hormone imbalance, chronic fatigue, joint pain, anxiety/depression or cancer.”
Sources of copper: many fruits, vegetables, products are listed then “Other unseen sources include vegetables sprayed with copper antifungals. But by far the most significant source would be tap water. Then why dosen’t the Water Authority do something about this? Because their concern stops at the point their water supply hits your block. From then on it’s your problem. Yes, you guessed it: the copper piping used in your house is responsible.”
Summary. CC1 is arguably the most tested and approved drinking water purifier of its type in the world. A very important point to remember is “that if a water filter doesn’t remove bacteria then in all probability it may add to the bacteria problem as it progresses rapidly to dirty sponge status”.
