How Do CLEO Filters Work?

Shower filters are a cost-effective, efficient and easy way to reduce the hardness of your water at home. Hardness is a water quality indicator which is defined as the concentration of specific elements, mainly magnesium and calcium, present in water. Hard water can cause damage to various water related appliances in your home such as washing machines, shower heads and taps. It can also cause damage to your hair and skin, causing breakouts, dry skin or hair loss. Since magnesium and calcium are ‘sticky’ minerals, they tend to form layers of limescale on these products and your skin, reducing the lifespan of these items or damaging them entirely. WaterScience uses a four-layer filtration media with various components that work on sequestration and redox reactions. These processes reduce the effects of hardness of water, making your water safer for use. 

The entire CLEO range of products works with the same type of filter cartridge. These cartridges have four distinct layers with their own functions.

1. Micro-Sieve Layer

This is the first layer the water initially comes in contact with. It filters out suspended & dissolved micro-particles and impurities through a sieve-like-layer. The sieve creates a mesh-like structure that can trap any impurities that were not able to be filtered out by the mesh gasket at the top of the product. This layer has the ability to filter sediments and dust up to 50 microns in size. Along with the mesh gasket, there is a sediment filter pad. The sediment filter pad has a fine mesh which can trap any particles up to 250 microns in size.

2. Hardness Conditioning Layer

Our second layer significantly reduces the effects of hard water salts and limescale deposits. This is our hardness sequestration layer where you form coordination complexes of an ion in solution. These chelate complexes are used to prevent the chemical effect of an ion without removing it from the solution. The harmful calcium and magnesium ions turn into chelate complexes, which instead of sticking onto your surfaces, will now wash away,  dramatically reducing the effects of hardness. A common misconception that occurs with hard water quality. Since we are reducing the effects of hardness by altering the chemical composition of the minerals, the TDS does not change. The hardness causing minerals are still present, however are converted into chelating complexes so they don’t stick to surfaces and therefore cannot cause limescale, skin issues and hair damage. The hardness causing minerals change from their harmful stubborn form to harmless molecules that can be washed away. This is why the TDS remains the same, but the water is much healthier. 

When looking at whether shower filters are working or not, two distinct indicators to keep in mind are TDS (Total Dissolved Solids) and hardness. TDS is a measure of the parts per million of dissolved solids in the water while hardness is the measure of specific ions, mostly calcium and magnesium, present in water.

3. Nano Silver - Carbon Layer

The third layer is the chlorine removal layer. This layer reduces up to 90% chlorine and is even effective on heavy metals such as lead and mercury. This layer is made out of carbon which works through the process of adsorption, removing up to 50% of the chlorine present in water. When used with cold water, the effectiveness of these layers increases however the maximum temperature that our filters are compatible with is 60-degree celsius. Carbon has the ability to remove smells, colours and tastes from your water making your shower water overall much cleaner than it was before. 

4. Chlorine Removal Layer (KDF Layer)

This last layer of filtration is the first step to removing the chlorine present in water. Chlorine has harmful effects on our hair and skin, which we all have learnt about when we go for a swim in the pool. Chlorine also comes with a distinct odour which can be unpleasant to some. KDF or Kinetic Degradation Fluxion process media are high-purity copper-zinc granules that reduce contaminants in water using an oxidation/reduction (redox) reaction. This material causes bonding changes through a series of oxidation/reduction or redox reactions to the chlorine ions present in water. Turning the chlorine into chloride will alter the chemical properties of chlorine into a harmless form that can simply wash away.

This layer has the added benefit of preventing further bacterial growth in the filter while the water inside remains stagnant during the times in between showers. This bacteriostatic nature of our filters ensures that the water coming through is completely safe for you to use.

The final result after these four layers of filtration is safer water for our hair and skin. Although the TDS has not reduced, the effects of hardness have  reduced. Since we are changing the chemical composition of the harmful elements, they are still present, however, they are no longer harmful. CLEO filters condition the hardness of your water, making it safer and cleaner for your use. With cleaner water you will notice lesser to no limescale deposits, better lather from soaps and shampoos, glowing skin and hydrated hair!

Better hair and skin begins with better water.