The Wirecutter Show How to Know What's In Your Drinking Water
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Oct 15, 2025 Tim Heffernan, a senior staff writer at Wirecutter specializing in air and water filtration, shares his insights on drinking water safety. He explains how to check your water's quality through the annual consumer confidence report and details when it’s worth testing for contaminants. Tim discusses the importance of understanding municipal treatment processes, the pros and cons of various filtration options, and how proximity to pollution doesn’t necessarily impact tap water. His key takeaway? Know your water quality before investing in filtration!
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Avoid Color-Strip Home Tests
- Skip multi-strip at-home tests and use accredited send-away kits for accurate results.
- Dip-strip color comparisons are subjective and often unreliable for precise contaminant levels.
Two Main Reasons People Filter Water
- People filter water for taste (aesthetic) and for health-related contaminants.
- Headlines drive concern but many utilities already treat water for microbes and chlorine.
Why Tim Stopped Filtering His Tap Water
- Tim stopped filtering his New York tap water after multiple send-away tests showed very low contaminant levels.
- He and his wife also tested their New Jersey house and accepted the low PFAS levels as an acceptable risk.