WaterSense Finalizes Reverse Osmosis Systems Specification

To reduce the amount of water wasted by treatment systems that remove contaminants from water at home, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency published the final Specification for Point-of-Use Reverse Osmosis Systems for these RO systems to earn the WaterSense label.

Point-of-use RO systems connected to a single fixture, e.g., at the kitchen sink, can remove contaminants from water where users require additional treatment for odor, taste or other reasons. RO systems can waste a great deal of water in the treatment process. In fact, a typical RO system sends five gallons of water or more down the drain for every gallon of treated water produced.

With the publication of the final specification, more efficient RO systems can now earn the WaterSense label. Labeled RO systems must be independently certified to use at least 50% less water than typical RO systems and send 2.3 gallons of water or less down the drain for every gallon of treated water produced.