The before-and-after on my tap water shocked me after just 2 weeks

I got one of those cheap TDS meters off Amazon for $12 just to see what was in my water. First reading at the kitchen sink was 340 ppm which seemed high but I didn't really know. My buddy at work said to try a basic zero water filter pitcher and check again after 14 days. Two weeks later the reading was down to 8 ppm which honestly felt too good to be true. Has anyone else seen a huge drop like that from a simple pitcher filter or is my meter just broken?

3 comments

3 Comments

mianelson1mo ago

Wait, are you sure it's not your meter? I used to think those cheap TDS meters were basically garbage and just gave random numbers to mess with people. But after my roommate brought one home and tested our tap water at 280 then the filtered stuff at 15, I had to admit I was wrong. It made me actually look into what's in our water here and now I'm kind of embarrassed I brushed it off for so long. Your drop from 340 to 8 is wild though, mine wasn't that dramatic but it still changed my whole view on filters.

thomas_sanchez1mo ago

Yeah but is 8 even safe lol?

christopherw341mo ago

Funny you mention the meter being garbage, I half expected mine to just start making stuff up honestly. I did the scientific thing and tested it in my fish tank first just to see if it would read anything reasonable, and it came back at 220 which I think is normal for my hard water conditions there. So either the meter is consistently lying or it actually works, I'm leaning towards it being real since the numbers stayed low every time I checked. No idea if 8 ppm is "safe" but it's sure as heck lower than what I was drinking before, and at this point I'm not gonna complain about cleaner looking water.