Berkey water filters banned in cafornia because according to the CDPH, some Berkey filters have not been certified by the state to reduce lead to levels that meet the state’s health standards. As a result, the CDPH has advised consumers in California not to use certain models of Berkey water filters for lead reduction.
You are interested in buying a water filter, after hours-long research you found Berkey Water filters are the best, and you should buy one.
You step out, tried to purchase one but are surprised that in California State`, they are banned.
Berkey Water filters are some of the finest countertop water filters not only in the US but around the globe.
They are famous for obvious reasons, they come integrated with black Berkey Filter elements which remove more than 200 contaminations from the hard water, which you hardly see in any of the top water filters.
Unfortunately, they are banned in California, and you can’t get your hands on Berkey Water filters if you live there. Why is so, why are they banned in California?
In 2009, a new law came into effect in California, which is commonly known as ‘No-Lead Law’ this law prevents the majority of Berkey Water filters from being legally sold in California.
What is “No-Lead Law”?
This law states that any water softener, or end-user water dispensing device for human consumption through drinking and cooking, along with individual parts, can’t be sold in the State unless they are certified by a third-party ANSI/NSF approved.
That independent company will check and certify that a particular water dispensing device, part, or system that it is lead-free.
This law applies to all water softeners, water systems, parts, water filters, replacement, and all products, even though they contain no metal alloys.
Brands such as Berkey claimed that their systems are free of lead contaminations, they claim to remove lead, but California states refused to accept that, and made all brands get certified from ANSI/NSF approved organizations.
Most of the leading brands did make the changes mentioned by ANSI/NSF-approved organizations, but Berkey refused to accept those changes.
I have seen this kind of dispute among many top brands, but this is different and, in my experience, the strangest one.
Why can’t Berkey Get a Certification?
Now the simplest question here is, Berkey just requires a simple certification. But the brand is adamant, not to do that, it is not because there are contaminations or lead in the water softener softening process.
You already know that their results have been eye-opening, and through the United States brand feels no competition, due to their amazing results and performance.
Berkey Water softener and filtration systems got no leads, but they don’t want to share their trade secret with anyone.
These are the manufacturing secrets, processing secrets, and selling secrets that make this brand one of the tops around the world.
Berkey Officials say that if they do the certification, and share all manufacturing secrets, all other water filtering brands would be copying their processing and they will have major competition in the field and they would experience a major downfall in their sales.
As per the California state no-lead regulation law, the part of the regulation is, the manufacturers of the water softener, water system, and water filtration would have to reveal the secret proprietary information, related to their systems.
Plus, they will have to show how they manufacture their product, and which parts impact which things negatively and positively, along with the sales and suppliers.
Well, the States though affirms that they would not reveal their trade secret, and guarantees that the information will be kept confidential, but Berkey does not want to take that risk and refuse to meet this No lead law on papers.
If you have been living in another State and just moved to California State and had been using Berkey water softeners there you would know how their performance was.
They did not refuse to get third-party certification because their water softener contains leads, they don’t contain any lead, these are just conspiracy theories.
It can be understood that Berkey wants to protect its trade secrets, how they manufacture its products, and what makes them one of the top water filter and softener brands in the United States.
Can I get Berkey Water Filter in California?
Yes, despite the law stating otherwise, you can still use the Berkey Water filter and system in California.
Well, the water softeners would not be the ones you had been using in other States, they are different. You can still use Berkey Filter in California without risking prison time.
Well, the No-Lead law was enforced in 2009, and to the time, there have been many changes in the law, the law has been refined, and as per the incumbent law apply in California, this law does not apply to outdoor water filters and water softeners.
Berkey Filters for California State
All is not lost, there are still options, there is still a water filter designed by Berkey which can be rightly used in the California states.
These are not the same though, but they are among good enough, better than others, for their exceptional water filtration or purification.
- Berkey Light
For small households on a budget, The Berkey Light is a portable, lightweight, and easy-to-use outdoor drinking filtration water system. It shares Plastic construction though, but sturdy and going to last long the way Berkey Products last.
It comes in a variety of sizes, and shapes, it reduces the price of the whole house water system and efficiently removes the contaminations, and hardness of the water. It also filters your water from bacteria, and other tiny hard to see from naked eyes impurities.
- Travel Berkey
The travel Berkey too is a robust, easy to handle, and heavyweight outdoor water filter system that shares stainless steel construction. It comes in hands at a relatively higher price than others, with 5.7 liters of holding capacity, this too ideally fits the needs of a smaller family.
Its range of removing contaminations from water is broader, it removes chlorine, leads, grimes, salt, and minerals from water.
Can we get an indoor Berkey Water Filtration system in California?
If you are adamant about buying a Berkey Water filtration system in California and want to buy one without breaking any law or regulation.
You can still do that. But the water softener can’t be purchased in California, rather you need to ask your friend to buy it from other states and ship that to your location or make it reach by a person.
This method is permissible and falls under the regulations and laws enforced by the state. And you can hire any professional around you to get it installed.
For replacement of the filters, there would not be an issue, you can still buy indoor filters, they all got the same purification elements.
How long does a Berkey filter last?
As per the recommendation and experts’ suggestions, the Berkey Filter system last for around 5-years.
Yes, there are some periodic replacements of the filters, which largely depend on your consumption and the hardness of the water.
That’s true that Berkey Filters last longer, but how long they last depend on how you use them, and many other factors.
How long can you leave water in Berkey?
The better would be, after 24-hours, water is remaining in the system, you should not drink that if it is summer. You should drain that water, and not consume it.
If it is winter, the length of that tenure can be extended up to 3-4 days, the reason for not consuming that water is the chemicals that inhibit bacteria grown are removed.
Conclusion
Yes, Berkey Water filters and systems are banned in the United States, there is no getting past that.
They don’t meet California laws and regulations; they require a lead-free certification from third-party certifications for its indoor system.
It has been more than 10-years since the ban was placed on the Berkey water filtration systems, and if you look closely, there is no big change.
Like, you can install the Berkey System now for outdoors, but for indoors, they are still not available.
So, if you are adamant about using Berkey Water filtration systems, you can use them outdoors, there are two options.
For outdoors though, you still have to wait until things between the State and Berkey get settled and ice melts between them.
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