Thanks again so much for your interest in a Berkey Water Filter and Purification System.
We appreciate your business, and are always here if you need anything.
Below are two videos that you should find very helpful as an owner of a brand new Berkey. How exciting! :)
Please be sure to add this page to your Bookmarks (Favorites) so you can readily find it when you need it in the future. Also, you will find a link below to the order page on our site if you should ever need any new or replacement parts.
Thanks, and enjoy your day.
xo!
* PLEASE NOTE THIS RETURN POLICY BLURB: You may return your UNUSED Berkey water filter purchases within 10 days of receipt of your products. If you receive a Berkey that has been DAMAGED in transit, you can exchange it within 10 days as long as it is UNUSED.
All merchandise returns must have a Return Material Authorization (RMA). To obtain an RMA form, you must contact me through the VeganCoach.com contact page so I can assist you. Any returns not having prior authorization approval will be refused by Berkey.
Again, only products within 10 days of delivery with an approved RMA form are eligible for return. All returns must be accompanied with the original packing slip and sent in the original packaging to ensure a timely exchange.
If you are returning the Berkey due to damage or a manufacturing defect, Berkey will cover the shipping.
If you are simply returning an UNUSED product which has NOT been damaged or is NOT defective when you receive it, then you are subject to a 15% restocking fee and you are in charge of shipping back to Berkey. If the product has been used, you are subject to a 25% restocking fee and you are in charge of shipping back to Berkey. Thank you so much.
Questions we've been asked about Berkey Water Purifiers:
Q: The filters can be cleaned? How?
A: Firstly, the black filters that come stock with any Berkey are porous -- you might be able to see that from the pictures or videos. These black filters can be scrubbed clean and reused at least a couple time, if not more.
The white PF2 filters (the heavy metal/arsenic/fluoride filters) have a hard shell on the outside. So these cannot be cleaned. When they go, you need to replace them.
In a nutshell, cleaning it involves taking a green scrubby Scotch-Brite pad and lightly scrubbing them. Very simple to do. I would say you can count on doing this process a couple times over the life of your black filters before needing to buy new ones. Your filter purchases last years (3,000 gallons each) under normal conditions.
Q: I was wondering if you've had feedback from anyone who has used a Berkey to purify well water. Our tap water has so much rust/iron in it that it discolors the inside of our dishwasher and stains our white laundry. Also it smells like sulfur. Do you know whether a Berkey would significantly reduce or eliminate either of these? We're tired of lugging around the 3 - 5 gallon jugs.
A: We went directly to our Berkey contact for the answer to this one and here's what she said: "Our filters are very effective at picking up rust/iron from the water. Every 3-6 months the filters will need to be scrubbed because orange/brownish color will appear on the Black Berkeys which is accumulation of rust on the purifiers. The sulfur smell, so we’ve been told, is reduced as well."
Q: Does the stainless steel dent easily if transporting it?
A: The stainless steel doesn't dent easily when moved, but it will certainly dent if dropped or rammed with something hard. Meaning, it's not a super light material, if that's what you're worried about.
Q: I looked up the water contaminants in our city and not sure how to interpret it.
A: How to read the Tap Water Database for your city: They have it all laid out for you when you look it up. If you see lots of yellow dots, those are over the recommended guidelines for your health. Red dots are over the legal limit. If you see that your water contains fluoride, arsenic, or other dangerous heavy metals in your water, then you'll also need the white PF2 filters. In this case, everything from the Travel on up does have space for the white filters (but we recommend if you need to use white filters you focus on only those units from the Big on up). The Go Berkey does not allow for white filters.
Q: My question is how do you know if you need or want more than 2 black elements, say for the Crown size (as that is what I'm considering)? Also, where do you keep your Crown—30" is almost half as tall as me (64") lol. And I have very limited counter space in my small 1-bedroom apt. Do you put it up on some kind of table or something? How heavy is it while empty?
A: We've kept our Berkeys in lots of different places. It really just depends on your living situation. We've had it on a cart with wheels that we keep in our laundry room, on a table off to the side of our sink, and sitting on the counter right next to the sink.
When we got our first Berkey (it was a Big) it was the perfect size to keep next to the sink because it's easy to refill with the kitchen sink wand thingy. However, the refilling can be done with a simple Tupperware container or large bowl.
If you don't need lots of water, you don't need a Crown. I personally like the Crown because I can put more water through at one time. Less filling. But for one person or two, the middle sizes would definitely work great for you, especially if you have limited space.
When Berkeys are empty they're very easy to move around and you should have no problems doing it.
In our Crown (the Berkey we currently use) we only use one filter. We fill the top chamber at night and in the morning the bottom chamber is full of clear, clean, delicious water. Then we fill up some pitchers or glass dispensers and keep them full. When the Berkey goes empty, you still have water to drink while you fill the system again.
We use our Berkey water not only for drinking but for washing produce, pre-soaking and cooking beans and whole grains, and more. In other words, we go through a lot of water, but not an inordinate amount. More filters are good if you want a constant flow because of a large family or you go through a LOT of water. But for one person, it's really not necessary to have more than one filter. Each Berkey unit comes with 2 black filters automatically so you'll simply have an extra one for the future.
Q: How long does it take to fill a Berkey (from empty until full)?
A: We're assuming you're asking about how long it takes for the water to filter down into the lower chamber? That is variable, and it depends upon whether or not the upper chamber is continuously topped off keeping the chamber full so the upper filter (or filters) works at maximum capacity. But there is no need to babysit your Berkey. Just add water to the top and leave it to do its thing.
Another variable is whether or not you have installed the post filters, which slows the rate down.
Q: The Go Berkey seems easy to travel with. How much water does it hold?
A: The Go Berkey is super portable and holds about one glass of water. But due to the small size you'll want to keep it working at maximum flow rate by attending to it and keeping it topped off as the water drips through down into the lower chamber.
Q: Are the Berkey filters free of animal products? I have heard some filters are made from animal bones.
A: Hell to the YES they're free of animal products. Do you think I would use them and sell them on my website if they contained the BONES of an animal? Ack! I got the heebie jeebies just THINKING about that one. :-/
Q: Depending on the size of the unit I buy, should I be also be buying blocking plugs for the extra holes that I'm not buying the filters for?
A: All Berkeys come with the appropriate number of blocking plugs, but that is assuming you are using both black filters. If you only want to use one black filter at a time (such as we do) you will need an additional blocking plug.
Q: Does a Berkey desalinate (remove salt from ocean water)?
A: While the Berkey DOES remove salt, the filters would get filled up immediately and become useless. So do not put salt water in a Berkey.
Do you have a question you don't see answered yet?
Shoot us a note through our Contact form. We're also happy to hop on a call with you. Thank you so much!
Authored by Patty and Jeff Knutson.
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