Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1889-06-27
Filterinp Drinking Wafer.

There are people in Madison who are
| of the opinion that at least quantity of
our water should not be drank without
being filtered. There cannot be too much
attention given to drinking water; AMI it
is we'll that it is just now engrossipg the
attention of our best sanitarians. The
| following conclusions, drawn from a
series OF articles published in the Ameri-
can Analyst on the subject of "Filtering
Drinking Water" are of interest To those
who use watef, the purity of which is at
| all suspected:
Boiling sterilizes water, and within
thirty minutes will have killed harmful
! bacteria.
Drugs and other agents acting chem
ically, if used in amounts which are COM
monty safe, do not sterilize water.
The prolonged heat which water under
| goes in the usual process of distillstiOn,
destroys all germs which may be in the
| water undergoing the process.
Ordinary filters, even if satisfactory as
| strainers, fail TO remove all bacteria
from drinking water. So far from less
ening the number in the original water.
the filtering substance may allow more
rapid multiplication than these micro
organisms would ordinarily undergo in
the unfltered water on standing, and the
germs of disease, sven If held back by
the tiltering substance, nay be harDored
in all filters.
The finer the substance through which
| the water passes, and the lower the press
| ure, the more perfect is the action of the
| filter in holding back the bacteria.
Of all substances thus far furnished
for domestic fltering, porous rebaked
porcelain, carefully selected, l have
| found to be the best. If thick and
strong enough to allow the use of large
| surface, and the substance remain per-
| feet without flaw or break, .his may
yield fair flow of clear water, free from
all bacteria; yet under our ordinary
pressure of one atmosphere or less
this yield is only in rapid drops, unless
the apparatus be com ple1.
To insure the permanency of this ac-
tion, the filter should be occasionally
sterilized throughout by steo ming or by
other means; for, under prolonged press
ure, various kinds of bacteria can go
| through, and in the c0pious organic
matter collected on the filter some harm
full heterogeneous can attain high
degree of vitality for weeks longer than
| have ever found them to live III pure
water.
When filtering is really necessary, it ID
| in neral best for the community that it
be done carefully on large scale through
saudbeds, upon which fine layer of Or
ganic and inorganic matter is expressly
produced by sedImentation, because of
its valuable action in holding back the
great Majority of the bacteria.
bad water is less desirable than
pure water in its natural state, When,
therefore, liberation is employed because
of real danger of infection, the filtered
water, should, as rale, be furthermore
boiled, as the entire absence of sediment
AID cloudiness does not insure that the
bacteria of disease may have madc their
way through the filter.
1t is not best to place too much conh-
dsnce in filter of any kind. Itmay lead
co the use of impure water when the sup
posed security of the filter would remove
all other precautions and in itself be in
effective. It is nat generally claimed
that the filter will produce absolutely
pure water, or that it should be relied on
to remove bacteria. Clear, sparkling
water is by no means pure water at all
times. 1t may still contain disease
germs, and it's clearness as it comes from
the filter may induce it's use when ladne
with germs of disease.