The unusual heavy rainfalls during December, clogged the water purifying filters of the Chilibre water filtering plant. Currently this water is not safe to drink and the plant is not working at full capacity. Turbidity in Lake Alajuela caused the severe damage to the plant’s filters.
The Panama authorities are distributing drinking water in bottles throughout the city door-to-door. More than two million liters of water have been distributed with a total bill exceeding $800,000, representing a cost of $0.27 per liter. The program will continue until the plant provides safe drinking water according to the approved health standards of the Ministry of Health.
As a safety measure, we decided to buy a residential water purifying system recommended by a friend of my wife. The water filter was purchased and installed last week. I have been monitoring the quality of the water very closely, making sure I don’t detect anything strange that could wreck our health. So far it’s the best drinking water I’ve ever tasted since I lived in Changuinola which had the best water in the world.
The name of the supplier is Arnulfo Casas who has been installing home water filtering systems for a long time. His water filtering system consists of three filters connected to each other; each with a special function.
Photograph of Arnulfo Casas, the proud owner of a company dedicated to the installation of drinking water filtering systems in Panama. Photo ©Omar Upegui R.
One of the three units of the system is the Kemflo (AIC RO) post granular activated carbon in-line 2″ x 10″ filter. This filter is typically used as the last carbon filter to polish the taste of the reverse osmosis water. It is also used for ice makers, refrigerators, drinking fountains and coolers. It removes chlorine, bad taste and odor, turbidity, THMs, dirt and sediment. It is recommended to replace the filter after approximately one year or after filtering 1,500 gallons of water.
Photograph of Arnulfo installing the water filtering system underneath the kitchen's sink in our home. Photo ©Omar Upegui R.
The second unit is the Intelifil IF-SM-WS010) 10″ x 2.5″ 19,000 mg/L Water Softening Filers. These filters are inserted inside two Intelifil housing 10″ x 2.5″ filter made of plastic. These filters utilizing a dark cation bread resin are designed to remove mineral hardness such as calcium and magnesium. These hardness minerals are typically the primary cause of scaling in pipes and water using appliances.
Photograph of Arnulfo during the installation of the water filtering system at our house last week. Photo ©Omar Upegui R.
The third unit of the system is the Matrix KX CTO/2 Carbon Block Chlorine Reduction 5 Micron Filters. Matrix KX + CTO/2 filters simultaneously remove chlorine taste and odor and organic chemicals that contribute to taste and odor while providing the particulate filtration and dirt-holding capacity of an efficient 5 micron nominal sediment filter. These filters are optimized for applications where they perform the role of both a sediment and activated carbon filter. The filter should be replaced after approximately 6,000 gallons of chlorine removal.
Photograph of the water filtering system before it was installed. As you can see the three united are tightly connected to each other. Photo ©Omar Upegui R.
Photograph of the QMP faucet long reach non-air chrome with black tip where the water flows after it has been filtered. Photo ©Omar Upegui R.
With this system we have avoided the water crisis in the city. The raw water that we receive from the Chilibre plant is used to flush the toilets and the filtered water is for drinking purposes. We feel much relieved after taking this decision.
If you feel that you might need a water filtering system, Arnulfo Casas can be reached at cellphone 6683-1915. His prices vary according to the specific needs of the customer.
We are sorry that the famous Panama water reputation has been affected by this unexpected natural disaster. I’m looking forward that we soon return to the high quality of water we once had—la chicha del Chagres. Good Day.
