Hydroviv offers a few different water filters for home use: shower filters, under-sink filters, and refrigerator filters.
You might be tempted to buy a Hydroviv filter – but first, you need to know whether it removes PFAS.
In this guide, we’ve answered the question, “Does Hydroviv remove PFAS?”
Table of Contents
🚱 How Do PFAS Get Into Drinking Water?
Before we look at Hydroviv’s contaminant removal abilities, let’s quickly look at PFAS and how they enter our drinking water in the first place.
PFAS chemicals are known as “forever chemicals” because they take decades to break down. That means they linger in the environment for a very long time, so there’s a high likelihood of them eventually being transported into our surface and groundwater supplies due to runoff and soil seepage.
But how do PFAS end up in the environment in the first place? There are a few different reasons, including:
- Pollution from wastewater treatment plants
- Industrial waste (possibly incorrectly disposed of)
- Factory air emissions
- Runoff from firefighting foams
Since research revealed the dangerous health effects of PFAS, these chemicals have been phased out of use almost entirely in the US. However, PFAS are still imported into the country, and products containing PFAS still end up littering landfills and polluting the environment.
Our public water utilities use basic filtration processes to remove contaminants from drinking water and make it safe for human consumption. However, most water treatment plants lack the facilities to effectively address PFAS, so the water delivered to our homes still contains traces of these chemicals.
🩺 What Are the Potential Health Risks of PFAS?
We’re still in the early days of researching the possible health effects of PFAS, and the information that we know so far is based on limited studies of some of the most common forever chemicals.
A 2021 review of studies into PFAS toxicity reported that exposure to these chemicals increases your risk of the following health effects:
- Thyroid disease and cancer
- Liver and kidney disease and cancer
- Testicular cancer
- Suppressed immune function
- Dysregulation of lipids and insulin
- Developmental and reproductive outcomes
This test data is already concerning, and it’s likely that many more PFAS-related adverse health effects will be discovered in the coming years.
🧪 How Can I Test for PFAS in My Water?
Our top-recommended method of testing for PFAS in tap water is to use a certified laboratory water test kit.
A laboratory test provides more comprehensive and accurate results than using a DIY test kit. You can learn which PFAS are present in your water supply, and the concentrations of each of these chemicals.
Lab testing for PFAS isn’t cheap. If you’re on a tight budget or you just don’t want to spend hundreds of dollars on a water test, take a look at your water utility’s most recent Consumer Confidence Report. This should list any of the PFAS that have been detected in your water supply at the treatment plant.
🤔 So, Does Hydroviv Filter Out PFAS?
Two of Hydroviv’s filters – the under-sink filter and refrigerator water filter – are capable of reducing PFAS in drinking water throughout the lifespan of the filter cartridges.
Hydroviv has tested its water filters to remove various types of PFAS and shared the test results which you can view here and here. These test results are based on an ongoing sink water filter monitoring program run by the manufacturer.
Hydroviv also took part in a Duke University and NC State study, which compared popular residential water filters and their ability to remove PFAS. The study found that Hydroviv’s filters were more capable than many other big brand filters, including PUR, Berkey, and Brita, at removing PFAS from tap water.
So, good news – Hydroviv is one of the best water filter brands if PFAS reduction is your priority.
🔎 What Types Of PFAS Does Hydroviv Remove?
Hydroviv’s under-sink and refrigerator water filters have both been tested and proven capable of removing GenX, C4, C5, C6, C7, C8, PFHxS, and PFOS.
It’s possible that the filters can remove or at least reduce other types of PFAS, but these are the only PFAS chemicals that were tested to remove (perhaps because they were the only chemicals present in the test water).
⚗️ How Does Hydroviv Remove PFAS?
Hydroviv water filters are custom-made by the company’s so-called “Water Nerds” based on the quality of your tap water supply.
However, for Hydroviv to so confidently say that its under-sink filters and refrigerator filters can remove PFAS, we think the primary filter media must be consistent across all custom blends.
We can’t say for certain exactly what filter media is used to reduce PFAS in the Hydroviv filters, but since the filters are NSF certified to Standards 42 (for chlorine reduction) and 53 (for the removal of contaminants with health effects), we’d hedge a bet on the filters being carbon-based.
Carbon filter media is endorsed by the Environmental Protection Agency for its ability to effectively reduce up to 100% of PFAS in drinking water. Carbon filters work by adsorbing contaminants, pulling them into the filter media while water molecules can pass through.
Ion exchange resin is also used in Hydroviv filters, and is another media that’s listed by the EPA as being effective in removing PFAS. Forever chemicals have a negative charge and are attracted to positively charged anion exchange resins.
🚰 Other PFAS Water Filters
Hydroviv’s water filters are some of the most capable we’ve seen for removing PFAS. But what if you want to look beyond refrigerator or under-sink filters? What other options do you have?
We recommend:
- Water pitcher filters- Remove 80-98% of PFAS
- Water distiller units – Remove up to 99% of PFAS
- Reverse osmosis filters – Remove around 90-95% of PFAS
Reverse osmosis systems provide comprehensive filtration, so they’re a great choice if you want to reduce PFAS and the majority of other dissolved solids from your water.
But if you’re looking for an affordable, portable water filter that can reduce PFAS, we recommend the Clearly Filtered Water Pitcher Filter.
This pitcher reduces 99.4% of a variety of forever chemicals, like NFBS, PFOS, PFOA, GenX, EPFB PFBS, and PFBA. It also removes up to 360 other drinking water contaminants.
❔ FAQ
Can the Hydroviv filters remove PFOA?
There’s no testing data that proves the Hydroviv filters can remove PFOA. However, the filters can reduce other types of PFAS, including PFOS and GenX.
Does Hydroviv actually remove PFAS?
The Hydroviv filters have been third-party tested to NSF Standards and have official NSF certifications for their ability to remove PFAS – so yes, they do actually remove these chemicals. There’s no better guarantee of performance than NSF certifications.
Does the Hydroviv shower filter reduce PFAS?
No. As far as we can tell, the Hydroviv shower filter doesn’t reduce PFAS. It’s safe to shower and bathe in water containing PFAS, so it’s not essential that a shower filter reduces these chemicals.
