One company’s answer to providing cleaner, better-tasting water in RVs.
By Mark Quasius, F333630
February 2021
Clean water is a precious resource, but it can be elusive when traveling in an RV, since water quality varies from location to location. Many RVs have some sort of water filtration in place, ranging from a simple in-line filter inserted in the water hose to a large, onboard, canister-type filter with a replaceable element. The media in these filters vary in type and effectiveness, but they have a few things in common. One, they all eventually become clogged, restricting water flow and rendering them useless. How fast this happens depends on the number and type of contaminants in the water. Fairly clean water won’t fill up a filter as fast as water with a large number of foreign particulates or silt. Two, iron is particularly difficult to remove from water. Typical water filters don’t do a good job of removing iron, and special iron removal systems generally are too large and impractical for an RV.
The Clear20 system, assembled.
But iron and silt can be trapped to some extent in a prefilter — molded cylinders that use the depth of the filter to trap particles. These filters don’t treat the water as well as carbon filters, which control the buildup of many contaminants. However, by trapping iron and silt before they get to the carbon filter, molded-cylinder prefilters greatly increase the life of the main filter and provide water output that is clean and free of the sulfur taste that accompanies iron. Of course, this requires a two-filter system, which may be possible in large RVs that have adequate room in the wet bay but may not be practical in smaller RVs. That’s why Clear2O developed a compact system designed specifically for RVs.
The Clear2O DirtGuard Sediment Prefilter incorporates a custom-designed, in-line filter with garden hose thread fittings that can be inserted into any RV water hose. Its compact canister with a removable cover contains a 20-micron compacted polyethylene filter element designed to trap silt, rust, sand, and sediment before it gets to the main filter.
Before we go any further, we should explain more about carbon filters and prefilters. A pleated granulated activated carbon (GAC) or carbon block filter traps particles on its surface. Once the surface is saturated, the filter is rendered useless and restricts water flow. As noted, prefilters use the depth of the filter to trap particles; thus, they can hold significantly more particles, such as sediment and rust, before becoming clogged. The drawback is that prefilters don’t treat the water for taste or bacteria, but as mentioned, they do make an excellent sediment filter to lengthen the life of your carbon filter.
The DirtGuard has a few other RV-friendly features. The prefilter element can be washed to remove surface sediment and reused several times before embedded sediment builds up to the point where the filter needs to be replaced. The DirtGuard kit comes with a 6-inch water hose extender with a spring support; it allows the filter to hang safely from the water spigot. It also comes with a filter wrench to unscrew the cover for access to the filter element. And, it has an adapter that allows the filter element to be backflushed, removing surface sediment.
In addition, the DirtGuard is designed to allow a standard in-line filter with garden hose threads to screw directly into the filter housing, making for a nice, compact setup. Clear2O offers a 1-micron carbon block in-line filter for that use, but the DirtGuard also accepts any standard in-line threaded filter made by manufacturers that supply the RV industry.
The prefilter ― shown here with the top off and the used filter removed ― is designed to trap silt, rust, sand, and sediment before it reaches the main filter.
Our testing yielded some surprising results. The DirtGuard was coupled with Clear2O’s in-line carbon block water filter, and the test was made at a northern Wisconsin campsite with extremely hard water, high in iron content. The tester had visited this campground in the past, so comparisons easily could be made to previous trips when regular filtration was used. The difference was immediately apparent. The off-taste resulting from the high iron content was gone, leaving better-tasting water.
Part of this was because of the Clear2O’s carbon block filter. Most filters are made of granulated activated carbon, with loose granules of carbon that resemble black grains of sand. In contrast, carbon block filters contain solid blocks of compressed carbon. The blocks are made of carbon ground into smaller granules prior to compression, resulting in a fine mesh that can be 7 to 19 times smaller than GAC filters. This allows the water to remain in contact with the carbon longer, resulting in better filtration and particle removal. While the DirtGuard can accept any brand of common in-line water filters, I believe that the Clear2O carbon block filter is a better choice.
After several days of heavy use, the DirtGuard element showed rust coloration on the exterior, but it had not penetrated deeply into the filter. Rather than use the backflush attachment, the filter was simply rinsed in the sink, which restored it to its original white color. Had the filter been used for a month or two, a proper backflushing would be recommended. Clear2O literature states that the red staining most likely won’t come out after backflushing, but it won’t affect the filter’s functionality.
At $39.99 for the DirtGuard washable prefilter and $34.99 for the in-line carbon block filter, the system is economical. It is also compact for use with any size RV and, in my view, provides the cleanest possible water for the least expense.
Clear2O
(954) 228-0565
www.clear2o.com