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(More customer reviews)Not to be a buzz kill, but I spend DAYS researching these berkey filters. I even tracked down a gentleman who claimed to be one of the heads of the Toxicology Department, Dr. Portier, at LSU. He said that LSU did infact do ONE water sample on the Black Berkey over 10 YEARS ago and that neither he or LSU endorses their product. He also said that while the test did take place, that not Himself or LSU authorized a document to be placed on the internet. He said the reason that he was so quick to call me back is because he has had nearly 20 different inquires in the past 10 years asking about this "so called" lab analysis document that Berkey puts on their website. He also went on to say, that SOMEONE had to of manufactured the "LSU document" because he did not provide ANYONE with that document. So, even if LSU did do a sample, and if everything went alright, then why did New Millennium Concepts have to manufacture a LSU lab analysis report? Then I got to thinking, if New Millennium Concept (the company the main distributor for Black Berkey filters) is soooooooooooo confident in their product, then
Why don't they have any Quality Assurance procedures put into place?
Why don't they have their filters annually tested?
Why don't they get an NSF (National Sanitation Foundation) certification.
Why don't they have a Micron Rating for their filter...Nominal or Absolute?
There I spoke with Valarie who was also very nice, she spend nearly 30 minutes talking to me on the phone about my questions. However, even though she was nice, she wasn't able to provide any logical explanations on why New Millennium Concepts did not provide any quality assurance testing on their filters, or why they do NOT recertify their filters annually to ensure that they are still working properly. When I pressed her on this issue, she explained that the tests were several hundred dollar a piece and that's why they did not do them frequently. Furthermore, her testament as to the quality of the Berkey Filters was that, "no one had ever gotten sick from using our Black Berkey filters". She went on to say that New Millennium Concepts has been in business since 1997 and they do a lot of business. She said that they sold over 350,000 dollars of product in December 2010 alone.
In conclusion, if New Millennium Concepts has been around as long as they say they have, and if they are selling over a quarter of a million dollars a month; then there is NO acceptable reason why they have not obtained an NSF certification, fail to conduct quality assurance on their products, or subject their filters to annual independent lab tests. These three steps would ensure the quality of their filters beyond doubt. Simply saying, "that no one has ever gotten sick using a berkey filter" is impossible to prove and meaningless. I have been drinking tap water for 30 years with all the fluoride, chlorine, and bacteria, and I have never gotten sick either. The problem is that unless the quality of water that you are drinking is SEVERELY contaminated, you won't get sick right away. Instead, it will be a slow cumulative effect on the body. That fact that Berkey manufactured lab analysis reports from LSU also scares me!!!
Bottom line is that the Berkey filters make some pretty awesome claims, but do very little to PROVE this to their consumers. History shows us that when a company makes great and unusual claims about their products, they NORMALLY back it up with proof; Berkey has failed to do that. As for Spectrum labs and the University of Arizona... I have yet to hear back from them.
This review is not meant to be negative in any way, it is solely to spread information and get to the bottom of this.
From what I can tell for sure, the best part about the filter is that the water collects in a 304 polished stainless steel basin, which is far superior to plastic! For this reason alone this filter might be worth buying? As was stated by the original person of this post, "Berkey filters will remove a portion of the substances that are attracted to activated charcoal if the black berkey option is used, and a portion of the substances attracted to alumina if the fluoride/arsenic option is used. It's funny that a "minute" un-quantified amount of aluminum compound (presumably mostly aluminum oxide otherwise known as alumina) introduced by their fluoride filter is harmless; but a minute amount of fluoride and other substances is a serious health hazard?"
The Berkey filter will remove "some stuff", and in a survival situation this is definitely better than nothing. However, I am not able to use this filter for my everyday drinking water needs as Jack Spirko of The Survival Podcast suggests. Granted Jack seems like a great guy, at the same time, an independent Berkey Filter Distributor is one of his sponsors.... Conflict of interest....you tell me?
If you want more info on how to contact New Millennium Concepts, or University of Arizona, or LSU toxicology department....feel free to contact me by replying to this post and leaving your email address. If we put enough pressure on Berkey, they may spend the extra money to bring peace of mind to its consumers, that is if they past the lab tests?!?
Click Here to see more reviews about: Royal Berkey Water Filter System With 2 Black Berkey Filters
The versatile Royal Berkey system is the ideal system for use at home with large families, travel, outdoor activities or during unexpected emergencies.This powerful system purifies both treated water and untreated raw water from such sources as remote lakes, streams, stagnant ponds and water supplies in foreign countries, where regulations may be substandard at best. Perfect for outdoor activities and a must in hostile environments where electricity, water pressure or treated water may not be available.The Royal Berkey system removes pathogenic bacteria, cysts and parasites entirely and extracts harmful chemicals such as herbicides, pesticides, VOCs, organic solvents, radon 222 and trihalomethanes. It also reduces nitrates, nitrites and unhealthy minerals such as lead and mercury. This system is so powerful it can remove red food coloring from water without removing the beneficial minerals your body needs. Virtually no other system can duplicate this performance.Constructed of highly polished 304 stainless steel, the system comes complete with two purification elements and utilizes the latest technological advances. This system has a storage capacity of about 3.25 gallons (12.3 liters) and when in use it stands 23" in height with a diameter of 9.5". The upper chamber nests within the lower chamber for transport and stands only 15.25" in height.Configured with two Black Berkey purification elements the system will purify up to 4 Gallons (15.1 liters) per hour. This system can be expanded to use four purification elements and is capable of purifying up to 8 Gallons (30.3 liters) per hour.
Click here for more information about Royal Berkey Water Filter System With 2 Black Berkey Filters
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