Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I had to replace my barely used PF-2 fluoride filters in my Royal Berkey because I allowed them to dry out completely through a use hiatus. It is frustrating that this particular MAJOR CAVEAT is not mentioned more clearly for the consumers, and I'm sure that many Berkey owners end up resuming the use of the dried out filters unknowingly. I only found out that PF-2 filters MUST be discarded after it's been allowed to dry out after I contacted a Berkey support. On a further web search, if you're not actively using the PF-2 filters, you need to remove them and store it in the refrigerator (not freezer) for only short term to prevent them drying out and to discourage pathogen growth on the media. You must flush them before resuming use before re-install. If PF-2 filters have ever been activated/primed/wet, the clock starts ticking and you must keep the medias wet and replace them after 1 year or 1,000 gallons filtering, whichever comes first. Many Berkey users buy the costly system not only for daily water filtering, but to use for emergency survival backup system, so this is quite disappointing. The filter setup is cumbersome and must be followed very carefully. Because of so many recent negative reviews for Berkey as a whole, I actually ended up trying another water filter instead of buying replacement PF-2 filters. However, that ended up being a failed experiment, so I proceeded to order the replacement PF-2 filters. I purged the fluoride filters for total of 6 minutes each (2 minutes x3 changing the flow direction) instead of the recommended 20 seconds x2 past water running clear (using a strong thumb pressure on top of the faucet against the purging button for complete water seal with water spraying everywhere occasionally!), and made sure to turn the filters exactly 8 full revolutions. There was some resistance to tightening at 6 1/2 revolutions, so I was actually afraid of puncturing the internal filter media screen while following the install instruction for the full 8 turns because the Berkey rep pointed out that's causative to many reported problems. I may have been overzealous in my purging effort, but my PF-2 filtered water tested at 59 ppm for TDS and the water stayed absolutely clear. Without the PF-2 filters installed (double filtered with Filtrete Maximum), the Berkey water tests at 79 ppm. Berkey really should've improved the filter design to make it more fool-proof since its introduction a long years ago. Also, many reports of the main black filter manufacturing defects (forums & reviews) should prompt you to run a red dye (must be non-organic) test as soon as you receive your system so that you may return/exchange a defective element. If the black elements are not functioning properly, it'll drastically shorten the PF-2 filters service duration. When I initially contacted Berkey with my concerns over many of the critical reviews, including one in particular which stated that PF-2 removes flourosilicates only, the Berkey agent disagreed and shared a recent lab result done on 2/18/2018 by an NELAC ISO accredited lab. ---- Accumulated Volume, Influent Water FluorideConcentration in mg/L, Influent Water pH, TDS inmg/L, Effluent Fluoride Concentration in mg/L, Fluoride % Reduction. Start, 3.82, 6.46, 327, 0.10, 97.4 5 gallons, 3.82, 6.46, 327, 0.06, 98.4 25 gallons, 3.75, 6.48, 320, 0.07, 98.1 50 gallons, 3.79, 6.52, 318, 0.07, 98.2 75 gallons, 3.80, 6.51, 310, 0.07, 98.2 100 gallons, 3.80, 6.52, 312, 0.11, 97.1 ---- Your water PH level should be between 5-7 (closer to 5 the better, my PH is near 7), or the efficiency of the media will decline. Berkey also states that the PF-2 media will remove any types of inorganic fluoride salts soluble in water(sodium fluoride, sodicum fluorosilicate & calcium fluoride) along with fluorosilicic acid (aka hydro-fluosilicic acid). It also removes arsenic V and pre-oxidized arsenic III along with other residual heavy metal ions. There are many reviews concerning aluminum detection/suspension, but Berkey uses aluminum oxide (Al2O3) which is a safe non-toxic bio-compatible ceramic (corundum as in rubies and sapphires), different from the toxic aluminum metal. Lab testing can result in a false positive by counting the separated pure aluminum ion from the oxygen component. The use of activated alumina is one of three EPA and WQA recommended methods for removing fluoride, the other two being Bone char carbon (cheaper and not as effective) and reverse osmosis. Appropriated purged, installed, and maintained PF-2 filters most likely will not result in cloudy particulate in filtered water unless due to unexpected manufacturing defect. Be sure to order yours from a trusted reseller source to avoid counterfeit/used filters. The water temperature rises during the activation so you should definitely notice warm cloudy water during the initial filter purging procedure. I am taking a star off for the aforementioned issues and for the persistent deficit in manufacturing design improvement endeavors along with the specific PH requirements. However, I can't find as effective competing gravity-fed system that filters above 97.* % of fluoride short of going full-on reverse osmosis or steam distillation that strip water of beneficial trace minerals unless using re-mineralization for taste and health. I will monitor the TDS level steadily to track the reduction of its efficiency throughout the use duration; after just 20 gallons refill, the TDS went up 10 ppm, so I will reverse-flow flush the PF-2 element continually during monthly chamber maintenance. Berkey water makes the best coffee.