How to Clean a Berkey Water Filter

A step by step on how to clean a Berkey to ensure the purest water and most efficient system for your family to enjoy for a long time.

Our Berkey Water Filter is our go-to source for drinking, cooking, and washing our fruits and vegetables.  The system is so easy to use and requires minimal maintenance.  Let’s jump into how to clean a Berkey Water Filter so you can keep that pure water flowing!

〈To find out why we chose a Berkey, click HERE〉

{Post contains affiliate links.  You can read our disclosure here.}

HOW TO CLEAN A BERKEY

Each Berkey Water Filter system will come with a “maintenance” box containing everything needed to keep it running efficiently.

Included will be an extra spigot, priming caps, dye test, and extra spare parts like washers and nuts.  Also included, is a sponge for cleaning the black filter.  This is the only thing I use to clean the filters.  Once the sponge is used, I fully dry it out before returning it to this box.

TAKE THE BERKEY WATER SYSTEM APART

The first step is to dump out any water inside either the upper or lower chambers.  Once those are empty, keep these two chambers separated for the cleaning.

Inside the upper chamber are the black filters.  We have opted for two of those, which is the standard amount.  This allows for quick filtering, which is fast enough for our family.

Disassemble these black filters by twisting and removing the washers and nuts.

We opted to add two fluoride filters under our black filters.  This is due to the fact that we are on town water.  {More info…click HERE.}

The other two plugs also need to be removed to ensure proper cleaning of all parts.  These plugs are for the optional extra black filters.

CLEAN THE CHAMBERS AND PARTS

Using warm soapy water, wash the stainless steel chambers, lid, nuts, washers, spigot, and rubber base ring.

Also, wash the white fluoride filters in warm soapy water, being careful not to get any soap inside the filter.

WASH AND PRIME THE FILTERS

The two items needed for this last part is the scrub sponge and a thick tan priming washer.

Using the abrasive side of the scrub sponge, rub the black filter carefully under running water.  I tend to do this is an up and down lengthwise motion.  Be certain to get both ends as well.  Do not use any type of soap for this cleaning.
For instance, aspirin is considered to be the common discount viagra cialis http://appalachianmagazine.com/2016/12/30/what-does-once-in-a-blue-moon-even-mean/ cause of infertility in men. An obsession with exercise can be linked to generic soft viagra the triggering of an emotional issue, or it can be completely a physical problem. In very rare cases, people have experienced priapism, a condition in which men suffer cheap cialis from a long, painful erection that takes place continues for as long as 4 to 6 hours. When the blood vessels are full they make the whole practice illegal to increase the profitability of the American people? Their silence is deafening! Whose bright idea was it to hamstring the Senate with a rule that a bill cannot be brought to the cialis viagra australia http://appalachianmagazine.com/2018/12/03/thank-god-for-blue-collar-workers-2/ floor unless 60 Senators would support it? Modern Senates have moved away from the time-honored practice of the filibuster.

After washing the filters, it is always best to re-prime them for the most efficient filtering.  {Click HERE for initial priming info.}

To re-prime the black filters, use the thick tan priming washer, along with your faucet.  The priming washer will sit on the top few ridges of the black filter and be pushed up against your faucet.  Slowly turn on the faucet on and hold in place for up to a few minutes, until you see the black filter “sweating.”

{James is my priming guy and due to the looseness of our faucet, it’s nearly impossible to get a great picture.  Check out THIS PAGE for some great info on this step.}

The same process with the thick tan washer will be used for the fluoride filters.  Except this time, just watch for clear water running out from the bottom.

DRY AND REFILL YOUR BERKEY

Once every piece has been cleaned and dried, put your Berkey back together again.  Fill the top chamber with water and enjoy!

How often do you clean a Berkey Water Filter?

I clean mine once a month.  The easy way to remember this is to set an exact date.  Maybe it’s the first day, last day, or the 15th of each month.  Whichever it is, set that date and clean your Berkey.  Allow yourself 15-20 minutes for the actual cleaning.

How quickly does the water filter through?

This is completely dependent upon how often it is cleaned, how freshly cleaned it is, how big your Berkey is, how contaminated the water is, and how many filters the system is using.  As an example, we have a Big Berkey, which holds 2.5 gallons.  We have 2 black filters and 2 fluoride filters.  When it is freshly cleaned, those 2.5 gallons could be filtered through within 15 minutes.  As the month goes by, the filtering may slow down some, but only by adding a few minutes.

〈BIG BERKEY, CLICK HERE〉

Regular cleaning of the entire Berkey will keep the water filtering quite efficiently.  {I discussed how we manage keeping up with having enough purified water each day HERE.}

Do the filters really last for 3,000 gallons?

I’m going with yes on this one.  I have not calculated the amount of water we used in between old and new filters.  However, during our first year of owning a Berkey, I was not as diligent about the regular cleaning and maintenance.  That is what led to prematurely needing to purchase new filters.  From here on out, I am sticking to this monthly cleaning system to preserve the longevity of the filters. So far, it is working great!

How will I know when to purchase new filters?

It is time to change the filters when it is taking significantly longer than usual to filter water.  This will begin to be noticeable, even after the monthly cleaning and re-priming.  I expect each set of 2 filters will last us at least two years.  Remember: we use a ton of water with all 5 of us home every day.  We also take Berkey water along with us in water bottles.  And most of our meals are homemade and I use Berkey water for all my cooking.

Will a Berkey filter well water?

Absolutely!  It will filter any water.  But if you have well water, you probably don’t need the fluoride filters.

What if questions come up after I get my Berkey?

There is a TON of information on the Berkey website.  {Click HERE.}  They also have a customer service number you can call during business hours with any questions.

SHOP THIS POST

PIN IT FOR LATER