Yes, and the process matters more than the product. Choosing filtration without testing first is how homeowners end up with expensive equipment that does not fix the problem they bought it for.

Step One: Name the Complaint

Before any equipment discussion, we want to know what is actually bothering you. Different complaints point to entirely different systems.

Taste and odor generally mean chlorine or organics. Cloudiness means sediment. Orange staining means iron. Blue-green staining means acidic water attacking copper. A rotten-egg smell means hydrogen sulfide. Spots and scale are not a filtration problem at all — that is hardness, and it needs a water softener or a salt-free water conditioner.

That last distinction is the single most common mix-up we see. Filters do not soften water, and softeners do not improve taste.

Step Two: Test

We test on site so you get numbers and an explanation in the same visit rather than waiting on a lab.

The panel covers hardness in grains per gallon, total dissolved solids, pH, iron, and chlorine. On well water we look broader, because nothing has been treated before it reaches you and well supplies vary dramatically between properties — sometimes between neighbors drawing from different depths.

The numbers do two things: they confirm which problem you have, and they size the equipment. Guessing at size produces systems that either underperform or cost more than they needed to.

Step Three: Decide Where to Treat

This is the decision that most affects cost, and it comes down to what you are protecting.

Whole house treats everything entering the home. It is the right answer for sediment, chlorine, and odor, because those affect showering and laundry as much as drinking. A whole house water filter also protects your plumbing and appliances from particulate wear.

Point of use treats one fixture, usually the kitchen sink. A reverse osmosis system removes a far broader range of contaminants than whole-house filtration can do economically — dissolved solids, lead, nitrates, sodium — and it is the practical answer for drinking and cooking water.

Treating every gallon in the house to drinking-water standards is expensive and unnecessary, since you drink a tiny fraction of what you use. Most households land on whole-house filtration for the aesthetic and equipment issues, plus RO at the kitchen sink.

Step Four: Match Media to Contaminant

Filtration is not generic. Carbon handles chlorine, taste, and odor. Sediment cartridges handle particulates and are rated by micron size. Iron removal, sulfur treatment, and pH correction each require dedicated equipment.

Order matters too. Sediment filtration generally goes first so it protects the finer media downstream, and a softener ahead of an RO system extends the membrane’s life considerably in hard water.

What We Will Tell You Not to Buy

Sometimes the honest answer is less equipment than you expected.

If your water tests clean, we say so. If a taste complaint traces to an aging cartridge in a filter someone installed years ago and forgot, that is a replacement, not a new system. If you are on municipal water with good numbers and your only issue is drinking-water taste, an RO unit at one sink solves it for a fraction of a whole-house build.

We would rather size correctly than sell broadly.

Step Five: Plan the Maintenance

Every filtration system has consumables, and a neglected filter eventually makes water quality worse as trapped material accumulates.

Before you buy, you should know the change interval and the cost of cartridges. That recurring number is part of the purchase decision, and we put it in writing rather than letting you discover it later.

Service can go on a schedule under our Care Club maintenance plan, which is how most households avoid forgetting.

Getting Started

The water quality assessment is straightforward and carries no obligation. You get the readings, an explanation, and options at more than one price point with tradeoffs stated plainly.

We serve Fredericksburg, Kerrville, Boerne, Comfort, Mason, and the surrounding Hill Country. Contact 72 Degrees or call (830) 468-5316.