I’ve been taking care of my container plants and giving them the required amount of water. But I am using tap water and wanted to check if Brita filtered water would be beneficial to the plants.
Brita filter water is good for plants because it removes chlorine, lead, asbestos, and benzene from the water. The Brita filter also eliminates toxic metals such as lead and mercury. The Brita filter water is beneficial to the plants and beneficial microorganisms in the soil.
I’ve written some details about what are the benefits of using Brita filtered water and how you can use this water for your plants.
Benefits and drawbacks of Brita filtered water
The main benefit of Brita filtered water is that it will remove the odors and chemicals like chlorine from the water. This makes it safer than directly using tap water on your plants and soil.
You can use the tap water but you need to keep it standing for at least 24 hours so the chlorine can dissipate from it.
Since the Brita filter uses an activated carbon filter, it is not able to get rid of TDS (total dissolved solids). This means that only impurities that are not dissolved in the water will be filtered out by the Brita filter.
So it won’t be able to filter out the minerals and salts that you may find in hard water. If you live in an area that gets hard water, you need to use distilled water that will remove such minerals and salts.
How to use Brita filtered water for plants
You can use Brita filtered water for your plants as per your watering schedule. If your plants need the soil to stay moist and not dry out you can water them every day.
If your plants prefer that the soil dry out a bit before watering, then you can check the moisture levels in the soil before watering.
Stick your finger 1-2 inches in the soil and feel the moisture at the tip of your finger. If you don’t feel the moisture, it’s time to water the soil well.
Make sure to give a deep watering to the soil. This helps the roots grow deep into the soil which makes the plant stronger against drought-like situations. And the plant won’t topple over even with strong winds.
Also, ensure you are using the Brita filtered water at room temperature. It’s not good to use water that is too cold as this will stunt the growth of the plants. And if you use too hot water, it can damage the roots and kill the plants.
It’s best to water the plants in the morning. This helps the soil absorb the required moisture until the sun comes out.
The sunlight will evaporate any excess moisture on the surface of the soil as well as the leaves. This helps prevent a moist environment on the plant that can attract fungal diseases.
How does the Brita water filter work?
The first layer of filtration happens when the water goes through a mesh screen that captures sediments including lead and asbestos.
The water then passes through an activated carbon filter that helps remove chemicals like chlorine, benzene, and mercury.
Filtered water vs distilled water vs rainwater
Filtered water
Filtered water is created when regular tap water is passed through a filtration system. This system usually contains a mesh to remove solid impurities and a carbon filter to remove odor, chemicals, and some dissolved sediments.
The filtered water is inexpensive and it’s useful for watering the plants in your garden. The water still contains minerals and salts that may be beneficial to your plants.
Distilled water
Distilled water is created by using the distillation process on regular tap water. This system will cause the water to evaporate causing the impurities, minerals, salts, gases, and chemicals to separate from the water. The water vapor is then condensed and collected to get a pure form of water that is free from any chemicals or additives.
Distilled water can be more expensive and can be used to water the plants in your garden. But you’ll need to add fertilizer to ensure that the soil gets the required nutrients for the plants.
Rainwater
Rainwater is the best form of water you can use for your plants. It contains pure water but also has the required minerals and nutrients in it.
You need to collect the rainwater from an area that is not polluted as that impacts the quality of the water. You can collect the rainwater in a rain barrel and store it for later use on your plants.
You can also collect snow and melt it to get fresh water. But make sure to collect it from a clean location. You don’t want to collect the snow from a sidewalk where it can be contaminated by cars or animals.
Fact Checked, Written, and Published by Kevin Rodrigues
Kevin is the founder of Gardening Mentor, a website that aims to teach people to grow their own food in a limited space. As a self-taught gardener, Kevin has spent several years growing plants and creating gardening content on the website. He is certified in Home Horticulture and Organic Gardening from Oregon State University. He has a Post Graduate Diploma in Horticulture and Landscape Gardening from Mumbai University.
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