FACTS ABOUT ULTRA VIOLET (UV) TECHNOLOGY WATER PURIFIERS

• How do ultra violet rays kill bacteria and viruses?
• Is it true that UV rays are harmful?
• Do UV water purifiers eliminate viruses?
• What is meant by electronic monitoring?
• How does UV technology based water purifiers compare with RO technology?
• How am I sure that the water from my UV water purifier is safe?
• How do Waterguard - Digital TR & Electronic TR Work?
• How do Waterguard - Digital IR & Waterguard - Electronic IR Work?
• What happens in case of voltage fluctuation?
• How is Digital display helpful to the user?
• Why is back-flushing of the UV water purifier necessary?
• How long will Cartridges and UV lamp of WD-D & WG-E last?
• What is the flow rate of WG-D & WG-E?

How do ultra violet rays kill bacteria and viruses?

Purification of water with Ultraviolet treatment is internationally accepted and time-tested technology. UV technology is widely used in pharmaceutical plants, mineral water plants and hospitals. Ultraviolet rays of 253.7 nanometer wavelength cause irreversible breakdown of DNA (genetic material) of bacteria leading to cell death. If the system is properly calibrated for adequate contact time and dose then the UV rays of aforesaid intensity kill / inactivate all water-borne disease-causing bacteria and viruses.

Is it true that UV rays are harmful?

Direct exposure of skin or eyes to strong doses of UV rays at a close range is harmful. However, in Usha Brita UV water purifiers, UV treatment chamber is completely enclosed and UV rays cannot escape the chamber. There is no possibility of exposure to UV rays.

Do UV water purifiers eliminate viruses?

UV water purifiers can eliminate viruses provided they have been properly designed and calibrated. Usha Brita UV water purifiers like Waterguard Digital, have been tested and certified for eliminating water borne disease causing virus and bacteria.

What is meant by electronic monitoring?

An ideal water purifier should have a fail-safe mechanism. It should be equipped with controls that shut off the machine and warn the user of a potential problem in the purification of the water.

Fail-safe mechanism is a monitoring system that continuously monitors the quality of output water and shuts off the system automatically if purification levels drop below pre-determined standards. The monitoring device consists of a photo resistor which is fixed onto the UV chamber. It continuously senses the UV light. If there is any discrepancy in the UV light pattern (low light output due to lamp weakening or dust / color / sediments in the UV chamber) then the water delivery is immediately shut-off and the alarm is sounded. This feature makes the system fail-safe.

How does UV technology based water purifiers compare with RO technology?

Purification of water with Ultraviolet treatment is internationally accepted and time-tested technology. Similarly, RO technology is also an advanced treatment method for water purification.

Both the technologies (UV and RO) to be effective must have adequate pre-treatment modules, like sediment filter and activated carbon, which remove physical and organic impurities. The water in the final stage is then treated with either UV or MF. The water that flows out is pure and safe for consumption. The major difference lies in the fact that UV water purifiers do not reduce TDS (and hardness) which RO water purifiers do with great efficiency. Reduction of TDS is applicable for waters with unacceptably high level of TDS, like brackish and saline water. Therefore, if the TDS of the water is within specified limits and there is no problem with the palatability of the water then a good UV purifier is adequate for water purification. Sometimes, the TDS is not so high but the water has hardness (which causes scaling in utensils & other appliances) then a simple solution is to attach the drinking water softener 'Watersoft-Inline' as a pretreatment to the UV water purifiers.

Nowadays, heavy metal pollution is a serious water quality issue. RO is highly recommended for places where the water is polluted with arsenic, fluoride and or harmful metallic contaminants.

How am I sure that the water from my UV water purifier is safe?

Usha Brita has stringent quality norms at the manufacturing facilities. Our products are also routinely tested for their efficacy in reputed Indian and foreign Institutes like AIIMS, New Delhi; Lady Harding Medical College, Delhi; University of Frankfurt, Germany, and many more. Moreover, we offer water testing at our Water Technology Lab in Delhi wherein we test your water sample, free of cost.

How do Waterguard - Digital TR & Electronic TR Work?

Waterguard - Digital and Waterguard - Electronic are based on time tested UV water purification technology. WG-D & WG-E employ four stages for water purification:

All the other UV water purifiers available today in the Indian market have only three stages. Unlike Usha Brita, none of the purifiers gives an additional in-built water quality specific cartridge.

How do Waterguard - Digital IR & Waterguard - Electronic IR Work?

Waterguard - Digital IR and WG - Electronic IR are products that have been especially designed for waters with high iron content, specially suitable for West Bengal and other North Eastern states. WG-D IR & WG-E IR employs four stages for water purification:

Other brands of purifiers use an external attachment for iron removal, that too at an extra cost to the customer. WG-D & WG-E are compact and all the stages are inside the device. Usha Brita does not charge extra for the region specific special cartridge in WG-D IR & WG-E IR.

What happens in case of voltage fluctuation?

Voltage regulation in WG-D & WG-E is taken care of by SMPS (switch mode power supply). SMPS technology of power regulation is considered to be the best in the industry. This technology is being used in most modern of micro-controllers and computers. WG-D & WG-E made by Usha Brita are the only UV based water purifiers, which use SMPS. Other UV water purifiers use the old conventional transformer technology. With SMPS, Usha Brita products work over a wide range of 'Universal Voltage' i.e. from 90 volts to 270 volts. Other UV purifiers can work only in 160-270 Voltage range. This characteristic gives WG-D & WG-E a unique edge over other purifiers.

How is Digital display helpful to the user?

WG-D is the only UV purifier available in the market that has a digital display. The LCD displays all functional and service related messages. This feature is very useful to the user. The user would come to know whenever the cartridges or UV lamp needs replacement. The display also tells the user whenever the device needs service. It directs the user about all the functional features of the device. Undoubtedly, WG-D is the most advanced UV purifier available in the market.

Why is back-flushing of the UV water purifier necessary?

Over a period of time the filtration module of the device traps and gets accumulated with fine dust. This fine dust slows the flow rate and hinders the efficiency of filtration elements. The back-flushing function rids the filtration elements of the accumulated dust and reinvigorates them. The frequency of back-flushing, would depend upon the incoming water quality but as a general practice, it should be done at least once a month.

WG-D & WG-E are the only UV purifiers available in the Indian market, which have the feature of back-flushing all the filtration elements. In other UV purifiers this feature (if present) can take care of only one element. Moreover, unlike other makes, Usha Brita has taken care of making a user friendly back-flushing by providing 'Quick Release Connectors'.

How long will Cartridges and UV lamp of WD-D & WG-E last?

WG-D and WG-E cartridges have been designed to work for 10,000 litres of water meant for drinking purpose. Similarly, the rated life of UV lamp is 4000 glowing hrs.

What is the flow rate of WG-D & WG-E?

WG-D and WG-E have been designed to deliver water at a flow of 1 litre/min.