So if you’ve been following along, we’ve been doing a camp host gig most of the pandemic up near the Salinas/Monterey area. We almost passed on it though, because of the non-potable water situation we were informed of just as we were about to accept the position. Our thinking was that there was no way, long term anyway, we wanted to be hauling in all our drinking and cooking water from 15-20 minutes away every few days as that would get old really fast. While the campground did offer us a case of water each month to offset the inconvenience, we knew that would barely satisfy our needs so we started doing some research on water filters for RVs. Specifically how to filter non-potable water in an RV? Don’t have time to read this now? Pin it for later! We only recommend products we love and your support means a lot to us! This post contains affiliate links and if you make a purchase after clicking on our links we will receive compensation at no additional cost to you.

Water Filter Solution

The short answer is we went with a $79 AquaCera Cerametix replacement filter for our existing canister system in the wet bay.

Advantages

Most convenient option because we only had to replace the existing filter cartridge and not install anything new
This new cartridge filters nearly everything from the water
The water pressure was still great when using the hot water that came from the water heater so the real-world experience of showering, dishes, and hand-washing were all unaffected by the low flow rate

Disadvantages

Due to how the filter works, it dramatically reduces the cold water pressure that reaches your faucets to slightly more than a 1 gallon per minute trickle. Fortunately, we rarely use only the cold water tap.
Based on our water usage and the filter specs, we determined we needed to replace this filter every 2-3 months
- Over nine months it could cost between $237 and $316 to replace the filters

This solution filters all the water we use and not just what we want to drink and cook with like a point-of-use system. This could be an advantage or disadvantage depending on your setup and preference. If you have an ice maker or water dispenser in your residential refrigerator then this solution filters those too. This solution also means that water from our bathroom sink is filtered which is convenient for brushing our teeth. In the end, the cost of replacing the filters more frequently was less than a new system, at least for our intended time period of less than a year.

Why is the water non-potable?

If you want a more detailed explanation of the process we went through to get there, read on. First, we needed to determine what the issue with the water was. A few Google searches later, I found this report mentioning Laguna Seca and that the main issue was arsenic in the water. Arsenic is a heavy metal naturally found in groundwater at some locations and is not surprising here since the campground water comes from ground wells that are not treated before it reaches the spigot. Digging a little deeper, we discovered this only became an issue for some water utilities in 2001 when the federal limit for arsenic in water was reduced from 50 parts per billion (ppb) down to 10. The water here was in the 12-16 ppb range, so it was barely out of compliance with the new tighter regulations which went into full effect in 2006. I was also eventually able to track down a more recent and full official water report for the exact area we were in which also showed there was bacteria in the water that we should also address.

Point-Of-Entry vs Point-Of-Use

So now knowing our filtration requirements, we started looking at what solutions were available for our RV. Generally, there are two types: point-of-entry (POE) for the “whole house” which filters all water as it comes in before it goes to ALL your various faucets, shower, toilet, etc. The other is point-of-use (POU) which is a specific solution just meant to filter only the water you want to drink and cook with, where you need it (these are usually the extra water tap you see near the sink in some homes). Often times those POU systems are three canister reverse osmosis which provides the cleanest drinking water. Obviously, there were pros and cons to each solution we needed to explore for our specific needs to find the one that makes the most sense!

In our case, we wanted to leverage our existing POE single canister system in our wet bay if possible since it was already there and would be the most convenient by just replacing the filter with something that deals with arsenic and bacteria. Most mid to high-end RVs will already have one and ours was no exception. On the other side, a POU solution would involve installing an entirely new system under the sink in an area which, in our RV, was already pretty well-utilized plus would probably cost more ($300-500 before installation for a three canister reverse osmosis system).

The trade-off is we’d have to replace the POE filter more often since it’s unnecessarily filtering all of our water, and it does impact your cold tap water pressure, but not the hot water if you have a traditional water heater (I’m not entirely sure, but I would think it would NOT work with AquaHot). Thinking back to what our water consumption is when we boondock, I know we can use 90-100 gallons of fresh water in a week so it would add up fast. For our short-term use case (< 1 year) during our workamping gig, this still made sense but if you wanted a more permanent water filtering solution for full-timing for multiple years, a point-of-use system probably is more cost-effective in the long run.

So after a few hours of searching RV forums and googling articles, we found this filter: AquaCera Cerametix Imperial OBE Filter Cartridge part #W9522650.

Detailed Specifications

“The CeraMetix® is the most advanced ceramic filter available for pressurized systems. Utilizing our CeraSyl™ ceramic shell and combining it with our AquaMetix® Block core provides the highest chemical reductions possible from a single-stage filter element. For pressure use only. Silver impregnated ceramic DE (diatomaceous earth) microfilter. Designed to trap all particulate down to 0.5 microns, namely bacteria and cysts, to provide clean, safe drinking water. Excellent as a stand-alone filter for removing unwanted sediment and bacteriological contaminants.”

0.5 micron absolute
100% removal of cysts
99.9999% pathogenic bacteria reduction
>99.9% efficiency at 0.2 micron
Cleanable for prolonged life
Silver impregnated to prevent mitosis (bacteria grow through)
>99% Chloramine reduction (reduces the combinations of chloramine, monochloramine, and ammonia - 3ppm challenge
>99% Chlorine reduction
>99% Lead reduction
>99% Herbicides and Pesticides reduction
>99% Glyphosate reduction
>98% Pharmaceutical compounds
>98% VOC's reduction
>98% THM's (Trihalomethanes) reduction
>98% Heavy Metals reduction
>95% Chromium reduction
>85% Fluoride reduction - All types - Fluorosilicic acid/hydrofluorosilicate, sodium fluorosilicate, and sodium fluoride
Meets or exceeds NSF/ANSI Standards 42 & 53

Conclusion

Looking for a water filter for your RV? We recommend this ultimate filter, AquaCera Cerametix Imperial OBE Filter Cartridge part #W9522650, which is good for 1 year or 1,000 gallons, whichever comes first. It filters almost everything. When traveling around, you never know what the water quality is from place to place.

Non-Potable Water Filtration for RV