The water that comes to you from your municipality is routinely tested for safety in compliance with the Federal Safe Drinking Water Act to protect you from water-borne illnesses. So while it’s generally safe for you to use water as it comes out of your tap, someone in your household may have a medical condition that imposes some special caution. Or you may just be concerned about the taste, odor or hardness of the water you’re getting.

A number of water treatment options are available to address these concerns; some work on single faucets while others can take a care of your entire house. For example, the taste, odor and color of your water can be improved with activated carbon filters that attach to individual faucets, under sinks, or in water lines going to refrigerators and icemakers. These are particularly effective in reducing the effects of organic chemicals and chlorine. These filters must be changed frequently.

Reverse osmosis filters remove many things that can make your water taste, smell or look bad as well as minerals that

make water hard and fluoride. These filters generally are expensive and so are installed most often to treat water just intended for drinking and cooking.

And then there are water softeners that replace hard minerals (such as calcium and manganese) with sodium or potassium. The result is “soft” water, which you prefer for washing and cleaning.

All water treatment devices must be adequately maintained for them to function properly because filtering mechanisms fill up with the trapped, unwanted material and so must be tended to regularly. {Poorly maintained treatment devices actually can reduce water quality.)

Discuss whatever interest you may have in improving your water with your local licensed plumbing contractor, who can help you decide what’s best for you among all the available options.