Whole-Home Water Filtration in Margate

What you would be filtering

Margate's 2025 Water Quality Report lists the disinfectant residual at an average of 3.0 ppm, with results from 0.7 to 4.0 ppm. That is within the legal limit and it is there on purpose. It is also what people notice as a pool-like smell in a hot shower, a taste in coffee or tea, or a smell when filling a bathtub.

The plant's own carbon filtration happens before chloramine is added, so the chloramine reaches your house intact.

What the city has already handled

It helps to know what you do not need to buy. Aeration at the plant removes iron and carbon dioxide; lime softening reduces hardness; multi-media filtration removes particles. So for most Margate homes on city water, a whole-home system is a chloramine and taste system, not an iron filter or a heavy-duty softener.

Sizing for Margate homes

• Bathrooms and occupants set peak flow, which sets tank size.
• Main line size and location: many Margate single-family homes have the line near the front hose bib or garage.
• Contact time: chloramine needs more of it than chlorine, so undersized tanks underperform.
• Townhomes and condos: check association rules; an under-sink RO may be simpler.

The summer free-chlorine period

Every year Margate temporarily switches the system to free chlorine; in 2026 from July 28 through August 20. Carbon handles free chlorine well, so a properly sized whole-home system keeps working. If you notice a stronger smell during that window, the city's notice explains why; it is not a filter failure.

What a whole-home filter is not

It is not a certified treatment for every contaminant. If you are concerned about a specific contaminant, such as lead in older plumbing or PFAS, the system must be certified for that exact contaminant, and most certified options for those are drinking water systems. See PFAS filters in Margate and under-sink RO.

Equipment and installation

Living Water uses Puronics equipment, made by a water treatment manufacturer since 1947, with a bypass valve so you keep water during service. See the city water system page. Most installations take a day.

How to start

Jorge tests chloramine, hardness, TDS and pH at your tap and checks your main line. If whole-home fits, you get an itemized quote; if not, he says so. Living Water offers financing through its financing partners; you apply with a credit application, and a co-applicant can apply with you. Call, text or WhatsApp (305) 793-5974.

Updated 2026-10-17 · Living Waters · Jorge Canela, Water Quality Specialist