Reverse osmosis · Albuquerque
Kitchen-tap drinking water for Albuquerque homes and South Valley wells
Reverse osmosis is the one system on our menu that's about what you drink rather than what your pipes go through. It sits under the kitchen sink, pushes water through a tight membrane and sends the cleaner water to its own faucet.
Who it suits depends a lot on where in Albuquerque you live, so this page is split by situation rather than by sales pitch.
Two very different starting points
- On ABCWUA water
- Chlorinated, regularly tested by the utility and reported in its annual Consumer Confidence Report. RO here is mostly about taste and lower dissolved solids.
- On a private well
- Some South Valley homes still pump their own water. Nobody tests it but you, and arsenic occurs naturally in groundwater in parts of the Middle Rio Grande region.
If you're on city water
Across the NE Heights, Uptown, the Academy area and the Westside, the water reaching your sink is a blend of treated Rio Grande surface water and aquifer groundwater. As the mix tilts toward groundwater in dry years, dissolved minerals can change, and some people notice it in taste, in coffee or in the film left in a kettle. RO lowers total dissolved solids, and our version adds an alkaline stage so the water doesn't taste flat.
Most city households pair it with a softener; the Complete Home System bundles softening, carbon filtration and RO for $4,599. If you only want the drinking-water piece, RO is available on its own.
If you're on a South Valley well
ABCWUA has been extending water lines into well-dependent parts of the South Valley, but plenty of properties haven't connected yet. Private wells aren't regulated like public systems, so the order of operations matters:
- We run our on-site test for hardness, TDS, pH, iron and manganese, and sulfur.
- We help you arrange lab testing for bacteria, nitrate, arsenic and anything else worth checking.
- If bacteria turn up, that needs disinfection, which is outside what we install, and we'll tell you so.
- If arsenic or nitrate is the concern, RO is the standard point-of-use approach, and we confirm performance against your lab results.
- Whole-house equipment goes in after the pressure tank; the RO unit goes under the kitchen sink.
The system we install
Same unit whether you're in Old Town or Ventana Ranch.
| Type | Tankless, point-of-use under the kitchen sink |
|---|---|
| Output | 600 gallons per day |
| Final stage | Alkaline remineralization |
| Reduces | TDS; standard approach for arsenic, nitrate, fluoride and lead |
| Does not replace | A softener for hardness, or disinfection for bacteria |
| Install | Free, by our own installers |
Older Nob Hill and University-area kitchens sometimes have shallow or crowded sink cabinets; a tankless unit helps there because there's no storage tank to fit. More detail on the reverse osmosis page, or go back to our Albuquerque water guide.
Reverse osmosis in Albuquerque: common questions
Do I need RO if I'm on ABCWUA water?
Not for safety; the utility treats and tests its water. People choose RO in Albuquerque mainly for taste, lower dissolved solids and fewer bottled-water runs.
Will RO help with the chlorine taste?
RO is built for the one tap you drink from. The chlorine smell people notice in showers and laundry is a whole-house issue, and that's what whole-home carbon filtration is for. We'll check chlorine at your tap during the test.
My South Valley well may get city water soon. Should I wait?
Test now either way. Lab results tell you what you're drinking today, and an under-sink RO unit keeps working after you connect to city water.
How long does an Albuquerque RO install take?
A standalone under-sink RO install is usually quick, and a full Complete Home System takes about half a day.
Find out exactly what's in your water — free.
A 15-minute on-site test with results in real time, a plain-English report, and an honest recommendation. No pressure, no obligation.