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Gentle on older plumbing, thorough with your water (650) 300-3248
Daly City Water Filtration
(650) 300-3248 Clean Up My Water
Hillside homes along a tree-lined street on a sunny day

Daly City · North Peninsula

Daly City Water Filtration That Works With Your Home's Older Plumbing

Most houses here went up between the 1940s and the 1960s, and a lot of them still have the pipes to prove it. We clean up your water with that in mind: the right filter, fitted carefully in a garage that was never designed for one.

Have a neighbor take a look — (650) 300-3248 Our services

How your home's age shapes your water

Your water arrives treated. What it passes through inside the walls is what changes it. Here is what we usually find, by when the house was built.

BuiltUsual supply pipeWhat it means for your water
1940s to 1960s Galvanized steel supply lines, often original Rust flakes, brownish water after a vacation, slowly dropping pressure. A sediment filter helps right away; replumbing is the long-term fix, and we will tell you honestly when it is time.
1960s to mid-1980s Copper with soldered joints Usually good water, but solder from before 1986 can contain lead. A certified lab test answers the question, and a certified drinking-water filter handles it if needed.
Late 1980s onward Lead-free copper or PEX The pipes are rarely the issue. The main complaints are chloramine taste and smell, which a carbon filter takes care of.

Remodels mix eras, so many homes have a bit of each. We look at what is actually behind your walls.

What you can expect from us

  • We check before we sellReadings at your tap and a look at your pipes.
  • Written priceAgreed before any work starts.
  • Certified equipmentNSF/ANSI standards named on the quote.
  • Careful in tight spacesGarages, crawlspaces and cabinets treated with care.

Water filtration services in Daly City

Fourteen services. In Daly City the most common are sediment and rust filtration, chloramine removal and drinking-water systems.

Why Daly City neighbors call us

We know these houses, and we treat them like they belong to someone we know.

  • We know Westlake and Serramonte houses

    Garages under the house, laundry in the garage, supply lines that run along the ceiling. We have worked in a lot of them, and we plan installs around how they are actually built.

  • We are gentle with old pipes

    Galvanized lines do not like being disturbed. We cut in carefully, support everything properly and tell you if we see a pipe that is close to the end of its life.

  • We are honest about what filters can do

    A filter cannot fix corroded pipes. If your real problem is the plumbing, we will say so before you spend money on equipment.

  • We handle chloramine properly

    Regional water here is treated with chloramine. We use catalytic carbon sized for it, so the taste does not sneak back after a few months.

  • We are easy to reach

    Same small team for installs, filter changes and questions. Call (650) 300-3248 and you will talk to someone who knows your house.

Technician fitting pipes under a kitchen sink

How it works

Three steps, usually spread over a week.

  1. We look and listen

    We check chloramine, hardness, TDS, pH and iron at your kitchen tap, look at the pipes where the water comes in, and ask what has been bothering you. About forty minutes.

  2. We suggest a fix

    You get the simplest option that solves your problem, written down with one price. If the pipes are the real issue, we tell you that instead.

  3. We install and tidy up

    Most installs take one to three hours. We test the water again before we go and leave a filter schedule where you can find it.

Daly City and the north Peninsula

We run routes along I-280, Skyline Boulevard, Highway 1 and Mission Street, which keeps visit windows short from the Sunset to Burlingame.

We know the fog and the hills

Steep streets, tight parking and garages at street level are normal here. We plan for them, so your visit starts on time.

Neighborhood days

Visits are grouped by area, so if we are in Westlake on Tuesday, your Tuesday window is easy to offer.

Same people, every town

Pacifica or the Excelsior, you get the same team and the same pricing. (650) 300-3248 reaches us.

  • Daly CityI-280, John Daly Blvd
  • ColmaEl Camino Real, Serramonte Blvd
  • BroadmoorHwy 1, Southgate Ave
  • South San FranciscoWestborough Blvd, I-280
  • PacificaHwy 1, Sharp Park Rd
  • San BrunoI-380, Skyline Blvd
  • BrisbaneBayshore Blvd, US-101
  • MillbraeEl Camino Real, Millbrae Ave
  • BurlingameEl Camino Real, Broadway
  • Sunset DistrictSunset Blvd, Lincoln Way
  • ExcelsiorMission St, Geneva Ave
  • Outer MissionAlemany Blvd, I-280

Close by but not listed? Ask us. We cover most of the north Peninsula and the southern edge of San Francisco.

Ask about your block — (650) 300-3248

Questions from Daly City homeowners

Something else on your mind? Call (650) 300-3248.

Where does Daly City's water come from?

Daly City buys most of its water from the regional system that carries Sierra snowmelt from Hetch Hetchy, and blends in some local groundwater. The regional water is very soft; groundwater carries more minerals. That is why readings can differ a little from one part of town to another.

Why does my water smell like a pool?

The regional water is disinfected with chloramine, which keeps it safe on its long trip through the pipes but leaves a smell some people notice, especially in hot showers. Catalytic carbon removes it.

My water looks rusty sometimes. Is that my pipes?

Very often, yes. Many homes here still have original galvanized steel lines that rust from the inside. A sediment filter catches the flakes and protects fixtures, but it does not fix the pipes. We will tell you honestly how they look.

Do I need a water softener?

Usually not. Most Daly City water is soft or only moderately hard. We measure it before suggesting anything, and a softener is rarely on our quotes here.

Could my home have lead in its plumbing?

Homes built or replumbed before 1986 may have lead solder, and some older fixtures contain lead. A certified lab test is the only way to know. We arrange it and explain the result.

Will a whole-house filter fit in my garage?

Almost always. Daly City garages are tight, but compact two-housing systems mount on the wall near the main shutoff. We measure before quoting.

Does salty air affect anything?

Coastal air in Pacifica and the west side of Daly City is hard on exterior metal, so we keep equipment indoors where we can and use corrosion-resistant fittings outside.

How long does an install take?

Under-sink systems take about an hour or two, whole-house filters two to three. Your water is back on before we leave.

Do you service systems someone else installed?

Yes. We change filters, replace membranes and repair most major brands. If something is not worth fixing, we will say so.

How often do filters need changing?

Sediment cartridges every three to six months, carbon every six to twelve, and RO membranes every two to three years. Older galvanized homes sometimes need sediment changes more often, and we will tell you if yours does.

Water in a mid-century town

Daly City's water is treated carefully before it reaches you, and it is soft, which most of the country would envy. The trouble usually starts inside the house. Rows of homes built in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s still carry their original galvanized lines, and those lines rust, shed flakes and slowly narrow. Add the chloramine smell that comes with regional water, and you have the two complaints we hear most.

Both are fixable, and neither needs anything dramatic. A sediment filter at the main protects fixtures and appliances from rust. Catalytic carbon takes care of the chloramine. A certified drinking-water filter covers any lead question in older homes. And when the pipes themselves are the problem, we would rather tell you than sell you a filter to hide it.

Glass of water held under a kitchen tap

A small Daly City team

Daly City Water Filtration is a small local team that tests, installs and services water treatment across the north Peninsula.

We started doing this because neighbors kept asking what to do about rusty water and pool-smelling showers, and the answers they were getting from big companies did not fit their houses.

Read more about us, or check the areas we cover.

About the team

Let us take a look at your water

One visit, about forty minutes. You will know what is going on with your water and your pipes, and what, if anything, is worth doing.

Book a visit — (650) 300-3248 See the services

No pressure, and your readings are yours to keep.