Objective To understand the usage behavior and knowledge regarding household water treatment devices (water filters) among residents in Shanghai, and to provide scientific evidence for guiding residents how to use household water filters properly.
Methods By multistage and cluster sampling strategy, 320 residents were recruited and completed questionnaires on usage behavior and knowledge about household water filters. χ2 test was used to analyze data obtained from the questionnaires.
Results Drinking water treatment was the main purpose of household water filters (93.8%, 300/320). Of the investigated households that had used water filters for more than 2 years, 15.2% (30/197) didn't replace strainer cores or filter membranes. There was no obvious difference in the proportions of directly drinking treated water among the residents using different types of water filters (P > 0.05). Regarding the knowledge of water filters, 91.3% (292/320) of the households didn't know the treating capacity of water filters they were using, nearly 10% (29/320) didn't think the strainer cores or filter membranes should be regularly replaced, and 34.4% (110/320) believed that all of the pollutants in the municipal supply water could be filtered by household water filters.
Conclusion The residents investigated have misconceptions on the usage and knowledge of water filters. Therefore, it is necessary to strengthen public education on correct usage of water filters to reduce potential health risks.
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