Hi there,
We just replaced our filters for the first time in our berkey. We followed the primer instructions and installed the filters. As I am siting here though I notice that the water seems to be pouring through very quickly. Is it supposed to filter that fast the first time?

Does it make any difference the temperature of the water that is poured into the Berkey?

Dan, thank you for the reply, one of three filters passed the red food coloring test. if and when you confirm the companies authorized vendor ( themedicaldepartmentstore: ebay ), could you email me with the results? thanks again..

I purchased black berkey filters and followed the priming instructions. the water streams through the bottom ( 1-2 minutes to filter my travel berkey canister ) . I have gone through 3 black berkey (new ) elements and they have done the same thing. source is from " themedicaldepartmentstore" ebay. not sure what to do. wasting money at this point. Which is unfortunate because I've been using berkey for years.

I've had the Big Berkey for about 6 weeks. It has started filtering so very slowly. I read how to re-prime the black filters. Unfortunately I have misplaced the tan ring. Could I purchase another?

we have had this filter sym.about 4 months.it was running fine till the water is just driping out slow drip. what can we do to fix this.

Why does my new black berkey water filters have a little bit of black residue on them after I have primed them and cleaned them?

Dear Dan,
I am having a pressure/ suction issue with my standard stainless berkey. It seems to seal when there is condensation, and will not allow the spigot to release water into a container after a few tbsp fulls. Is there a quick fix for this? It seems that anything I can do to help would compromise purity.

Thanks,
Dev Giguere

I have had my travel berkey with the fluoride filters for about one year. Lately i have noticed that the water is all filtering through from the top half. There is nothing left. I know it is supposed to have 1-3 inches left in the top. So what do i do?

Hi, I've been using the big berkey with fluoride filters for nearly a year. It's always been quite slow at filtering-maybe an inch will take hours! Two weeks ago I scrubbed them with a scotch pad and reprimed them. The difference was amazing-but then within a week it was back to filtering painfully slow. We live in a hardwater(lots of calcium/lime in the water) area of Ireland. Is it possible that I'll just have to scrub them every week? Have you heard of this before? Thanks so much

i have had my Big Berkey for 10 months. About 4 months ago the water started tasting terrible. and has like a rubber smell to it. I have washed and cleaned EVERY part and still not good. The Black filters do not pass the red dye test either. The company I bought it from on Amazon - A Healthy Start - will not respond or help me. I spent alot of money and am not happy right now

I have been using my Berkey system for about two weeks and I noticed a white-ish slimy substance in the lower chamber (about two inches high all around). Any thoughts about what might be causing this? I think I primed the filters correctly and I flushed the system before use.

We purchased a Big Berkey and have been extremely happy with the results until recently. We followed all of the initial instructions and everything worked great for the first couple of months until we realized that the upper chamber with black filters was no longer allowing water to pass through to the bottom chamber. In the beginning once we filled the upper chamber with about 1.5gal of water we could hear water dripping into the lower chamber. At the 6-mo. mark there was almost zero flow from the upper chamber to lower. We read and reviewed the instruction from Berkey and proceeded to dismantle the upper half of the unit. We followed the procedures to clean/scrape/re-prime the black filters and that seemed to work somewhat. But now the upper chamber was holding approximately 4 inches of water in the upper chamber compared to 1 inch during the first 6 mo.'s. We dismantled it again about 2 months later and made sure that our clean/scrape/re-prime was uniform from top to bottom on the black berkey filters but nothing has changed and we still have a height of approximately 4 inches of water that is not moving through the black berkey's in the upper chamber. Also, just so you know we have a sight glass spigot so we are always aware of the water volume in the lower chamber. And regardless of whether the the lower chamber is empty or not the 4 inches of water remains in the upper chamber. Can you help?

I think I punctured my fluoride filters because I did not realize I had to only turn them 8 times. I tighten them a lot... so chances are that they are now both punctured. Does this mean they are unusable? Thanks for your help.

I have the same problem, but my system is brand new. (Big Berkey). It's filtering only a small amount of water then leaving over 3inches of water in the top chamber. I got the black filters out and tried priming again. I never got many sweat beads on the outside despite trying both filters for at least 10mins. The water just didn't seem to want to go through the filters much st all, but rather, just squirted everywhere despite trying various levels of water pressure and trying to hold as tightly as possible against the faucet. I even tried holding away from the faucet trying to get a trickle of water straight into the hole; this only worked for about a minute then it just kept flowing down the sides of the filter again. I have watched the video several times and cannot see that I'm doing anything wrong. I'm also using 2x pf2 filters. Those seemed to prime ok but took much longer to run clear than the instructions said. I'm quite frustrated now and really just want to be able to use my Berkey properly. Can you help? Thank you.

Been using my Berkey for about 6 months. Love it! We have the Big Berkey with two black filters and two PF2 filters. My question is this: Do you need to put the black wingnuts on the black filters once you stick the stem through the hole to the lower chamber? and then screw on the white PF2 filters? I've always wondered about the wingnuts and where they should be used. We have not had them on so far. If you are supposed to have the wingnuts on then this might help us all not screw the PF2s on more than 8 revolutions! Mine seemed to leak unless I tightened it up more than 8 revolutions. (Yes I know we are not supposed to do that ;) ) Thanks so much!

Hi! The water coming out is just slightly cloudy. It is only my second batch, so it's probably the dust. I don't notice an odor or weird taste. Is it safe to drink? I'm anxious to drink my new water! Thank you!

I just set up my Big Berkey last night. It has cycled through 4-5 times now. Passed a red food coloring test. Primed the filters twice, not sure how well I did it but did my best. The problem is that compared to straight tap water, the water coming out of the Berkey is slightly cloudy in color. Will this clear up on its own after multiple more uses?

Antonio, I assembled mine today and have the exact problems. I will check the washers in the morning. I also had cloudy water after priming and 3 cycles. Was your cloudy issue resolved ?

I am running into the same issue (with my Royal Berkey) as Jackie did in 2012.
I've owned my Berkey for about a year, and have cleaned and primed the filters. I use about 3-4 gallons of water per every 2 days (so approximately 6-800 gallons thus far). Up until recently the filters were processing a fair amount of water, but now it takes hours upon hours to filter just a couple gallons.
City water is the only water used. Could my filters already be done-for even though I've filtered less than 1,000 gallons?
I just re-primed/cleaned last weekend. Do I need to do it again?
Thank you for the help!
- Michelle

I bought my Big Berkey during the Y2K scare. I haven't used it for about the last 12 years and I just set it up again. I purchased new ceramic filters, but after reading the material on your site, I am a bit confused. I am using 4 filters, but I see that I can get by with only 2. Does using 4 extend the life of the filters? If there isn't any advantage, can I take 2 out and store them for later? Thank you.

I accidentally started running the red food dye test (2 gal system) with the fluoride filters on. I realized the mistake within half a minute and dumped the dye water out, rinsed everything off, and ran clean water through just the black filters. Are my fluoride filters ruined?

Hello

I think I may have overfilled my Berkey or the filter has gone bad. It is leaking at the seam and I thought after using for a few days, it would stop. But, it hasn't. I've also noticed that when I get water out, the flow is really fast for a second, then is a steady stream. Would that indicate the filter needs changed?

How long can the filter go without being filled? I have a camping size one and don't plan to use it everyday. Also I noticed sediment in the bottom during the first two fill ups. Will this go away after a few more times? It passed the red dye test.

Should the black filters always be submersed in water? I was hoping we would only have to fill our berkey up once or twice a day....

Hi, wondering why I have to reprime my black filters about 1x a week because the filtering flow suddenly stops. I try not to let the water run out in the top (which may cause the filters to dry out?), but sometimes it happens. Is this the reason I have to reprime?

Hi... just received and installed my big berkey system tonight. Have a few questions on flow rate. Right now it seems my two black filter with pf-2 setup will filter half gallon every 15 minutes when the water in the upper chame is filled to the top. If I fill to top and leave for an hour, it will filter approximately a gallon. Is this normal?

Also, one filter flows faster than the other. The one will be a fast drip but the other will be a constant (and crooked, oddly) stream coming off the pf-2. Is this normal? Should I re-prime the slower filter, would this help bring speeds closer to same? I have re-primed a few times till water is flowing all the way to top so I believe I am doing this properly. Anyou tipsychological for priming such as preferred water pressure coming from sink.

Thanks for the feedback.

Just as I suspected :) Thank you...

Hello.. We just received our Berkey Light and was wondering why there is a small hole on top of the bottom base. It is near where the top base snaps on.

We just got our Big Berkey, got it set up, no leaking of the red food coloring and I ran 4 full cycles thru. I noticed the water tastes like rubber, so I ran more cycles, then I noticed a large rubber ring in the bottom of the lower chamber, is this necessary? It's making my water taste like rubber

I recently bought the travel berkey and have one problem with it.
The filtered water only drips through the spigot unless I would lift up the upper chamber and let some air get inside. It is obvious that the system gets air tight. What would solve such problem?

I recently purchased and assembled the Big Berkey.

I followed all the instructions for troubleshooting when the flow rate is too slow, including soaking the black filters for several hours (did this overnight).

I have re-primed both the black filters and the pF-2 filters multiple times, and fully filled the upper reservoir with water. I'm really not sure what to do next, or if there is a problem with the hardware...

Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks!

Thanks. There's only about a quarter inch of black stem sticking out for the white filters to screw onto. If I don't try to make it tight, the white filters fall off. I'm thinking we have it set up wrong. Are the tan AND black washers supposed to be on there?

We just got ours and we chose to get the additional flouride filters. One screws in tightly and the other one does not. It feels like when a screw gets stripped. If we keep screwing it, it loosens up again. Is this fixable? It does stay on, just not tight. Will this affect the water quality? And, how long does it take for the water to become clear? After one batch, it still comes out whitish and cloudy. Thanks!

Hello,

I just purchased the Big Berkey with the 2 Black Berkey filters as well as two PF-2 white flouride filters. I just primed all the filters as is outlined in the instructions and I'm ready to put the whole system togethter.

I have read several times that I should not screw the screw the PF-2 elements onto the stems of the Black Berkey filters more than 8 revolutions or it may damage the internal screens in the Pf-2.

I have 3 questions regarding this:

• If there are remaining revolutions that could be made and the seal between the 2 filters is not at least hand-tight, couldn't water leak out at the the threads, and thus there would be water in the lower unit that has not gone throught the PF-2 filtration process?

• Is is possible to add a washer (or even use the "priming buttons") to make a larger, yet sealed, gap between the 2 filters (the black and the PF-2), thus allowing the full amount of revolutions to create a seal without breaking the internal screen of the PF-2? In other words, could a rubber washer be used to space them to tighten them fully?

• Can we (actually I) suggest to the company that makes the Berkey products to make the stem on the Black Berkey filters not quite so long as to damage the inside of the PF-2? In other words, is there a reason why the black stems have to be that long to start with?

It seems to me that if the length of the black filter stems were a correct length so as to not need to count revolutions while installing the PF-2, then people would be able to install them until hand-tight, have a better seal, and not worry about counting revolutions or breaking hte internal screen of the PF-2 filters.

Any feedback is appreciated.

Thanks,
Joe

Hi,

We have two black filters and 2 flouride filters. The water is super slow filtering through the system - took 2 days. I put in red dye and it came out clear underneath. I have also cleaned out the system and scrubbed the upper black filters 2 times. Should everything be replaced or just the top filters? We put in the flouride filters in April but we use our system alot. Thanks for your advice.

Leslie

I'm trying to install 2 additional filters but I'm clueless how go get those tight plugs out of the upper chamber. What do you advise?

Hello!

I have had my berkey for just over a month, and today it seems that it has stopped filtering water. I took the top off, and it was about 2/3 full after sitting for several hours and the bottom has a one-inch ring of some sort of white, very stuck on film around it. Do you have any idea what could be happening? I have 2 black elements and 2 floride elements on if that helps. Thanks!

Stacey

Thanks Dan. There is no *visible* build up. But just in case, I did lightly scrub them with steel wool. I got a little bit of black residue that came off, doing that, but the whole filter is black so, it seemed like just part of the filter.

Cleaning them in that way did not fix the issue. I subsequently re-primed them, just in case, and that made them a *little* bit faster, but still much slower than they were, just two days ago. I want to reemphasize that the change was very sudden from Friday to Saturday. Though it is a little bit better today than yesterday, the problem is definitely NOT fixed.

thanks,

Tom

Hi,
We've owned the big Berkey with 2 black filters for about five months. Everything has been working just fine. We've filtered 1.5-2 gallons a day during that period. Suddenly, just today, filtration became agonizingly slow. I refilled the top chamber, completely full, with an empty bottom chamber. After two hours, we barely had enough water in the bottom to allow the spigot to work. Before today, typically, after two hours, almost all the water would be filtered.

The difference is startlingly different between yesterday and today. Any thoughts on what happened, and how to fix it?

Thanks,
Tom

Ok... so, I'm confused, after reading over and over, I have no idea what to do with the white filters that came with my Berkey. The black ones go upside down in the top chamber, but how do the white ones attach? Do they have an up? it is also not clear about where washers should go. Is there a better diagram for how it goes together? thanks

I removed the stickers from the PF2 fluoride filter and am not 100% sure I put them on with the flow going to right way - is there a way to tell once the stickers are removed?

Dan so I can prime them? I am a little confused, somebody wrote an email back from customer service saying that I shouldn't attempt to prime them again since that will result in all of the media to fall out. I will be out of town for two weeks so I imagine I will have to once I am back. Thanks in advance for the clarification!

Just assembled my new Royal Berkey. I am a bit frustrated though. I followed the instructions and removed the stickers from my PF2 filters. Without them it is kind of impossible to keep track of the revolutions. I heard a soft "crack". I stopped and unscrewed it. The 8-turns-only rule and the advice to remove the sticker don't collide but anyway my question is: can I still use them? And if yes, can I still prime them if necessary?

I figured out why the filter was leaking. Its because i had the black washers on the bottom instead of on top. my issue now is that i am still experiencing a weird taste in the water. i have primed the pf2 filters multiple times 1 minute on each side and it just wont go away. its been almost 2 weeks since ive been using it. after how long or how many cycles will it take for the taste to go away?

I bought a used Berkey and find that the two black plugs (opposite filters) leak...any ideas on fixing these would be helpful.
Thanks

is it 8 360 degree revolutions or simply 8 quick turns with your fingers? I tried both and I was still experiencing a leak. I can send a picture of the water bubble if you want. I think I fixed it though. I added in the washers for priming and now its air tight. the only thing is that now there is less space so I wasn't able to screw the pf2s in very far. but water is still going through them and the top is completely dry now.

hi there is a leak at the top of the two fluoride filters. water is still going through them but not all of it. there is a bubble of water at the top where they connect to the black filters. as the bubble gets bigger it spills into the clean water and my concern is that this water isn't getting filtered by the pf2's. is this normal? and if not how can i fix it?

Hi,
Using an electric PPM water tester I tested my tap water before and after running it through two different sets of black berkey filters. On both filter sets the contaminants PPM came back within 5ppm of each other before and after running through the black berkey filters. (130ppm to 120ppm) Is this normal? Is there a chance that the filters are not working properly? Both sets of filters have been in use for over 6 months and have probably had 300-400 gallons of water ran though them. I see filter systems such as zero water doing the same test with the same filters and they are showing no contaminants so I would assume the berkeys could do just as well.

We just received our Big Berkey today. After assembling and filling with water (with food coloring) our water was blue (from the food coloring). After checking everything we discovered that one of the blocking plugs and/or washer is not working properly. Water is leaking through. We have changed the washers around on the two different plugs and still one of them continues to leak. What can we do?

We bought a travel berky two months ago. we have to black filters and two flouride filters. All was working well until yesterday. When we fill the top part up it only filters about half of the water and then stops leaving about four or five inches of water in the top container instead of the usual one inch (we've tried multiple times and it does the same thing each time). Is there something we can try to do troubleshoot this issue. I don't think the filters should be bad at this point because we've only been using it for two months.
Thanks,
Jessica

Hi Dan,
You say that a glue is used on the filters. Can you please elaborate on that? I've read that some glues used in these types of products are harmful... thanks!

Point 3. After researching this more, any comments on the problems all those people have with the filters:
http://www.amazon.com/Black-Berkey-Replacement-Water-Filters/product-reviews/B001C1NSE6/ref=cm_cr_pr_hist_1?ie=UTF8&filterBy=addOneStar&showViewpoints=0

Please let me understand this better:
1. The number of PF2 filters below must match the number of black filters, right?
2. Then, would the capacity of both the upper and lower chambers be smaller with increasing the number of filter elements?

Hi,

We just set up the Berkey last week, and love it. I just noticed that there is a white powder ring in the bottom section and the water has a little oily look on the top. We primed the black filters and the PF filters. What should I do now? Reprime the PF filters? Also, is there any danger in drinking the water that left a white powder ring?
Thanks.

Dan--

I've had a problem with the most recent set of PF2s that I bought. I followed the directions to the letter as to both priming and installation, but the filtered water still has the bitter, chemical-type taste that would be there if the filters had not been properly primed. The problem has persisted now through five or six cycles, and the taste is still just as strong. Three questions:

1. Did the manufacturer have reports of a bad lot of filters?
2. If not, what could be wrong?
3. Is there anything harmful in the water with the peculiar taste?

Thanks,
Charlie

Hi Charlie,
Just assembled my new Big Berkey and I think I over-tightened the PF2 filters and heard a soft "crack" sound from inside of the filters. I understand only now that I should have turned them strictly only 8 times and I actually tuned them 12 times, until the end of the threads. With only 8 turns there is a half-inch left on the thread and somehow looks "undone".
The 8-turns-only rule should be written on the filters as an important warning as, I guess, I just ruined 2 brand new PF2 filters, a $50 value.
So, are they really ruined and should I take them out immediately? Will they leak anything harmful from the filter into the water now that the membrane nside is very likely punctured through??

Simple question re: the black washer that fits over the threaded stem of the Black Berkey filter. Should this washer be placed so that it is inside the upper chamber? Or in the lower chamber right next to the wingnut?

I have a travel berkey. 2 Ceramic filters. Is it normal to take 4-6 hrs to run 1 gal thru??
The filters are not dirty. City water is the water used. Filters are 2 weeks old. I love what water I get

Hi Dan,

Does using a scotch brite pad to clean the outer surface of the black filter cartridges extend the life of the filters?

Thank you.

I would like to buy a Berkey filter for our cabin. When we leave the cabin in the winter, it gets below freezing. We would of course empty the water out of the unit, but since the filters will probably still have water infused in them, will they be ruined if they freeze?

Mark

I am having problems priming the filters. I cannot get much water to go in the holes. What am I doing wrong?

I purchased a Big Berkey at a thrift shop. It has ceramic white filters. How can I tell if the filters need changing or if the the water is clean. How can I tell what is in the water and what is not? Does it clean out radiation and aspartame?

Do I have to prime the white ceramic filters, or only the black ones?

Can the red food-coloring test be done on the ceramic filters as well?

Aha! I found what I needed to know on the FAQ.

"Simply scrub a section of the filter until you see a bit of black on the white pad then move to the next section. It's simple to do and takes less than a minute. Then re-prime each element and reinstall them."

However, I'm not sure how to go about re-priming the elements.

We have the ceramic filters and a stainless steel Big Berkey that we haven't used in a very long time. Have purposed to start using it again faithfully, and I've looked for instructions on your site for cleaning the ceramic filters and for knowing *when* they should be cleaned, but haven't found that information. Please help.

Hello,

I am wondering if this works on a well pumped from the ground? We have a well system that is 250ft below ground level and I use only bottled water because of the smell and taste. even my dogs won't drink it.

Please advise

Thank you,

Michael

I've had my Big Berkey for about a year. Water tastes great but SOMETIMES, I find that there is a leak..which I believe comes from the area where the 2 halves meet...in the middle.

I see the water seeping out a little but then it stops. But I find a puddle of water at the bottom (and things are wet!!)

It doesn't happen all the time and I haven't figured out when it happens. I don't move the Big Berkey so I don't know how it gets "unseated" to allow the leak. Typically I have it filled up about half - 1 gallon (as I decant and put the water in another container) and replace 1 gallon at a time.

Not sure why this happens. Any ideas?

Thanks.

we just got the Big Berkey, and had alot of problems with leakage at the spigot and initially the color test failed, got very frustrated for past few days re-doing it set up. we then followed Ann's helpful hints and did the red food coloring test again and the water was clear in the glass under the black element so it worked.
My question is after we rid the water, cleaned the bottom canister and filled up the top chamber w/ water, the elements filtered the water from the top to bottom canister w/in about 2hours...is that too fast? ..thought it take all night for the water to filter down. pls respond. thanks ,diane

Berkey Co. has responded to my call and offered to replace the wingnuts.

Fred

I have 2 original black filters and 2 filters I bought a few months later. The oringal filters are just runnign water through and my water is now cloudy. Does not look nice and clear like it did before. Any suggestions? We just loved this when it worked properly but are getting a little frustrated at this point. I do not want to be purchasing filters every 6 mos when just 2 people are using this.

Water just pours out of one of my Big Berky filters. Tightening or losening it at the base does nothing. Is the filter damaged?

Is the Crown Berkey with 2 Black Berkey Elements the same as the Crown Berkey with 8 Black Berkey Elements? What I mean is does the one with 2 filters have an additional six holes that are plugged where I can add additional filters later on if I choose to?

I don't get it - do we put TWO Black FIlters in the 2 gallon model??
SInce there are TWO Holes - The diagram does not show the Filters IN PLACE -
Also Where do the Flouride Filters go?
The diagrams seem incomplete on these two items.

We just bought the Big Berkey. Can you fill the top chamber, let it filter, then fill it again so it filters as the water in the lower chamber is used? We have a ceramic crock with a 3.5 gallon water bottle inverted on the top. When the bottom crock is full and the 3.5 gallon bottle is full no water leaks out. I guess that's really our question, will water seep out of the seam between the top and bottom chamber of the Big Berkey if both of them are full of water.

i have looked at the water in my see through glass after pouring it and it does look much cleaner and clear than if i were to just use tap water - although a few little small gasey looking bits do appear in the cup - its still looking much cleaner the water so im definately seeing results.

may i ask what the result is if one of the pf-2 filters leaks drips every now&then via one of the side parts of the faucet? what i mean is - the water drips out the dead centre - then there is that ring shaped pattern where the side of that pattern is leaking some drips. sounds abit complex to explain. im in full belief that the pf2 elements are in working order regardless. its not like they leak water out of the side the product or anything.