The 5 Best Water Softeners of 2024

Table Of Content

• Aquasana Whole House Well Water Filter System
• iSpring WCB32O Whole House Water Filter System Triple-stage 12-GPM Carbon Block Whole House Water Filtration System
• Best Budget: GE Appliances Whole House Water Filtration System
• Summary: Best Whole House Water Filter Systems
• Best Whole House Water Filter Reviews (Updated List)

Faucet filters aren’t only one of the easiest filter types to use – they’re also one of the most affordable. You can buy a solid faucet mounted filter like the PUR Plus system for $50-$80, and the annual running cost is $50-$100. Gravity countertop filters are the easiest-to-setup on-counter filters – you just assemble the unit, add the filter, and you’re ready to go.

Aquasana Whole House Well Water Filter System

Many of the systems I’ve installed, including the Filtersmart models, are designed to handle up to 1,000,000 gallons before needing any filter changes or significant maintenance. It’s crucial to match the system’s capacity with your family’s water usage to ensure you’re not caught off guard by frequent maintenance needs. Unlike other water filters that ensure a good flow rate of 15 gallons per minute, this model actually goes the extra mile and delivers one of 20 gallons of filtered water per minute. This is a huge water flow, so you shouldn’t experience a drop in water pressure even if you use more faucets at the same time. The water flow rate of a whole-house water filtration system determines the maximum amount of water that can pass through the filter in a given period.

iSpring WCB32O Whole House Water Filter System Triple-stage 12-GPM Carbon Block Whole House Water Filtration System

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Stage four is a 5-micron sediment filter that will remove any dirt, dust, clay, sand, etc. from your water before it heads to your tap. Hard water is water with high levels of calcium and magnesium, aka hardness minerals. A water softener is filled with a bed of tiny plastic beads that attract and hold calcium and magnesium. These resin beads eventually can’t hold any more minerals, so the water softener will wash them with salty water, which removes the calcium and magnesium and resets the resin bed so it can continue working. This process is repeated over and over again without degrading the beads, which allows the MMV-1 to effectively soften even very hard water.

Best Budget: GE Appliances Whole House Water Filtration System

In systems equipped with UV light, like mine, this final stage uses UV rays to eradicate any lingering bacteria, providing an additional layer of purification. The Filtersmart system is an excellent choice for homes with well water. The DROP City Water Softener is an excellent choice for homes with city water supply. In my installation experience, the DROP City Water Softener excelled in treating municipal water. It effectively removed chemicals like chlorine and chloramine, which are common in city water supplies. The water post-treatment was noticeably cleaner and tasted better, which was a significant improvement for the tenants.

Summary: Best Whole House Water Filter Systems

Chlorine and chloramine are commonly used chemicals in municipal drinking water treatment disinfection to kill microbes like bacteria, viruses, protozoa, and endospores. Chlorine can leave behind its signature foul taste and odor in your drinking water. Or you might also experience dry, itchy skin when you get out of the shower. With a Pentair High Flow Whole House Water Filter, you can enjoy the peace of mind of cleaner, more refreshing filtered water from every tap the moment you turn on the faucet. Our high flow systems can deliver higher-quality water for large homes and estates with high capacity performance.

Use a Reverse Osmosis System

This filter comes with a countdown magnet that you can put on the refrigerator to remind the user when to swap out the filter. Well water is not treated, so it has a higher risk of contaminants, but you do not pay a monthly fee for it. You can test your water to see which contaminants you may need to remove. Being aware of these factors will help you make a decision about the best whole house water filter for your needs. OR…If you want to dive even deeper into this filter, check out my full review of the SpringWell WS1. In this article, I talk even more about the technology behind the dual-filtration design and also share additional insights on the warranty and installation process.

This independent organization sets high standards for the water treatment industry for contaminant removal. There are tens of NSF certifications, each specific to different filtration processes and different contaminants removed. Whether you rent or own your home will affect what type of water filter you can install. The source water you’re treating will determine the type(s) of water filter(s) that are suitable for you. Knowing the source water chemistry being treated is essential to applying the correct solution. Mechanical filtration is a process in which contaminants are physically removed using a special blocking application.

Best Whole House Water Filter Reviews (Updated List)

You can buy a pitcher filter for as little as $40-$60, with an annual maintenance spend of $80-$150. While most whole house filters efficiently provide filtered water to your whole home, reverse osmosis filters are very inefficient and generate a lot of wastewater when used to filter a whole home. You may be asking yourself if installing and maintaining a whole house water filter is going to be a pain in the butt. There are several reasons to invest in a whole house water filtration system, from health benefits to improving the lifespan of your appliances. The iron reduction filter will last anywhere from six months to a year, and the sediment filters will also last from 6-12 months before needing to be replaced.

Rheem RHS32 Preferred 32,000 Grain Water Softener

First, the filter media has a one-million-gallon capacity, which should last most homes 10 years or more. That’s a filter change every decade versus every six months, which is required by cartridge-based systems, such as those from Kind Water and Home Master. These cost less up front, but the frequent replacement filters make them more expensive in the long run. The first reason the CSF1 earned the #2 spot is that the filter uses four-stage filtration to remove 99% of chlorine, chloramine, VOCs, PFAS, and many other chemicals found in city water. The SpringWell MMV-1 is the best whole-house filter and softener combo thanks to effective multistage filtration, efficient softening, and its industry-leading lifetime warranty.

The brand stated that you can go six months until replacing the filter. However, GH Institute Kitchen Appliances and Innovation Lab Director Nicole Papantoniou has only had to change the filter once every seven months. Former GH Institute Chief Technologist and Executive Technical Director Rachel Rothman used this water pitcher in her five-person household. She loved the taste of the water and that she did not have to constantly change the filter.

The micron rating tells you what size particles are filtered out of the water. Depending on your home setup you may also need to look at factors like the dimensions of the system, the ease of installation and filter replacement, and the size of the inlet piping. Adding individual filters to all your appliances and faucets could be an alternative, but this would be more expensive than installing one whole house filtration system. This ensures that all the incoming water is filtered using the media in your whole home filtration system. This means that all the water in your home including sinks, showers, kitchen appliances, bathtubs, and any other water outlet will produce filtered water.

This test reveals the specific contaminants present in your water, which is vital for choosing the right filters. For example, while installing a Filtersmart system, I found it was ideal for one client’s water profile, but for another, the Aquasana system was a better fit due to its specific filtration characteristics. In my years of installing whole-house water filter and softening systems, I’ve learned that choosing the right system is more than just a purchase; it’s about ensuring safety and reliability for your home.

Second, the bottled water is many times produced in one part of the country and consumed in another. This means it was most likely transported via trucks from one state to another. Chlorine has been used for decades as a water disinfectant in water treatment facilities.

They appreciated the maintenance-free aspect, the improved water quality for drinking, cooking, and bathing, and the protection it offered to their plumbing and appliances. The Kind E-3000 proved to be an all-in-one solution for their water treatment needs. What sets the Kind E-3000 apart is its combination of advanced filtration and salt-free softening technology. The system utilizes a 5 5-micron pleated Sediment Filter for visible particulate matter and a Chlorine/Chloramine Carbon Block Filter for chemical contaminants. Additionally, its eSoft Salt-Free Technology works through Template Assisted Crystallization (TAC), effectively preventing and removing hard water scale without the use of salt. You can also check out our informational post on DIY water filtration systems.

Whole-house water filters are absolutely worth it if your water has a high level of contaminants or if it has poor taste or a funny odor. They are also extremely worth it if you have high levels of sulfur or iron because of the staining those impurities can produce. In the long run, they cost less than bottled water and produce much less waste. As whole-house solutions, they provide clean drinking water to every single faucet in your home. This is a five stage system, so it filters out sediments and particulate matter with both pre-and post-filters, a copper-zinc KDF filter, a salt-free water conditioner, and a UV filter. The UV filter is the most crucial component for any well water filtration system, and this one sterilizes 99.99 percent of all bacteria and viruses present in your water.