When Do You Need to Replace Your Water Filter Cartridges?

September 29, 2017

Mechanical pumping systems are designed with some amazing features. They do succumb to wear, though, and their parts do experience performance hits. Maintenance plans correct such issues. In light of these real-life issues, just when should you replace your water filter cartridges? Know these signs now so that you can keep your water clean and healthy. Considering the nature of this product family, we'll begin with the filter manual.

Water Filter Cartridges: Read the Manual

Assume, just for a moment, that the included cartridge filter manual says you'll receive one year of clean water. No germs, no sediments, and no odiferous chemicals will pass that fluid barrier for one year. However, this rating typically applies to a single family occupancy scenario. What if there's a large family living in the property? Worse still, what if the local water supply is loaded with abrasive minerals?

Weighing Real World Replacement Periods

The water supply is cloudy, or perhaps there are enough family members at home to make a football team, so the one-year usage rating crumbles. In all likelihood, a decent water filter cartridge will last for 3 to 6 months. What if the filter does begin to fail? What symptoms should you expect? Well, the flow rate is going to drop, probably because the filtering media is choked. The taste of the water will change. Along with that loss of potable freshness, small particles will enter the water. Finally, expect an accompanying smell, an odour that indicates an imminent failure of the water filter cartridge.

Know the Cartridge Type

The membranes inside the cartridges are prone to blockage, which means the tiny pores will fill up with the particles suspended in the water. Fortunately, the cartridges are easy to replace. However, you can get more out of your filtration system if you know how it operates. What are the materials and filtration principles at work inside the media? Is the filter built to filter 5 or 50 micron particles? Follow up on this informational analysis by learning about the material inside the cartridge. Maybe it's a Teflon-based filter, a pleated nylon filter, or some other surface membrane type.

In short, this information can help save money and lengthen the period in which the water filter cartridge remains operational. Carbon-activated models, as one example of this thought process, are refillable, so the failing sieving medium can be replaced without purchasing a new product. Just have the activated carbon or calcite on hand, and replace the powdery stuff periodically. Otherwise, the aforementioned cartridge types should be replaced at least twice a year.

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