Best 3-stage whole house water filter reviews & price

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Is any good in Best 3-stage whole house water filter? Whether your water tastes bad, smells weird, has a strange color, contains visible particles, looks suspiciously cloudy, or is staining your clothes or dishes, a whole-house water filter can take care of the problem. A clean, healthy water supply is the lifeline of every home. You use it for bathing, drinking, cooking, washing dishes, doing laundry, and hydrating your lawn.

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You can test your water supply using a home water test kit to determine if you need a filter system. If it specifies:

  • You have chlorinated water.
  • Your water has a strange smell or taste.
  • Your water has a cloudy-like appearance.
  • Your water has small flecks floating through.
  • Your water contains a high impurity level.

Compare best whole house water filter

SystemSpringWell CF
US Water Systems Matrixx
NU Aqua System
Home Master Custom System
Ranking1st4th6th8th
Ratings5/54.5/54.5/55/5
Price$$$$$$$
Contaminants Removed10+310+Sediment
Capacity1M gal.1M gal.100K gal.
Flow Rate9 – 20 GPM10 – 25 GPM15 GPM20 GPM
Annual Cost~$40$300 – $400~$180$170 – $680
WarrantyLifetimeLifetime, 10 years, 5 years5 years2 years

What is the Best 3-stage whole house water filter?

Whole House 3-Stage Water Filtration System reviews

This 3-stage whole-house water filter comes equipped with 3/4-inch inlet and outlet valves that can be threaded to existing or new MPT (male pipe thread) fittings. It has a 5-micron sediment filter to remove dust, dirt, silt, sand, and rust particles, helping to extend the life of the plumbing system.

This whole-house water filter has a maximum flow rate of 10 GPM, and it includes two extra sets of filter cartridges to replace the current filter cartridges after about 4 to 6 months of regular use. The water filter also includes a wall-mounting bracket to make installation easier.

This water filter also has a granular activated carbon filter to remove chlorine, radon, and VOCs, improving the taste and smell of the water. The third filter cartridge is a carbon block filter that removes insecticides, pesticides, and industrial solvents.

Product Specs 

  • Type: 3-stage filtration
  • Flow Rate: 10 GPM
  • Ease of Installation: Easy

Pros

  • 5-micron sediment filter included
  • Comes with a granular activated carbon filter and carbon block filter
  • ¾-inch inlets
  • Comes with 2 additional sets of filter cartridges

Cons

  • Some users have reported that this filter did not alter the water’s taste

Aquasana Whole House Water Filter with Salt-Free Softener reviews

Features
Number of stages: 3
Contaminant reduction: chlorine, lead, mercury, and more.
Replacement interval: 10 years
Filter capacity: 1,000,000 gal.
Flow rate (GPM): 7
Warranty: 10-year limited
More features: removes up to 97% of the chlorine, protects the skin and hair from drying

Do you need clean and healthy water in your home? The Aquasana premium whole house filter will ensure that you have access to clean and good tasting water in your home. It will remove about 97% of the contaminants in your home for the next ten years or after using one million gallons of water. With its highly efficient water filters, it can be able to eliminate such impurities as pesticides, herbicides, sediments, rust, silt, industrial solvents, and water-soluble metals among others.

Manu users noted better taste and general quality of water after they installed the filter, but some complained about reduced water pressure. This might be because the flow rate is somewhat low, and you’ll also need to check your filter for sediment build-up, as this affects water pressure as well.

With the purchase, you will get a filtration tank, a 20-inch prefilter and postfilter, bend supports, brass fittings, and shut-off valves. You can also choose to add some of the optional upgrades such as a salt-free water softener, UV sterilight to kill 99.99% of viruses and bacteria, and a pro-grade installation kit.

Pros

Good water softening effect
Unique upward flow to increase purification and eliminate clogging
Impressive warranty

Cons

May require a professional to install
Flow rate lower than the competition
Takes a lot of place

iSpring Whole House Water Filtration System reviews

Pros

  • Reasonably priced
  • Filters most common contaminants
  • Improves taste and smell

Cons

  • Doesn’t filter lead

The best option for well water is the iSpring 3-Stage Filtration System (model WGB32BM). It uses robust carbon and sediment filters to eliminate organic particles often found in underground wells, like dirt, sand, and rust.

This whole-house water filter also tackles chlorine and VOCs (volatile organic compounds), along with hydrogen sulfide, to remove the icky sulfur smell. While it’s not designed to get rid of lead, the iSpring targets other heavy metals like iron and manganese.

Number of Stages: 3 | Flow Rate: 15 GPM | Dimensions: 24.25 x 7.75 x 27.75 inches | Filtration Method: Coconut-shell carbon, sediment

Express Water Heavy Metal Whole House Water Filter reviews

3-stage whole-house water filters are the best type of cartridge filter available because they can be equipped with three different filter cartridges, allowing this whole-house filter system to remove a wide range of contaminants. The Express Water whole-house water filter comes with three filter cartridges that last for 6 months to a year before needing to be replaced.

This filter has a 15 GPM flow rate and 1-inch connections, so users need to make sure their incoming pipes are 1 inch in diameter. The first stage of the filtration process removes sediment, sand, rust, and dirt down to a size of 5 microns.

The second stage captures iron, lead, chloramine, algae, viruses, chlorine, and other heavy metals and microorganisms. The final stage captures filtration media like chlorine, pesticides, pharmaceutical runoff, and other chemicals, improving the taste of your drinking water.

Product Specs 

  • Type: 3-stage filtration
  • Flow Rate: 15 GPM
  • Ease of Installation: Easy

Pros

  • Cartridges last for 6 months to 1 year
  • Removes 5 micron-sized sediment, sand, rust, and dirt
  • Easy-to-change twist-off cartridges
  • Solid free-standing stainless steel frame included

Cons

  • Total dissolved solids are not filtered
  • The current pipes must be 1-inch in diameter to be compatible with this system

APEC Water Systems 15-GPM Whole House Water Filtration System

Pros

  • Reasonably priced
  • Filters lead and iron
  • Improves taste and smell

Cons

  • Doesn’t remove bacteria

You can’t taste, smell, or see lead in drinking water.5 But if this heavy metal has been detected in your supply, the APEC 3-Stage Whole House Water Filtration System (model CB3-SED-KDF-CAB20-BB) is a solid solution.

After removing sediment, rust, and VOCs with an ultra-fine pleated barrier, it captures lead, iron, and other heavy metals with a KDF filter. Finally, your water will pass through a carbon filter, which takes on hydrogen sulfide and chlorine to help leave you with crisp, clean water. It can filter up to 100,000 gallons of water before needing to change the cartridges.

Number of Stages: 3 | Flow Rate: 15 GPM | Dimensions: 20 x 4.5 x 4.5 inches | Filtration Method: Sediment, KDF, carbon

Best Well-Water Filter – Home Master HMF3SDGFEC

Features
Number of stages: 3
Contaminant reduction: iron, manganese, sediment, chemicals
Replacement interval: 1year
Filter capacity: 95, 000 gal.
Flow rate (GPM): 15
Warranty: 2-year limited
More features: removes up to 95 percent of sediment and chemicals

The Home Master HMF3SDGFEC is specifically created to purify well-water, which is often rich in iron.

For most wells, the concentration of iron is 0.5 to 10 milligrams per liter. Although iron is not an extreme risk, having lots of it creates some bacteria that can cause a lot of problems. For example, water that is loaded with iron has a metallic taste and smell. It will also leave rust residues and stains in the sink.

This whole house water filter comes with three stages of water purification. In the first stage, there are four layers of filtration which can filter out impurities as small as 1 micron. The second stage takes care of the iron in the water by cutting about 95% of it and reduces the total contaminant load to about 3ppm. In the 3rd stage filter, there is a radial flow granular coconut shell carbon filter which removes chemicals, odor and even the bad taste in water. Together, these stages make water healthier and are a perfect fit for well water.

The filtration system is easy to install, but if you have a larger family, you’ll probably have to change filters once every 6 months or so.

Pros

Filters sediments up to 1 micron
Eliminates the presence of iron in water
High flow rate

Cons

Heavy
Pricey replacement filters

NU Aqua 3 Stage System reviews

Price$
Contaminants Removed10+
Capacity100,000 gallons
Flow Rate15 GPM
Annual Cost~$180
Warranty5 years

The NU Aqua 3 Stage Whole House Water Filtration System is my top-choice cartridge-based whole home filtration system for treating city water.

Key Features:

  • Three separate filtration stages – The NU Aqua offers three thorough filtration stages: a sediment filtration stage, a GAC stage, and a carbon block filter stage. 
  • Removes a range of common contaminants – Some of the contaminants removed by this filtration system are sediment, silt, rust, VOCs, chlorine, chloramine, herbicides and pesticides, lead, benzene, mercury, industrial chemicals, sulfur, and disinfectant byproducts. 
  • High flow rate – The system’s large, industrial filters can withstand high amounts of water, and the unit operates at a flow rate of up to 15 GPM.
  • Built-in pressure gauge – There’s a built-in pressure gauge that lets you monitor the three filters. You know to replace the filter cartridge when there’s a significant pressure difference before and after the filter stage.
  • Easy-change filters – It’s easy to change the filters in the NU Aqua system – just press the pressure-release buttons and slide them out of the filter housing, then slide the new filters in place.

Best For: Anyone looking to save money on a cartridge filtration system that comes with a whole host of extras that you won’t find with most filters of this kind.

Pros:

  • For the price you pay, the NU Aqua offers an impressive performance, removing all the common contaminants you’re likely to find in municipal water.
  • According to NU Water, the filters can treat “thousands of gallons” of water before they need replacing. The filters should last around 6 months before they need replacing.
  • If you’re handy with tools, you’ll be able to install the NU Aqua system yourself. With a heavy-duty stainless steel metal frame, the NU filter system can be free-standing or wall-mounted. 
  • The system has a 3-year warranty and a 120-day 100% money-back satisfaction guarantee, so you can buy it and try it risk-free.

Cons:

  • There’s no built-in bypass valve, so you’ll need to install a separate valve if you want to use your water while carrying out filter maintenance, or take a break from using the system.
  • The NU Aqua is wider and bulkier than some systems, so you should make sure you have room for installation before buying the unit.

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