Water with an awful taste and odor indicates the presence of impurities. Installing a filtration system is the following logical action to enjoy clean water. The same is valid when you are tired of buying bottled water and large water barrels for your dispensers.
When people decide to fix filtration units in their homes, they often face two decisions: a whole house or in-house water filters. People looking for inexpensive, easy-to-install, and maintain filters naturally choose in-house filters like water pitchers and faucet filters. There are many more reasons why installing a water filter is an excellent choice.
Consuming clean water will positively impact the quality of your love, and choosing the correct filter is a prominent part of the process. For in-house filter lovers, you’ll most likely face the famous water filter pitcher Vs. faucet battle. Which of these filters should you choose?
For filters that are always at opposing ends of arguments, they share a lot of similarities. They are easy to install, inexpensive, and have impressive quality; however, they are only suitable for some scenarios. This article discusses the two filters and helps you choose the most ideal for your needs.
Water Filter Pitcher
A water filter pitcher is a pitcher or jug containing filter cartridges and two chambers. The filters in the hub can be ion exchange, activated carbon, nanofiltration, and ultraviolet filtration. Filter pitchers are standalone, not connected directly to your water fixture. Instead, water is fed into the unit.
The pitcher passes the water through a series of filters that remove its impurities and deposit clean water in the primary reservoir below. Gravity draws the water from the initial chamber through the cartridges and into the central reservoir. Only clean water from the reservoir can leave the spout.
It takes 10 to 20 minutes for a water filter pitcher to purify a batch of water in its chamber. However, this timeframe heavily depends on the type of filter and its size. It takes a long time to filter water, but it is portable.
There are many filter pitcher shapes and designs available that have enhanced its usage. Filter-as-you-pour models have become increasingly popular as they are faster. However, you must realize that shorter filtration time may indicate a lower capacity. There are also models with spouts at the bottom, which makes it easy to get filtered water without lifting the jug.
- Portability: the filter is compact and easily fits into your travel or camping bag. It'll save you a lot of money as you won't have to buy bottled water since you can take pitcher filters for your outdoor activities.
- Convenience: it is easy to maintain, especially with a cartridge equipped with a long lifespan. The filter is also easy to use as you only need to fill the pitcher with water and wait for gravity to aid filtration.
- Can be stored in the refrigerator: the size and portability mean you can keep this pitcher in the fridge and enjoy cold water during those hot summer afternoons.
- It can remove a wide range of impurities: depending on the type of filter used in the pitcher, it can remove lead, chlorine, pesticides, and microorganisms. Its ability to remove the majority of the shared water pollutant is a considerable advantage.
- Affordable: the system will not burn a hole in your pocket to purchase it, as some go for as low as $20. Water pitchers are inexpensive; nevertheless, there are also pitchers worth around $1000.
- Slow filtration: the filtration is enabled by gravity, so the filtration rate is slow and not ideal when you quickly need to use the filtered water. It takes about 20 minutes to filter a batch of water in the pitcher.
- Small capacity: the capacity of pitchers is limited to keep them lightweight and portable. However, this affects the amount of clean water you can get, as the water tank can only hold a small amount of water.
- Frequent filter changes required: filter pitchers get dirty fast and require frequent changes to maintain efficiency. You may need to replace the filters about four times a year.
- Manual refilling: the filter needs to be refilled manually every time, which can pose a challenge over time.
Water Faucet Filter
A water faucet or faucet-mounted filter is a filtration unit attached to a faucet to filter water leaving the nozzle spout. These small units can be made from chromium or plastic and contain one or more filtration media. Activated carbon is the most popular media for this system.
Faucet filters are fast and purify water at 0.68 gallons per minute. However, this speed means the water spends little time in contact with the filter, so filtration quality is low.
The unit is easy to attach and detach and is excellent for people looking for temporary filter solutions they can quickly remove when moving to a new location. The ease of using this filter is enhanced further as you can switch between filtered and unfiltered water depending on your needs. This will prolong the lifespan of the filter.
Water from the faucet passes through the filter media, which holds impurities and allows only clean water to leave the unit. Brita is a popular faucet filter you can install in minutes. You do not need any plumbing adjustment to fix this filter to your faucet.
- Easy to install: faucet filters can be installed in 10 minutes with no plumbing adaptation required.
- Fast filtration rate: the filter purifies water almost as soon as it reaches the media, with the water pressure helping to improve the filtration speed. This filter has no waiting time, as you get clean water when you turn on the faucet.
- Compact design: its minimalistic design means it can easily attach to your faucet without taking up lots of room. Some models are even lightweight enough to be installed on pull-out faucets.
- Continuous filtering capacity: faucet filters are not limited by their storage tanks as they clean water as it leaves the faucet. You can use as much clean water as you want.
- Can switch between filtered and unfiltered water: faucet filters allow you to switch between getting filtered water and unfiltered water. This way, you don't need to pressure or remove the filter when purified water is unnecessary.
- Only fits some faucets: faucet diameter and fittings vary, so faucet-mounted filters will not fit all the taps. You may require adapters to attach it to some nozzles. It is also challenging to find the right faucet filter for pull-out faucets.
- Low filtration ability: the shorter the time the water has in contact with the filter, the filtration ability is reduced. This means the filter may only block a fraction of the impurities. However, filter types like activated carbon increase the surface area and, thus, the filtration quality.
- Reduced flow rate: the filter media minimizes the water flow rate as it passes through the system. The flow rate reduces even further as the faucet filter gets older with more clogged pores.
- Can crack easily: plastic faucet filters are the most common and are prone to cracking. Chrome faucet filters deliver a more durable filter.
How to Choose The Most Suitable Filter?
Choosing between the two filters can be challenging, especially if you have yet to gain hands-on experience using them.
Here’s how you can select the correct filter based on your needs:
1. The Type of Impurities in Your Water
The type of impurities in your water will guide you on the best filter to choose. First, you want to conduct a water test to determine the Impurities and their amounts in parts per million (PPM).
Their ability to remove Impurities vary, so you want to choose the filter that will remove the contaminants present in your water. Pitchers have a better filtration capacity, so if your water contains a lot of impurities, you should stick to pitchers.
2. Household Daily Usage
Find out how much clean water you need daily, as the filters have varying capacities. If your household’s daily usage is a lot, this will guide the filter to choose. Faucet filters have a higher volume than pitchers, which are limited to the jug size. You also want to consider the speed, as it’ll affect the volume you can get at any given time.
3. Your Needs
Before choosing between the two, you must consider how you intend to use the filters. If you require ease of use at any time, faucet-mounted filters are more suitable. For portability, filter pitchers are the stand-out choice, allowing you to move the filter jug around.
4. Durability
Faucet filters are less durable, especially plastic ones, as they’re prone to cracking. This will reduce the filter’s lifespan and force you into frequent replacements. On the other hand, most filter faucets are made of BPA-free plastic which is durable and would last longer.
5. NSF/ANSI Certifications And Testing
These certifications are often tied to their ability to remove specific contaminants, so you want to use your water test results here. Check that the filter you choose is certified to have the necessary cartridges to remove the Impurities in your water. NSF and ANSI are high-quality testing and certifications that indicate a quality product.
Filter Pitcher Vs. Filter Faucet: Which to Choose?
After all considerations, you still have the simple choice between a filter pitcher and a filter faucet. Choose a pitcher if you’re looking for a portable filtration unit to take along with you. A filter faucet is ideal for enjoying filtered water without limit.
Conclusion
Water filtration is integral to our daily activities as we require clean water throughout the day. Choosing between filter pitchers and filter faucets can be confusing, considering the number of similarities they share. However, with the help of the pros and cons of each filter, and factors to consider, you should easily make the right choice.
They are both inexpensive, easy-to-install filters but vary their working principles and best usage slightly. Utilize pitchers where you want high filtration quality and portability to move them around. Faucet filters are best suited where you want filtered water without limitations.