A PUR water filter faucet attachment can improve your tap water. If you’re worried about unclean wells or city water, a PUR water filter faucet attachment can help to keep your loved ones healthy.
What Are PUR Water Filters For Faucets and How Do They Work?
PUR water filter faucet attachments are filters that you can attach or screw on to your faucet, often with a single click or motion. These filters are designed to remove dirt, metals, and other tiny particles from your water to remove unpleasant odors, flavors, and in some cases, health hazards.
Even in first world countries where water is adequately regulated, there are still particles in common drinking water. Have you ever heard of soft water or hard water? These terms refer to certain metal particles in your water that can make it denser or lighter, and affect the taste.
These particles may not be deadly; as water passes through city pipes made out of steel, for example, it inevitably picks up microscopic steel particles. Metallic particles like these are too small to harm you, but they can still give the water some definitive odors you’d rather avoid.
Of course, sometimes the water out of your faucet is at risk. If you believe your local water station inadequately treats your tap water, or if you use well water, for example, there may be more harmful metals or other microbes in your water these filters can remove.
Water filters are different from water purifiers. PUR water filter faucet attachments remove metals and foreign substances from water. They do not purify the water itself of bacteria and chemical agents though, which act on a smaller molecular level.
PUR is a brand who produces water filters not only for faucets but for all manner of water systems. They’ve worked to bring faucet water filters to homes that need them in collaboration with the Helen of Troy company since 2012, though their history-making water filter products goes back more than a decade before that.
Filters can remove contaminants through one of two methods. The first is physical filtration, through methods similar to a sieve or strainer. The second method is chemical filtration.
PUR water filter faucet attachments primarily use active carbon filtration. It’s a form of physical filtration in which carbon, in PUR’s case usually from coconuts, acts like a sponge to suck in minerals and trap them there while the water passes through without harm.
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PUR water filter faucet attachments are developed to be simple to install and maintain. To install it, you usually must hold a button on either side of the device, and press it up against your faucet. When you release the button, it should stay tightly mounted. Just like that, installation is complete.
The amount of water that can be filtered before the filter itself must be replaced can vary. PUR models often aim for around 100 gallons, but you should read the box if you’re interested in a particular model.
When the filter needs replaced, you will need to buy replacements. Luckily, PUR’s filters are designed to be replaced in one step, just like when they were initially installed.
A filter should often be replaced each month. The time can differ depending on your faucet’s water usage. The quality of your local water and the number of people using a faucet can also affect how long your filter lasts.
Limestone builds up when calcium and magnesium aren’t filtered from the water. Because PUR water filters don’t remove these two chemicals, when you replace your filter, you should check for limestone deposits inside the device.
If there is such a build-up, you only need to use a clean washcloth to wipe the deposit away. These deposits aren’t harmful, but they can obstruct water flow in the filter and may damage the filter over time.
What Makes PUR Water Filters Unique
- 3-IN-1 POWERFUL FILTRATION – Enjoy refreshing,...
- REDUCES CONTAMINANTS – Certified to reduce 10x...
- EASY TO ATTACH – No tools are required to attach...
- COMPATIBLE DOES NOT MEAN COMPARABLE – Be sure...
- #1 SELLING BRAND IN FAUCET WATER FILTRATION –...
PUR water filter faucet attachments use coconut shells in their filtration process. This unique material sets them apart from many other faucet filters.
Coconut shells are a natural material with a high surface area. This makes them useful for active carbon filtration. Mixed with the other materials inside several of their filters, PUR has thus released several filters using coconut shells that can treat up to 100 gallons of water.
PUR faucet filters are also designed for ease of installation. In most cases, like the PUR 3-Stage Horizontal Water Filtration Faucet Mount, you merely press a button on either side of the filter and shove it upward on to the faucet. After that, you release the buttons, and the installation is done.
There are small variances in installation; some require that you screw the filtration unit tight once it’s on. Still, the attachments are designed to be applied to your faucet in one go, to make them accessible to anyone.
PUR water filter faucet attachments are also often NSF-401-certified This certification means that the filter can remove at least fifteen contaminants, from a list of the most common drinking water pollutants, from your tap water.
The PUR 3-Stage Horizontal Water Filtration Faucet Mount, for example, can remove bacteria, herbicides, and ibuprofen. This makes it more capable of purifying water than other water filtration units, as a bonus for anyone looking to purchase a water filter.
PUR filters don’t remove metals like magnesium and calcium, which are often intentionally added to drinking water for their health benefits. So if you have hard water, PUR filters are unlikely to affect the high metal content of your faucet’s water.
The downside to this is that PUR water filter faucet attachments are susceptible to limestone build-up. Limestone deposits form when magnesium and calcium gather in your filter. You should check for these deposits when replacing your filters, and wipe them away if they occur.
Pricing
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PUR water filters are considered a relatively inexpensive brand. Their filters can range in cost from around twenty dollars used, to fifty dollars for one of their newer faucet filter designs.
One example is the PUR Stage-3 Horizontal Water Filter Faucet Mount, which was one of the best selling water filters in Amazon’s history. The average price for it remains around twenty-five dollars for a used unit, or upwards of eighty U.S. dollars for a brand new high-end unit.
PUR is considered a great value brand. Their filters often take longer to need to be changed or cleaned. This is one of the reasons the general public perception of their filters is as a reasonable, inexpensive brand.
Because reviewers said that the plastic mounts of PUR faucet filters often crack, PUR has offered free metallic mounts to those who need them. It’s hard to beat free as a pricing option for replacement parts.
Public Perception
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PUR produces more inexpensive or accessible faucet filters than most other brands. This has led to many members of the public identifying them as the best value brand on the market.
Though PUR has several filters that are on the expensive side, they usually last a proportionally longer amount of time. So many users say buying one of their more costly units can still pay off in the long run, as you’ll be replacing filters less.
Many testers noted that while PUR filters are often covered in stainless steel, it is merely a metallic film. Inside the metal film, the rest of the unit is made out of plastic.
As a result, many testimonials said that the plastic inside of the filters could crack quickly. In just a few months, many testers said their filters leaked to some degree. Other testers noted that the plastic mounts holding the filters often cracked, leading to similar issues with dripping.
Some reviewers praised PUR’s response to the complaints, though. When the plastic mounts continued to break, PUR offered free metal mounts for their water filters to any customer having problems with the model.
Most users attest to the difference adding coconut shells to the material made. PUR filters are good at adsorption, and can usually filter much higher quantities of contaminants before needing to be replaced.
Several reviewers also mentioned that PUR filters tend to be large. This can likely be attributed to their high capacity, and ability to outlast the competition. All the same, several people said it made it difficult to wash dishes or use the faucet when sink space was an issue.
Because most of their models are NSF-401-certified, many people consider PUR water filters to be a healthier and safer filter choice compared to the competition. This rating varies based on each model, and many competitors have verified models in the market as well. Still, public perception seems to place them ahead of their competition as a healthy water filter provider.
Overall the opinion about PUR water filter faucet attachments seems to be that they are good at filtering large capacities of contaminants, and for a long period. They have some structural issues though, such as cheap materials that leak, and bulky unit sizes.
How It Compares
Though there’s no shortage of competition in the water filter market, PUR does set itself apart. Two of its biggest competitors are Culligan water filters and Brita water filters.
- This complete Brita faucet water filter attaches...
- Get great-tasting water without the waste; by...
- The space efficient design attaches directly to...
- Reduce 99% of lead, chlorine (taste and odor),...
- Replace your faucet mount water filter every 100...
Brita water filters are often the more expensive option. Several of their new models have lights to act as sensors, telling you when to change filters. You can also often switch the filter off when you want to run your faucet without wearing out the filter.
Of course, because Brita faucet filters involve more electronics, switches, and are often made of metal, they rarely share a price range with PUR water filters. The two primarily target different demographics and don’t often compete directly as a result.
On the other end of the spectrum, Culligan filters are often brought up as a cheaper alternative. Culligan filters are often more compact than PUR filters and have a lower average cost.
This comes with a loss of functionality, of course. With a Culligan filter, you must pull a metal pin, rather than pressing a plastic switch. It can take longer, and many Culligan models don’t filter as many NSF-53 contaminants as PUR filters do.
It also takes longer to replace a Culligan water filter. That said, they do share some positive similarities with PUR, like their one-click installation.
- Premium water without reverse osmosis - No tank,...
- Improved purity and better taste: reduces...
- Leak sensor with alarm and built-in filter life...
- 3-in-1 cassette style filter provides safe and...
- Package includes: system with built-in bracket,...
Overall, PUR occupies a place in the market as the brand with some of the longest lasting water filter faucet attachments out there. There are less expensive brands, but that cost often equals out over time due to the cost of filter replacements, and how much work that can be. They produce enough models to appeal to low-cost filter buyers and high-end water filter enthusiasts.
What We Think
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If you’re not interested in replacing your water filters often, or just want water filters that can handle a large quantity of water, then you should consider buying a PUR brand water filter. A lot of the micromanagement involved in installing and maintaining a faucet water filter is intentionally removed in PUR’s devices.
That said, if you have a problem with leaks or dripping, you may want to consider a brand that produces filters made entirely of steel. Several reviewers said the dripping wasn’t an issue that ruined the filter. Still, the complaints were made consistently enough that a PUR water filter dripping seems almost inevitable, no matter which model you buy.
If the price is an issue though, PUR is one of the least expensive brands available. It can easily be recommended to anyone who wants a low-cost, high-value water filter.
PUR’s faucet water filters are also a good filter for first-time buyers since they’re easy to install. They also need to be replaced less often than other brands. Just make sure you have the sink space since it seems many of their models are bulky.
They aren’t the most expensive or complicated water filters. If you’re a water filter connoisseur or want electronic sensors and gadgets, you may want to look elsewhere. The reviews we saw of many top end filters noted, however, that these excess features often burned out or began malfunctioning quickly.
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