Aquasana Water Filter Reviews
As one of the biggest, most popular water filter brands around, Aquasana produces an impressive range of filtering solutions, each backed by extensive customer reviews and a long, US-based manufacturing history. Here’s our take on Aquasana and their water filter innovations.
Who is Aquasana?
Operating out of Texas, Aquasana is a thoroughly tried-and-tested water filter producer, who have attracted well over 15,000 rave reviews from customers across their product range. Thanks to their popularity, Aquasana is able to invest in innovative filter technology and production methods, such as their commitment to more environmentally friendly methods. All of Aquasana’s products use reusable outer filter casings, and their filter cartridges are created from recyclable materials.
Aquasana’s NSF-certified Claryum Filtration technology is arguably their most innovative filter product. Their bespoke filter combines several filtering stages to produce highly pure water that retains desirable minerals such as magnesium and potassium. Each Claryum element includes:
- Activated Carbon, which is the most common home filtering element. Carbon filters reduce levels of carbon-based (organic) chemicals, such as chlorine, pharmaceuticals, and herbicides.
- Catalytic Carbon, which is optimized to target chlorine and treatment by-products.
- Ion-Exchange, which is designed to capture heavy metal ions such as lead, and replace them with harmless ions.
- Ultrafiltration/Mechanical filtration, which filters down to microscopic levels, catching chlorine-resistant microorganisms and materials like asbestos.
Aquasana: Key points
What to look for in a Reverse Osmosis Water Filter
Contaminants removed
| Contaminants | Certification to remove | Products |
|---|---|---|
| Harmful contaminants: Lead, Asbestos, Arsenic, Mercury, Cysts, VOCs etc.* | NSF 53, 58 | Aquasana OptimH2O, APEC RO-PH90, GE RO System, Whirlpool RO System, Brondell Circle RC100 |
| Chlorine and Chloramines/aesthetics issues | NSF 42 | Aquasana OptimH2O, Whirlpool RO System, Brondell Circle RC100 |
| PFAs | P473 | Aquasana OptimH2O |
| Emerging contaminants | NSF 401 | Aquasana OptimH2O |
*Check with product performance data sheets if you are concerned about a particular contaminant.
The top factor in choosing a RO water filtration system is the number of contaminants removed, or how much of a specific contaminant a filter can remove.
If you are worried about the quality of your water and are unsure of what is in it, then you should aim for the best product available that eliminates the most contaminants possible.
If you know exactly what contaminants are in your local water source, you can be more precise in your purchase. For example, if your local water source has trace amounts of lead in it, then you will want a water filter that can filter over 99% of lead, and other contaminants may not be as much of a worry for you.
RO water filters commonly remove the following contaminants: chlorine, iron, lead, asbestos, TDS (total dissolved solids), bacteria, cysts, and fluoride along with many others.
We recommend finding out what contaminants are in your water source by checking your local Consumer Confidence Reports (CCR), or getting your private well water tested. This is because different systems remove different contaminants so choosing your product should be based on your specific needs.
Here are our main contaminants of concern and reasons why:
There are also many other contaminants (too many to list), but if you get an RO water filter you can do your best to protect yourself and your loved ones from any adverse health effects.
Because of the potential for lead to get into your water through leaching from old pipes after it leaves the water treatment facility, we do not recommend any RO products that have not been certified or tested to reduce lead.
Certifications
To be sure filter systems are filtering out what they claim to, look for products that have NSF (National Sanitation Foundation) or WQA (Water Quality Association) certifications that are the gold standards in the USA for water filtration systems. NSF and WQA marks are meant to provide proof that a product was “impartially reviewed to established standards or guidelines,” states the NSF.org website.
NSF and WQA marks also confirm that product labels and their claims have been objectively verified by a trusted third party and demonstrate a company (or organization’s) commitment to quality, compliance, and safety. The mark, which is recognized in more than 180 countries around the world, has varying associated numbers that range from the automotive industry, retail products, lab equipment, nutritional products, sustainability, and of course, water, wastewater, and food safety.
For Reverse Osmosis filters, look for the following certifications:
Look for multiple certifications when searching for a water filter, and make sure they line up with the contaminants you either know or suspect are in your water source.
Best overall
NSF: 42, 53, 58, 401, P473
Price: $208.99
After getting through our top factors in choosing a reverse osmosis system, which are contaminant removal and certifications to prove it removes contaminants we wanted to introduce you to our top-rated product. It ticks a lot of our boxes, and to be our top choice it had to.
Pros:
Aquasana Whole House Water Filter System
The Aquasana Rhino whole house filters take the stress out of water purification, allowing you to access filtered water from every faucet or showerhead in your home. Aquasana’s whole-home system is designed to provide this little piece of luxury for an affordable price, by combining impressive—though not best-in-class—filter elements with a whopping million-gallon lifespan. It ranks as the best well water filtration system under $2000 due to its exceptional benefits listed above.
Aquasana Whole House Filter gives you healthy, clean, great-tasting water from every tap in your home by removing up to 97% of the chlorine in regular tap water. Get healthier skin and hair by reducing your body’s exposure to harsh chlorine and synthetic chemicals that can cause damage and excessive drying. Breathe easy knowing you have improved air quality by removing chlorine from your shower steam.
Filtering technology
This system combines carbon and KDF filtration, which are both designed to remove synthetic chemicals and metal traces from water. This makes the Aquasana whole house perfect for targeting the most common public water contaminants: chlorine, treatment chemicals, and tiny traces of metals that can leach into water from piping and bedrock.
If you’re looking for a whole house filter capable of treating water for microorganisms or dissolved solids, you’ll need a different type of filter technology.
Main contaminants removed/reduced
With its combination of screening and organic compound filters, this whole house-system will happily take care of contaminants including sediment, rust, heavy metals, chlorine, and other chemical solvents.
Value for money
Easily the most impressive aspect of this filter is the longevity of its replaceable parts. With a capacity to process one million gallons of water, this gives the Aquasana a potential 10-year life span before major replacements are needed. In terms of value for money, this puts the cost of clean water at just a cent per gallon, which may result in double the savings compared with other major brands, depending on raw water quality.
Anything else?
Part of the Aquasana’s mammoth lifespan is thanks to its unique dual tank design, which keeps water flowing for longer and helps prevent clogging.
A good middle ground between whole-house filters, which may require professional installation, and simple point-of-use kitchen filters is an undersink system. These products provide all the filtering power of a larger model whilst staying out of sight and out of mind. Aquasana’s AQ-5300 under sink model boasts an impressive array of filtering stages and can power through as much as half a gallon of water each minute.
Filtering technology
The AQ-5300 is one of several Aquasana filters in this review to use the unique Claryum filter design. Combining several common filtering elements into one replaceable cartridge, the Claryum filter is able to reduce harmful contaminants while retaining a beneficial mineral content for an improved taste.
Added to the Claryum filter are two further stages including a prefilter with a 20-micron screen, which is able to pick up tiny pieces of sediment.
Main contaminants removed/reduced
Claryum filters use a carbon element to reduce chlorine and other organic chemicals, ion-exchange filters to remove heavy metals like lead and mercury, and a sub-micron mechanical filter to pick up common waterborne bacteria and microorganisms such as cryptosporidium and giardia.
While living pathogens are very rarely found in public treated water, those sourcing their tap supply from private wells, or those in areas prone to flooding, can breathe a sigh of relief that the Aquasana is able to handle this kind of health threat.
Value for money
Aquasana recommends replacing their undersink filter cartridges every 800 gallons, which, with regular use, should mean a lifespan of around 6 months between replacements. In terms of cost per gallon, this puts the AQ-5300 at around 8 cents—a highly competitive price.
Anything else?
Like the majority of Aquasana products, the AQ-53000 is fully certified to NSF standards 42, 53 and 401.
- NSF/ANSI 42. This means that a filter is certified to improve the appearance, taste, and smell of drinking water.
- NSF/ANSI 53: This validates a filter’s claim to be able to reduce or remove certain health risks from drinking water.
- NSF/ANSI 401: This means that a filter is able to reduce newly emerging contaminants as defined by the NSF.
Reverse osmosis (RO) filters, which push water through membranes with tiny, microscopic pores, are amongst the most effective home filters available. Aquasana’s OptimH2O is the first RO filter to combine a reverse osmosis membrane with their Claryum filtration technology, resulting in a system able to handle an impressively wide range of contaminants. In fact, it’s guaranteed to reduce up to 99% of more than 80 different contaminants.
Filtering technology
The addition of a Claryum filtration stage (see above for details) gives the OptimH2O five times the filtering power of a regular RO system. Thanks to its remineralization stage, this system is also able to reintroduce the calcium, magnesium, and potassium lost when water passes through the RO filter. The result is RO-filtered water that doesn’t have the weird taste and texture sometimes caused by stripping the water of its mineral salts.
Main contaminants removed/reduced
Thanks to its assortment of filtering stages, the OptimH20 can reduce and remove all of the usual contaminants, including sediment, chlorine, VOCs, heavy metals, and pharmaceuticals—and then goes further, significantly reducing the levels of bacteria, viruses, fluoride, and total dissolved solids (TDS) in a tap supply.
Value for money
One of the great cost-saving features of the OptimH20 is that it’s designed for DIY installation, which means significant savings of labor costs for anybody prepared for a little home-plumbing. Add to this a 1 year RO Membrane Life, and 6-month secondary filter lifespan, and you get a system that pretty much takes care of itself.
Anything else?
The Aquasana OptimH20 comes with its own faucet, which is available in several finishes to suit your countertop.
A reliable reverse osmosis filter can be hard to find. Here’s how Aquasana measured up against the competitors.
Aquasana AQ-4000W
Our top pick for the best countertop filter of 2021, the Aquasana AQ-4000W is a sleek looking filter that won’t mess with the aesthetics of your kitchen. With a screw-on faucet attachment that doesn’t impede on flow rate too badly (relative to other countertop filters), this is a convenient way to improve the quality of your drinking water for a low price.
Filtering technology
The AQ-4000W contains just one filtering stage: a Claryum filter cartridge. But as we’ve mentioned in other sections, Aquasana’s innovative filter combines several different filtering methods in one, so this model retains decent contaminant coverage.
Main contaminants removed/reduced
You can expect the AQ-4000W to significantly reduce all common public drinking water contaminants. This includes chlorine, VOCs, lead, pesticides, and pharmaceuticals. Unlike most countertop filters, this product will also remove microorganisms, thanks to the Claryum cartridge’s microfiltration stage.
Value for money
The best way to illustrate the cost savings possible when using a countertop filter is to compare them with traditional pitcher filters. Thanks to their longer lifespan (The AQ-4000W lasts for approximately 450 gallons or 6 months of regular use) countertop filters can handle up to 11 times the capacity of the leading gravity-based filters. Running the numbers on this Aquasana countertop model, value for money comes in it at $0.11 cents per gallon.
Anything else?
With a flow rate of 0.5 Gallons per minute, the AQ-4000W is at risk of becoming an inconvenience for those who demand immediate, fast-flowing tap water. Unfortunately, the flow rate can be an issue for all countertop filters, and this is definitely something to bear in mind when considering this filter format.
Aquasana AQ-4100
The bathroom might not be the first place you think of when considering a water filter, but removing chemical contaminants from your shower can make a big difference to your morning routine. Aquasana’s AQ-4100 shower filter is designed to capture the chlorine and other organic chemicals that are found in the majority of publicly-treated water, resulting in cleaner, softer, more moisturizing water to wash with.
Filtering technology/Main contaminants
With a simple attachment that clicks into your existing shower line (no tools necessary) the AQ-4100 adds two filtering stages to your shower head. The first is an activated carbon layer, which reduces chlorine, lead, and iron. This is followed up by a KDF copper and zinc oxidation process to further tackle harsh chemicals.
Value for money
Aquasana’s shower filter is designed to filter 10,000 gallons of average-quality tap water before requiring replacing, which equals around 6 months of daily showers, or 25 cents a day. Worth every cent, we’d say!
Anything else?
The AQ-4100 comes with the added benefit of multiple massage settings, ensuring that your shower head retains functionality.
Our verdict
With a large customer base and a wide range of filtering solutions, Aquasana’s fully NSF-certified home filters rank among the best water filter products available right now. We’re a fan of the brand’s unique claryum filter technology, and appreciate how they combine significant contaminant removal with long-lasting filter replacements.
If we had to find a negative, we’d say that the filtering power offered by many Aquasana products might be unnecessary for homes who get their water from reliable public sources, meaning that there may be more cost-effective options for some consumers. However, when it comes to ensuring a safe, good-tasting drink supply, Aquasana is definitely a brand to consider.
Disclaimer
CleanCoolWater aims to provide accurate, honest product recommendations, based on the best available information. Despite our best efforts, data and products are subject to change, and may have been updated since this page was posted. Always check with manufacturers for the most up-to-date product information.