Water Filter Cost Comparison
I can still remember when purchasing bottled-water was in vogue. It never really appealed to me and I just couldn’t bring myself to spend the money. I’m just as frugal today, so it only made sense for me to find out the cheapest way to filter our drinking water.
I found prices found through Amazon.com and they are all significantly lower than distributor / manufacturer prices.
Filtered Water Pitchers
Filtered water pitchers are a simple option for purifying water. They are easy to use and require no installation. The filters reduce lead, copper, mercury, cadmium, zinc, and other impurities from drinking water. A Brita water pitcher costs about $16 and requires filter replacements every 40 gallons. Filter replacements cost about $6.31 each.
Aqua-Pure Water Filter
I have the Aqua-Pure AP200 Under-counter Water Filter installed in my kitchen. It filters the cold water coming out of my kitchen faucet- reducing any sediment, lead, and chlorine taste and odors. Installation requires mounting the filter beneath your sink and running a supply and return water line. The AP200 costs about $69.57 and replacement cartridges cost about $29.50. Cartridges should be replaced every 2,000 gallons.
Cost Comparison
Lets find out how much filtered water you can drink from the initial filter unit plus one filter replacement.
Brita Pitcher
A Brita Pitcher and one filter replacement will cost you $22.31 and get you 80 gallons of filtered water. That means you pay just under $0.28 per gallon.
Aqua-Pure
The Aqua-Pure unit and one cartridge replacement will cost you about $99.07 and get you 4,000 gallons of filtered water. That results in a little less than $0.03 a gallon!
What do you think? Did you realize how cheap filtered water can be?
Comments & Conversation on this Article...
3 Responses to Water Filter Cost Comparison
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January 29th, 2010 1:22 pm
How so you know how much water is used and when to change the filter (when do you reach 2000 gallons)?
January 29th, 2010 1:28 pm
@Greg, Brita estimates that you’ll filter 40 gallons of water (need to change the filter) every two months. Aqua-Pure estimates 2,000 is about 4-6 months.
Other than the estimates, I don’t really have a way to know when to change the filter.
January 29th, 2010 1:33 pm
I’m pretty sure there are devices that can measure water usage. Maybe you guys could check them out for a future post.