Watts 531204 2-Stage Filter Pure Save 2% Off

• Reduces sand, silt, sediment, rust, chlorine tastes and odors from the water
• Long reach high quality faucet
• Sanitary push button filters for easy filter change out
• Quick connect fittings for easy installation
• Small frame is perfect for fitting in to small areas

This review is being written for Amazon.com on 11/27/2010 for the Watts 531204 2-stage water filter.

This is a compact under-sink filter supplied with a dedicated water faucet for kitchen sink applications.

Easier to install if:

You already have a hole in the sink area to install the dedicated faucet (such as by eliminating an existing sink sprayer or lotion dispenser already installed in your home)

Your plumbing is fairly modern with standard size fittings

Your existing water shutoff valves function OK.

Your existing faucet to shutoff valve piping is flexible hose vs. hard pipe.

Harder to install if:

You need to drill a hole for the faucet mounting.

Your home has older water piping, such as iron pipe with non-standard fitting sizes.

Your shutoff valves are stuck and will not close.

Your existing faucet to shutoff valve connection is hard pipe vs. flexible hose.

Pro''s:

compact unit does not take too much space under the sink

much easier filter change than the average under-sink water filter

Con''s:

proprietary filters not widely available

This water filter is not fancy, does not do "reverse osmosis" and so forth. It''s a basic carbon filter with a sediment pre-filter.

Installation:

Turn off the cold water sink shutoff valve under the sink, open the faucet to verify the water truly shuts off. If no, then you may need to shutoff you whole house water supply (and replace the sink shutoff valve sometimes, too).

Mount the dedicated faucet (drilling hole to mount it if you do not already have one). Attach the plastic water tubing to the bottom of the faucet.

Mount the filter frame to the side of the kitchen cabinetry below your sink.

Remove the cold water supply going from the shutoff valve to the faucet.

Install the tee valve on the shutoff valve.

Re-install the cold water supply from the tee valve to the faucet (easy if the piping was flexible tubing. If hard piping, then the piping may need to be cut and fit).

Install the plastic tubing from the tee valve to the filter assembly intake.

Install the plastic tubing form the dedicated faucet to the filter output.

Open the dedicated faucet.

Turn on the cold water shutoff valve, and allow the water to run for several minutes to flush the system.

Check for leaks.

In my case, I had a hard iron pipe installation with frozen connectors, no shutoff valves under the sink, and a hard pipe water supply to the existing faucet. I found the easiest method was to buy an adapter from the iron pipe to the standard faucet connector, installed new shut-off ball valves there, and I replaced the existing faucet with a modern one that could use the flexible hose supply connections.

The quality of the dedicated faucet is not superb, but approximately what I expected for the price of this kit. The faucet spout moves when the valve is turned to the on position or back to off. However, after a year of usage, the system has not leaked.

Filter change of this unit is very easy compared to the average undersink filter kit. You turn off the cold water shutoff valve, push a button on the filter housing and remove/replace the filters (six month interval suggested). On the downside, these filters are proprietary (order from the manufacturer website as they are generally not available in stores).

I''ve used several different undersink filter kits over the years, and this one gets top marks for ease of filter change. It gets OK marks for completeness of the kit. And OK marks for quality of the dedicated faucet.

The water in this household has sediment/rust issues (related to the old iron pipes), so the 1st stage of prefilter helps there. I was wondering if the sediment would clog the screening leading into the filter or within the filter itself, and that has not happened. The second stage of the filter is a carbon block and performs the main filtering function. Water tastes OK from the unit. It''s best to always let it run a bit before using in order to flush the filter.

Buy Watts 531204 2-Stage Filter Pure Now

Had a problem with installation parts. Service assistance

was outstanding. Problem fixed easily. Looks and works well