Choosing the Best Kitchen Water Filter 2020
What determines the best choice when it comes to deciding on the best kitchen water filter? Well, there is no one answer as individual circumstances & requirements will differ. There are however certain necessary criteria common to all:
- Cost Effectiveness – Not the same as being the cheapest, but that a system should give maximum dependable service relative to the cost of purchase and the ongoing running costs.
- Ease of Maintenance – Which ever the system installed, filters will require changing. With a good filter design this should be a straightforward and quick operation. Complicated filter changes are one of the reasons that many users do not maintain their filter effectiveness.
- Availability of replacement filters – there’s nothing worse than buying a cheap water filter and going to all the trouble to install it only to find 6 months later that the required replacement filters are unavailable.
- Dependable established brand. Reliability is a major factor when you are depending on a product for your health. Having technical backup available gives peace of mind if any issues arise.
With these criteria in mind let us look at what in our view represent the 6 Best Kitchen Water Filters 2020. These have been selected to cover the broadest range of filtration requirements and budgets.
Table of Contents:
The following filters have been divided into reverse osmosis systems and undercounter housing type filters. It should be noted that these are not listed in any particular order of merit as the suitability of a filter will depend considerably on one’s personal requirements.
Reverse Osmosis
Generally producing the purest water of all filter types they represent a well established method of purification. Drawbacks such as removal of beneficial minerals and the production of a high proportion of waste water have to a large degree, been mitigated in the following models this is particularly so with the increasing move towards direct flow (tankless) models.
Osmio Zero Installation Countertop Portable Reverse Osmosis System
Although it’s just been stated that the filters listed are not in order of preference the Osmio Zero countertop reverse osmosis system has to be one of the top choices for many people for a kitchen water filter. This innovative and popular product requires no installation, making it uniquely suitable for single people, students or small families, people who regularly travel and who are currently renting their property and cannot have an undercounter water filter system installed.
All that’s required is a 3 pin socket.
Available in white or black it is able to supply fully purified water at ambient, warm, hot or near boiling at the touch of a button. This hugely convenient feature means that it can replace the kettle completely.
This is a filter that is easy to use, stylish and convenient. The filters, which include a re-mineralising cartridge and which are very easy to change require replacement approximately every 6 months, depending on water conditions (very hard water areas may need changes slightly more frequently).
The cost of a 
replacement set of filters is currently £55 so that gives a maintenance cost of £110 per year or just £2.11 per week for perfect drinking water.
All in all an excellent choice for a kitchen water filter. (There is also now a plumbed in version available, ‘The Osmio Fusion’ ideally suited to larger households and workplace use)
No.of Filters (incl. membrane): 4
Remineralising: Yes
Tap: Yes
Running cost per week: £2.11
Type: RO. Direct Flow
Pumped: n/a
BMB -20 Alkaline & Detox Reverse Osmosis Water Filter
The BMB -20 ia a high quality self-standing, 6 filter reverse osmosis system that incorporates a pH stabilizer and nano zinc powder activated antibacterial, Alkaline and Detox filters for antitoxin and energizing water properties. A traditional reverse osmosis set up complete with storage tank, the BMB-20 boasts a total of six filters including the RO membrane.
This RO filter will produce more waste water than some direct flow models but is included here due to its high quality and the health promoting re-mineralising and tourmaline post filters.
The last two filters are strictly speaking not filters that remove anything, but extra stages which enrich the purified water. The fifth stage alkaline filter uses a special blend of minerals high in nutritional value to naturally increase the water pH. The higher ph water, which will have alkaline properties, can help in fat burning, body acid neutralization, better blood flow.
The sixth stage detox filter employs Tourmaline mineral crystals to generate Far Infrared Rays (FIR). As the water passes through the FIR field, some of it will become activated to restructure the water into smaller molecular clusters. The process can ultimately enhance the hydration of the human body.
A sophisticated reverse osmosis filter which incorporates Quick Change Filter Technology (QCFT) for easy maintenance the BMB-20 is an economic model which is best utilized in homes with 20-50 Litres of daily, purified, drinking water consumption.
No.of Filters (incl. membrane): 6
Remineralising: Yes
Tap: Yes
Type: RO. Tank storage
Pumped: Yes
Running cost per week: £2.59
Osmio D7 Direct Flow Reverse Osmosis System
A sophisticated state-of-the art direct flow (tankless) reverse osmosis filter from Osmio, the D7 employs five filters including a 400GPD (gallons per day) membrane. This high capacity membrane allows the supply of freshly filtered water at a rate of 1-2 litres per minute.
This sleek looking filter is very tidy and easily fitted under most sinks. Filter change is remarkably easy, just open the access panel, twist off the old filter and twist on the new, that’s it!
The D7 employs ‘smart water’ capabilities and will automatically analyze the water, track filter lifetime and optimize system performance, lighting -up with LED Icons during operation.
The filters used are:
Filter 1: 5 Micron Polypropelene Sediment
Filter 2: CTO Coconut Shell Carbon
Filter 3: 1 Micron Polypropelene Sediment
Filter 4: 400 GPD Reverse Osmosis Membrane
Filter 5: Alkaline Filter
The D7 is one of the most effective and easy to maintain reverse osmosis filters available on the UK market, a well designed, compact, reliable RO filter which will give years of trouble free service and comes with a 2 year manufacturer’s warranty.
No.of Filters (incl. membrane): 5
Remineralising: Yes
Tap: Yes
Type: RO. Direct Flow (tankless)
Pumped: Yes
Running cost per week: £2.53
Undercounter Housing Type Kitchen Water Filters
Utlising one or more filter housings these types of filters generally take up less space than the RO systems and vary more in their properties resulting in a wide choice of systems which may include single or double housings, long life cartridges and inline existing tap filters.
Pure Life 6 Stage Undercounter Water Filter System
The Pure Life is a 6 stage undercounter water filter which uses an advanced 6-stage filtration process to remove or neutralise a huge range of contaminants. Very compact, this is a filter which punches well above its weight through the use of a clever combination of effective filtration media.
The Pure Life contains silver impregnated granular activated carbon, then further granular activated carbon (GAC) which is combined with remineralising active ceramics media and finally patented KDF layer resulting in a completely bacteriostatic filter environment preventing any build-up of bacteria.
The Active Ceramics media gently introduces minerals into the water making it more palatable and healthier and also increases the pH of the water making it more alkaline.
The Pure Life 6 stage will seriously reduce chlorine, heavy metals, bacteria, toxins and a vast array of undesirable impurities in your tap water, but perhaps the best quality of this super little filter is that it only requires a filter replacement once every two years, making it a highly cost effective choice for an undercounter kitchen water filter.
Media: GAC, Active Ceramics, KDF
Housing: Single, 2.5” x 10” standard
Remineralising: Yes
Tap: Yes
Pumped: No – water pressure
Running cost per week: £0.57
The Osmio EZFITPRO-300 Undersink Water Filter Kit
The Osmio EZFITPRO-300 Undersink Water Filter is a dual housing undersink water filter which has the great advantage of allowing you to keep your existing kitchen tap. It is a true inline filter and comes supplied with 15mm push fit connectors which makes fitting extremely simple.
All you need to do is to cut away the appropriate length of the cold supply copper pipe under your sink and push each end into the filter connectors, that’s it! No need to fit a separate filter tap or to install a triflow kitchen filter tap.
The first filter is the Coldstream CF108W a very high performing ceramic cartridge which is capable of fluoride removal as well as pesticides, herbicides, chlorine, heavy metals and bacteria and cysts.
The second housing utilises the Osmio 2.5 x 10 Osmio Chlorine and Limescale filter incorporating granular activated carbon (GAC) combined with Phosphate and De-alk resin, giving further protection against chlorine, taste and odour, heavy metals e.g. lead, nickel, chromium etc.
A great bonus with this filter is that it will also considerably reduce limescale resulting in clearer beverages without any scum and will protect your kettle.
The higher flow rate compared to other filters means that all the water from your kitchen cold tap will be purified so that when it comes to washing vegetables and such it will be with clean, safe water.
The only downside to this highly effective undercounter filter is that the higher volume of water processed necessitates more frequent filter changes than some, every 3 – 6 months. But an ideal filter if you want all your kitchen cold supply filtered without the expense of installing a whole house filter.
Media: Filter 1: Ceramic Filter 2: GAC/Phosphate & De-Alk Filter
Housing: Dual, 2.5” x 10” standard
Remineralising: No, however not needed as doesn’t remove useful minerals
Tap: No – not needed
Pumped: No – water pressure
Running cost per week: £2.40 – £4.80 depending on usage & water conditions.
FT-Line VE Water Filter System
Not a new product but one that has deservedly remained popular for many years and which has established itself an enviable track record.
The FT-Line VE from Puricom is a neat, compact system which takes up very little space and makes an ideal choice of inline filter for anyone seeking a high quality and reliable unit, with easy maintenance & low running costs both at home or in commercial settings.
This filter is frequently employed by coffee shops & restaurants a a filter for coffee machines where is provides not only purified, great tasting water but also offers scale protection, extending the effective life of coffee makers & kettles etc.
A quick change dual cartridge filter it consists of:
Filter 1: The Ft-Line 82 Cartridge, a 5 µm sediment filter for the removal of dirt, rust & other impurities, made to NSF standards.
Filter 2: Ft-Line 90 cartridge, a granular activated carbon filter impregnated with silver and silicon polyphosphate. This filter removes chlorine and prevents scale. The silver also prevents the build-up of any bacteria within the filter.
This filter may be connected to a dedicated water filter tap, any 3 way Triflow tap or direct inline to a coffee machine
Media: Filter 1- Sediment Filter 2- Activated carbon + silico-polyphosphates
Housing: None- direct fit to filter head
Remineralising: No, however not needed as doesn’t remove useful minerals
Tap: No
Pumped: No – water pressure
Running cost per week: £1.73
A note on running costs.
The figures given above are for comparison purposes and represent the minimum cost based on optimal usage and water conditions. In reality it is impossible to give exact figures as it will to some degree differ in each individual circumstance due to factors such as the frequency of use and the condition of the incoming water.
The above popular choices are a just a few of the many kitchen drinking water filters available from Puriflow. Should you need advice on choosing the best filter for your situation please do contact on 020-3507-1879 or by email at: info@puriflowfilters.co.uk