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Whole-House, Under-Sink or Shower Filter: What Each One Is For
Each of these filters sits at a different point in the pipes. A whole-house system treats everything that comes onto the property. An under-sink filter is for the water you drink and cook with, and a shower filter is for the water you stand in. Only the last one is a job you can do yourself.
What a whole-house system treats
A whole-house system sits on the main water line where it enters the property, so every tap, shower and appliance downstream gets treated water, the garden tap and the toilet included. A water softener is the best-known example. It removes calcium and magnesium before the water reaches the household plumbing. How the two compare is covered in shower filter vs water softener.
Under the sink: water for drinking and cooking
An under-sink filter connects to the cold water line in the kitchen cupboard and feeds a tap at the sink, either the main mixer or a small tap of its own. It is there for the kettle and the pasta pot. The bathroom runs off its own line, so the shower carries on as it was.
At the shower: the water you stand in
A shower filter treats water at the moment you use it, hot and in a closed room. That is where your utility’s disinfectant is easiest to notice. Canberra’s Icon Water notes that chlorine may be more noticeable once water is heated.
A Suhae shower filter uses vitamin C, which turns free chlorine and chloramine into chloride. KEWI certificate IW-230133 records 99.9% chlorine removal, and found no chlorine at any sample point up to 6,000 litres. What to compare between shower filters is in how to choose a shower filter in Australia.
Which ones need a plumber
Each state sets its own plumbing rules. In Western Australia, Building and Energy lists the jobs a homeowner may do, and the list includes “maintenance, repair or replacement of a shower head” and replacing a water filter cartridge. Everything else on the water supply has to be done by a licensed plumber or permit-holder.
By that list, a whole-house system and a plumbed-in under-sink filter are plumber jobs, because both are fitted into the supply line. A shower filter is different. Fitting one means taking the shower head off and putting it back, and changing the cartridge later is on the list too.
Renting, or no plumber yet?
If you rent, anything fitted into the supply line is a conversation with your landlord first. A shower filter needs no plumber and nothing drilled. Suhae Universal fits by hand between the shower arm and the shower head you already have, so the head you like stays where it is. It is a universal fit for standard shower fittings and installs in about 2 minutes with no tools. On move-out day you unscrew it and take it with you. There is more in shower filters for renters.
Each cartridge lasts two to three months, depending on how much the household showers.
The whole-house system and the under-sink filter can wait for a plumber’s booking. A Suhae shower filter can be on your shower arm this week.
