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Water filters installed in your home's plumbing system let you have clean, tasty water. This is why it can be such a shock to turn on the faucet only to find cloudy or otherwise odd-looking water. When you first add water filters to your faucets — and this goes for both whole-house and at-the-tap filters — you need to take a few steps to ensure you're using the filters correctly and will be able to maintain them well.

Let the Water Run for a Few Minutes

Any time a new filter is installed, let the water run from the faucet for a few minutes. Three to four minutes is usually a good start, although there's no set rule. New filters can make water look cloudy initially, and you may also see small particles. These should disappear within a few minutes. The particles and colour can be anything from extra carbon bits from new filters to matter that was on the insides of your home's pipes (like scale) that was shaken loose during installation. If the particles do not disappear and the water does not become clear, contact the company that installed the filter. 

Mark When You Started Using the New Filter

Keep a record of when you first started using the filter. What you're going to do is see how long it takes for the filter cartridge to start to degrade (as filters do have parts that need replacement). Sometimes filter cartridges don't give a lot of clues that they need to be replaced, and the symptoms appear so gradually and in such mild form that you don't know anything is wrong until the water suddenly doesn't taste that good anymore or the flow out of the faucet is affected. It's good to have some idea of how long filter cartridges last in your home with your typical usage so that after a point, you know to change the cartridge regardless of how many symptoms you're seeing.

Keep an Eye on Weekly Water Quality

Sometimes, however, cartridges do let you know that they'll soon need to be changed. Lowered flow out of the faucet, from the filter becoming clogged with scale and other particles, is an indication, as is the return of the unpleasant smells or tastes that led you to install a filter in the first place. Monitor the water weekly to get a sense of how the cartridge works over time. Be sure to seal pitchers and other containers you use to hold filtered water so that you don't mistake absorbed fridge odours for cartridge deterioration.

It won't take you long to get used to using the filter. Soon, you'll know what to expect, and you'll get better at determining whether the filter is working properly and whether the cartridge is still in good shape. You'll be able to keep the water that comes out of the faucet smelling and tasting wonderful. Speak with a professional for more information about home water filters.