If your dispenser is plumbed into the mains, or you want to filter water dispenser supply before it reaches the tank, the filter is the part that decides how the water tastes. Cartridges clog, carbon runs out and RO membranes wear, and most people only notice when the flow slows or the taste turns. Suppliers in your area can supply the right cartridges, fit them and set up a replacement schedule. Send one request and they quote you directly. It is free and there is no obligation.
Which filter does what
Filters are usually stacked in stages, and each one has a job:
- Sediment: catches sand, rust flakes and silt. About R50 to R150 for a sediment cartridge. It protects everything after it.
- Carbon: reduces chlorine taste and smell, which is the most common complaint about municipal water.
- Reverse osmosis (RO): a membrane that removes dissolved solids and many metals. About R500 to R1,200 for an RO set. Read more on RO systems.
- UV: a lamp that treats germs, fitted after the filters. See UV purification.
When to change a cartridge
Follow the maker's interval, but let the water tell you too. A slow tap, a return of chlorine taste, cloudy water or a rattle in the line all point to a tired cartridge. Sediment filters in areas with older pipes or after a burst main may need changing sooner than the label says. Carbon is spent long before it looks dirty.
Write the fitting date on the housing in permanent pen. Many suppliers keep your schedule and arrive when it is due, which beats remembering in month fourteen.
Fitting, sizes and compatibility
Cartridges are not interchangeable. Length, width, thread and the push fit or screw fit all vary, so bring the old cartridge or a clear photo, along with the dispenser model. Mains-fed units usually take standard slim cartridges, while bottle dispensers may only need a filter on the line that fills your refill bottles. Fitting a cartridge is a ten minute job for a plumber, but it must be flushed properly and the water supply isolated first. A plumbed-in dispenser installer can do both in one visit.
Comparing filter quotes
Ask what each cartridge is rated for, how many litres it lasts and what the next change will cost. A cheap first set with expensive refills is a common trap. Check whether the price includes fitting, flushing and the old cartridge being taken away. If your water comes from a borehole, say so, because a basic filter will not make untested water safe and the supplier should recommend a lab test first.
What to include in your request
- The dispenser or filter housing model
- Photo of the old cartridge or housing
- Municipal, tank or borehole water
- How many filters or dispensers
- The suburb, town or business park
Water Dispenser Filters for different sites
- Households: a new cartridge each six months so the kitchen dispenser keeps tasting clean
- Offices and business parks: a supplier who changes cartridges on a schedule so no one has to remember
- Schools, crèches and colleges: robust sediment and carbon cartridges changed in the holidays on plumbed-in units
- Clinics, practices and care homes: cartridges changed on a logged schedule, with the dispenser flushed and sanitised afterwards
- Lodges, hotels, restaurants and events: carbon filters on lounge and kitchen dispensers to keep coffee and drinking water tasting right
- Factories, mines and building sites: larger sediment cartridges for dusty sites where filters clog faster than the label suggests
- Shops, gyms and refill stations: a compact filter set for a shop or salon dispenser, changed alongside a service
- Farms, smallholdings and villages: extra sediment stages in front of the dispenser where tank or borehole water carries silt
Frequently asked questions
How often should I change my dispenser filter?
Do bottle dispensers need a filter?
Will a filter make borehole water safe to drink?
Do you sell filters?
Water Dispenser Filters by province and city
- Johannesburg
- Pretoria
- Centurion
- Midrand
- Sandton
- Randburg
- Roodepoort
- Krugersdorp
- Randfontein
- Germiston
- Boksburg
- Benoni
- Kempton Park
- Alberton
- Vanderbijlpark
- Vereeniging
- Durban
- Pinetown
- Pietermaritzburg
- Richards Bay
- Newcastle
- Ladysmith
- Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth)
- East London
- Kariega (Uitenhage)
- Mthatha
- Cape Town
- Bellville
- Paarl
- Stellenbosch
- George
- Worcester
- eMalahleni (Witbank)
- Middelburg
- Secunda
- Mbombela (Nelspruit)
- Rustenburg
- Brits
- Klerksdorp
- Potchefstroom
- Mahikeng
- Polokwane
- Tzaneen
- Kimberley
- Upington
- Bloemfontein
- Welkom
- Sasolburg