Healthy home · 4 min read · Updated 1 October 2026
Kitchen tap or whole-house water filter? What each does, and when one is enough
A filter at the kitchen tap treats the water you drink and cook with; a whole-house filter treats every tap and shower. Here's what each does, what it takes to look after, and how to choose.
Kitchen tap (under-sink) filters
- Fits in the cupboard under the sink, usually with its own small tap or feeding your existing one.
- Carbon filters reduce chlorine taste and smell and many other compounds. Some models add a finer stage for very small particles.
- Reverse osmosis systems go further and remove most dissolved minerals (including fluoride), but they're bigger and send some water down the drain as they work.
- Upkeep: a new cartridge every 6 to 12 months for most models, often a five-minute twist-off job.
Whole-house filters
- Installed by a plumber where the water main enters your home, so every tap and shower gets filtered water.
- Usually a sediment stage (for grit and rust) then a larger carbon stage (for chlorine taste and smell).
- Upkeep: the sediment cartridge every 6 to 12 months, and the carbon stage every few years, depending on the model and how much water you use.
- Most use no electricity at all. Systems with UV treatment use a small, steady amount of power.
When one is enough
- Mainly want nicer drinking water? A kitchen tap filter.
- Notice chlorine in the shower, or want filtered water everywhere? Whole-house.
- Renting, or not ready to call a plumber? A jug or benchtop filter is a low-cost place to start.
- On tank water? Talk to a plumber about sediment and UV treatment first: tank water has different needs to mains water.
What to check before you buy
- What it's certified to reduce: look for independent certification (for example, to NSF/ANSI standards) for the things you care about.
- How often the cartridges need changing, and what they cost. That's the real running cost.
- Flow rate for whole-house systems, so your showers keep their pressure.
- Who installs it: plumbing work in Victoria must be done by a licensed plumber.
Revo's tipSet a phone reminder when you fit a new cartridge. An old, clogged filter stops doing its job long before the water stops flowing.