Whole-of-house water filters, fitted and serviced around Maitland

One filter system where the water comes in, so every tap in the house gets filtered water.

We fit whole-of-house filter systems on town water and tank water, then come back to change the cartridges. Based in Thornton, working across Maitland, Newcastle, Lake Macquarie and surrounds, open 24 hours, 7 days.

Call 0474 659 574 Ask about a filter

Twin filter housings on a stainless bracket on a brick wall beside the gas meter, with a blue-handled valve on each side and copper pipework — Twin filters by the meter

How a whole-of-house system is plumbed

A whole-of-house filter goes on the main water line after the meter and before the pipe splits off to the hot water system and the taps. That way the shower, the washing machine and the kitchen all draw the same filtered water, not just one tap at the sink.

Most systems are two housings in a row: a sediment cartridge first to catch dirt and grit, then a carbon cartridge for the taste and smell of chlorine.

What an install covers

Picking the spot: near the meter or where the main enters, out of the weather where possible, with room to get a spanner on the housings
A wall bracket to carry the housings, so the weight isn't hanging off the pipe
A valve on each side, so the filters can be shut off on their own
A bypass line with its own valve, so the house keeps water while cartridges are changed
Flushing the new cartridges and checking every joint for leaks

Water Filter Specialist

Systems	Whole of house, town water and tank water
Work	Fitting and servicing
Hours	Open 24 hours, 7 days

Drawing, not to scale. Bypass valve stays shut in normal use.

Choosing a system for your house

Four things decide what goes on the wall. Tell us these when you call.

Town water or tank water	Town water mostly needs sediment and carbon. Tank water needs a pump to push it through the filters, and many tank systems add a further treatment stage after them.
What you want gone	Grit and discoloured water points to sediment. Chlorine taste and smell points to carbon. Most homes on town water fit both.
Size of the house	More bathrooms running at once means more water through the filter. Bigger housings keep the pressure up at the shower when the washing machine is also going.
House or unit	A house has its own meter and main, so the system goes near it. A unit block can share a main, which limits where a filter can go on your line.

A filter system on a timber post beside a corrugated rainwater tank, with a pressure pump and a small pressure tank on a concrete slab — Tank water, with a pump

Town water and tank water in the Hunter

Around Maitland, Newcastle and Lake Macquarie, town water comes from Hunter Water, which supplies more than half a million people in the Lower Hunter. It disinfects the water with chlorine, at levels from zero to about 1.5 mg/L, and adds fluoride at about 1 mg/L.

So a filter on town water here is mostly about taste, smell and sediment, not about making the water safe to drink. The chlorine is what most people notice, and a carbon cartridge is what deals with it.

Out on tank water

Blocks that aren't on the town supply rely on rainwater tanks. NSW Health lists filtering, UV light, chlorine and boiling as ways to treat rainwater, and advises that people in urban areas drink town water where they have it.

A tank setup has more parts to get right: the pump, the filters and whatever treatment follows. We also do rainwater pumps and tanks, so the pump and the filters can be looked at together.

What goes wrong with filter systems

Most filter problems come down to the fit, or to cartridges left in too long.

Cartridges left too long

A clogged sediment cartridge drops the pressure at every tap in the house. A spent carbon cartridge stops taking out the chlorine taste, and you can't tell by looking at it.

No bypass

Without a bypass line, the whole house is off water every time a cartridge is changed, and a cracked housing means no water until it's replaced.

Filter too small

A housing sized for one tap, fitted to a whole house, is fine until two showers run at once. Then the pressure falls away.

Clear housings in the sun

Sunlight through a clear housing grows algae inside it. Outdoor systems want opaque housings, like the grey and blue ones in our photos.

Cartridge changes and servicing

How often cartridges need changing is set by the cartridge maker and by your water. Tank water, or town water after works on the mains, clogs a sediment cartridge faster.

Switch to the bypass
Open the bypass valve and close the valves either side of the filters, so the house stays on water.
Release the pressure
Let the pressure off the housings before they come undone.
Swap the cartridges
Old cartridges out, housings washed out, and the O-rings checked and seated.
Flush and check
Water back through the filters, run to waste until it's clear, then every seal checked for drips.
Back into service
Filter valves open and bypass shut. Note the date so you know when the next change is due.

Twin grey filter housings on a bracket against a block wall, with green-handled valves and a copper bypass line underneath — Bypass underneath

Twin blue filter housings on a white bracket on a painted block wall, a valve on each side — Blue housings

Common questions

Do I need a filter on town water?

Not to make it safe. Hunter Water says its treated water complies with the Australian Drinking Water Guidelines. People fit a whole-of-house filter because they don't like the chlorine taste and smell, in the shower as well as the glass, or because they get grit and discoloured water.

Will a filter take out the fluoride?

The usual sediment and carbon pair isn't made to. If fluoride is your reason for wanting a filter, say so when you call, because it changes what kind of system you'd need.

Will it lower my water pressure?

A filter sized for the house shouldn't be noticeable. If the pressure has dropped on a system you already have, a clogged sediment cartridge is the first thing to check.

Can I change the cartridges myself?

On a system with a valve each side and a bypass, yes, and a housing spanner makes it easier. If yours has no valves, or a housing won't come undone, call us rather than forcing it.

A filter housing is leaking. What should I do?

Close the valves either side of the filters and open the bypass if there is one. If there are no valves, turn the water off at the meter. Then call 0474 659 574: we're open 24 hours, 7 days.

We're on tank water. What do we need?

A pump to move the water, filters after it, and often a further treatment stage, depending on what the water is used for. See rainwater pumps and tanks, or call and tell us what's there now.

How far do you travel?

We're based in Thornton, about 15 minutes by road from Maitland and Raymond Terrace and about half an hour from Newcastle. We work across Newcastle, Lake Macquarie, Central Coast, Maitland, Hunter Valley, Port Stephens, Mid Coast and surrounding areas.