Consumer Reports – September 2019

KitchenAid

KRSC503ESS $2,

0

OVERALL

71 SCORE

For more info, go to CR.org/buy0919.

LAWN MOWERS GENERATORS CHAIN SAWS

SEPTEMBER

IS THE

BEST TIME

TO BUY ...

EveryDrop

Ice & Water Refrigerator

Filter EDR1RXD

$

Still

Confused By ...

Your

Fridge’s

Water

Filter

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN IT’S
TIME TO REPLACE MY FILTER?
Many manufacturers’ filters
last about six months, but
depending on your usage and
your local water, you may need
to change it more frequently
than that. Some models have
an indicator that will let you
know when the filter needs to
be changed. Other signs that
your current filter has kicked:
The water begins to trickle out
more slowly or the taste may
change, becoming similar to
the taste of water straight from
your unfiltered tap.

HOW MUCH DO REPLACEMENT
FILTERS COST?
Filters can be surprisingly
pricey. A six-month replace-
ment filter for a $1,163 Frigidaire
side-by-side, for example, costs
$40.95. Assuming the expected
life span of your fridge is
12 years, you’d be paying an
extra 85 percent of the fridge’s
purchase price for the filters—
almost doubling the cost of the
appliance. And we’ve seen
some filters that cost even
more, around $50. So before
buying a new fridge, it’s smart
to find out the filter’s cost and
factor it in.

WHAT HAPPENS

IF I JUST DON’T REPLACE

THE FILTER?

Most public drinking water

is relatively safe without

being filtered, and many

refrigerators from brands

including GE, LG, and

Whirlpool (which makes the

KitchenAid model with a $

replacement filter, below) will

dispense water just fine

without a filter in place, says

CR’s lead fridge tester Joseph

Pacella. So if you don’t care

about filtering your water for,

say, improving the taste, then

you don’t need to spend

money on replacement filters.

“But fridges made by Frigidaire

and Electrolux require the filter

to be installed for the water

dispenser and ice maker to

work,” Pacella says.

IS IT OKAY TO

USE CHEAPER FILTERS

BOUGHT ONLINE?

We don’t advise it. After

investigating, CR found

that most aftermarket filters we

looked at on amazon.com

weren’t certified to recognized

quality and performance or

safety standards. (Last fall,

Amazon told CR that it requires

filters to meet a minimum

standard, but the company

was still working to secure

compliance from all of its

suppliers.) The only aftermarket

brand we found with proper,

verifiable certifications for its

filters is Culligan, which sells

its filters for about 40 percent

less than those from refrigerator

manufacturers.

If you shop online, make sure

that any filter you buy is at

least certified by a recognized

test lab to comply with the

voluntary standard NSF/ANSI

42, which is NSF International’s

standard that addresses the

aesthetic qualities of water,

as well as material safety. (To

learn about other water filter

certifications that address

various other contaminants you

might be concerned about, go

to CR.org/filters0919.)

But be aware that cheaper,

seemingly name-brand filters

from third-party sellers online

can be fakes. “If at all possible,

you should purchase filters

directly from industry-verified

sources, such as those listed

on refrigerator manufacturer’s

websites,” says James

Dickerson, CR’s chief scientific

officer. According to a recent

industry-sponsored study,

counterfeit filters can do more

harm than good—actually

contaminating the water that

passes through them.

SEPTEMBER 2019 CR.ORG 17