Have you recently installed a reverse osmosis filtration system to protect you and your family from water-borne diseases? Well, we are here to tell you that you have made the right call! Kinetico Reverse Osmosis (RO) filters are the best way to ensure you have the purest water at your disposal.
Kinetico Osmosis filters are designed to purify up to 500 gallons of water before they require replacing. For an average family of four people, Kinetico RO filters will last 9 months to a year depending on how much water you use.
However, this isn’t necessarily always the case. If the water you get in your taps, for example, comes from a well, or has a lot of sediment and dissolved solids, then you’d likely need to replace the filters a lot sooner. But, how can you tell exactly when the filter needs replacing? Well, for answers to this and a lot more you have come to the right place!
Read my comprehensive article about reverse osmosis.
Table of Contents
When Is the Right Time to Replace Your Kinetico Filters?
Are you worried about the state of your Kinetico filters and wondering what would be the right time to replace them?
Considering that a lot of factors determine the expiration of Kinetico filters, you’d need to pay close attention to your overall RO unit. This would mean accounting for the volume of water used, the quality of water being filtered, and much more.
Read my article about reverse osmosis system maintenenace.
Kinetico Osmosis filters last until they can no longer purify water. This could take 6 months, 8 months, or a little over a year. While most homeowners are recommended to replace their Kinetico filters every 8 to 12 months, you don’t have to until you notice certain tell tale signs.
Here’s how you can find out when your Kinetico Osmosis filters are at full capacity and need replacement.
1. Routinely check the PureMometer
The Kinetico K5 Drinking Water Station comes with a built-in meter referred to as the PureMometer. This meter informs you when it’s time to change the filters.
The blue gauge on the meter indicates the filter capacity. When you notice the gauge ¾ of the way up, it’s indicating that the postfilter is at full capacity and needs a replacement soon.
Kinetico Osmosis filters are designed to filter 500 gallons of water in their lifetime. When you see the indication to replace the filters on the PureMometer, you must replace all the filters at the same time.
2. Pay attention to the water flow
If you notice that the water coming from the faucet has slowed down or has stopped altogether, it means the filters are at their full capacity and cannot pass clean water anymore.
You can further verify this by checking the PureMometer on your Kinetico RO filters.
If the water has slowed down, do not wait for it to stop entirely to change the filters. This is as good a time as any to replace filters and sanitize the system.
3. Water usage
Two homes may have installed the Kinetico RO unit at the same time, but one might need to replace the filters a lot sooner than the other. This could simply be because one family uses a higher volume of water in a day compared to the other.
If you can make an accurate assumption about the amount of reverse osmosis water your family uses in a day, you can easily figure out how long the Kinetico Osmosis filters will last and when to replace them. More on this later!
4. Quality of water
The quality of your water supply can have the biggest impact on the life of your Kinetico RO filters.
The three main filters are tasked with removing taste and odor, volatile organic compounds, and lead. These filters have a finite amount of effectiveness. If they have to remove more than the regular number of contaminants from the water, they will reach their limit a lot sooner.
Similarly, if the water being filtered is relatively clean, the filters will reach their full capacity slowly and last much longer.
The quality of water supplied at homes differs from city to city. The number of impurities they contain is inversely proportional to the effectiveness of the filters. In short, extremely dirty water equals shorter lifespan of the filters.
How Long Will Kinetico Filters Last Based on the Volume of Water Used?
We talked about how the volume of water used in a day will determine the right time to replace Kinetico Osmosis filters.
As such, we have created a table which can be used as a guideline to find out exactly when your filters are close to capacity based on the volume of water used and the size of the household.
| Gallons Of RO Water Consumed in A Day – Per Person |
Single Person |
Family of 2 |
Family of 3 |
Family of 4 |
| ¼ gallon | 67 Months | 33 Months | 22 Months | 17 Months |
| ½ gallon | 33 Months | 17 Months | 11 Months | 250 Days (~8 Months) |
| ¾ gallon | 22 Months | 11 Months | 7.5 Months | 5.5 Months |
| 1 gallon | 17 Months | 8 Months | 5.5 Months | 4 Months |
| 1 ½ gallon | 11 Months | 5.5 Months | 3.7 Months | 2.75 Months |
Keep in mind that these figures are based on the filtration of regular tap water coming through the public water supply. As mentioned earlier, water quality can also impact the longevity of your Kinetico Reverse Osmosis filters.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q) Can I change Kinetico filters myself?
Yes, you can. You will, however, need a stabilization kit from your authorized dealer in order to sanitize the system before placing the new filters. Check out this video for step-by-step instructions.
Q) What happens if I don’t replace filters in time?
If you fail to change your filters in time, this could result in impure water consumption as your RO unit will no longer be capable of removing harmful contaminants or purifying water in any way.
Q) How to tell if the filters are way past their expiration?
Once the filters have gone completely bad, your Kinetico RO system will stop producing water, or the water produced will test positive for high levels of chlorine.
Final Thoughts
Depending on your usage and the quality of water, Kinetico RO filters can last anywhere from 3 months to 3 years. To keep enjoying safe and clean drinking water, routinely check the PureMometer and look for other indicators that might suggest the need for a filter change.