Aquasana Under Sink Water Filter System - Reduces PFAS, Lead, & Chlorine in Drinking Water - Under Counter Claryum Filtration for Kitchen - 3-Stage Max Flow - Chrome Faucet - AQ-5300+.56

I read a few reviews about leaks and various issues so I was a little nervous, but over all the reviews were good so I bit the bullet and ordered one. It was relatively easy to install, I mean, it was under the sink which requires bending into a pretzel to work under there which, for a 64-year-old woman is always a challenge, but I followed the instructions, attached it to the side wall of the sink cabinet, installed the spigot in the hole in the granite cut for a built-in soap dispenser (that was replaced with a pretty glass pump dispenser that works better than the built in one anyway) and then installed the filters. There were no leaks - YAY!!! It's been working great for about 4 months now.

The kit came with zero instructions, these are not hard to find online. Some of the parts looked a little dirty, as if this may be a refurbished unit. I'm taking 1 star off for those items. Otherwise it was fairly easy to install, tastes good, and has decent flow rate. I was worried about leaks seeing reviews of what happens when folks go to exchange the filters. Luckily no leaks upon install. We probably use an average of a gallon a day, so hoping these filters last a while. I originally wanted a whole-home filter, but after doing the research and seeing how much replacement filters/parts are and the intervals to exchange them, we couldn't afford the ongoing costs. These filters seem to be pretty reasonable in price, and a good compromise over a whole-home system. I did have to buy a 1.25" diamond blade hole saw and auger to create the additional hole required through our granite countertop. This was also fairly straight forward, but a lot of cost for the tools for a 1-time job and it was very nerve racking lining up the hole as near-perfect as I could get it and trying to keep the bit from skipping around when first starting it. I probably saved a hundred dollars or more vs hiring a pro to come drill it. The faucet is nice, but a lighter colored oil rubbed bronze than most plumbing parts. It does sit a little less than plumb, and I wished there were instructions on how to take the little handle off so you can adjust where the on/off starts. As others have said, the water tube attaches to the bottom and could easily be pulled out, so be careful messing around under your sink after it's hooked up. It makes no noise when turning on/using, I do hear a tiny clunk when I turn it off. The tubes that go into the base unit have to be pushed all the way in. I thought I had the larger one in and decided to double check it and I pushed pretty hard and twisted a little and it went in about another inch. I'm glad I checked it. The smaller outgoing tube was easier to push in. I think a lot of people might be having issues with leakage not having these tubes pushed in all the way, especially the larger intake tube. Leave a little extra tubing when you install, so you can take the base unit off the wall if needed to change the reminder button-cell battery without worrying about a tube coming off. I have not done any water tests, I trust the tests others have done and posted in their reviews. I know this doesn't remove fluoride and a few other things, but it's got to be better than a ceramic berky-like filter. Aquasana should include instructions, and a shut off valve just for the tube going into the filter (so you can keep the cold water active and turn off the filter for maintenance). **Update Feb 2024-water flow completely stopped after 6 months. Emailed customer support, no response. I took a chance and ordered a replacement filter set direct from manufacturer. Kit arrived in a week and I replaced all 3 filters. Two filters were pretty dark colored. Kit also came with a new battery. Turns out the original kit had the battery installed backwards, so it never beeped when it was time to replace. New filter change, new battery installed the correct way, and I get a few beeps and turn back on the water. Checking for leaks for a couple weeks. All is good, water pressure is back to normal. I hear about the cartridges leaking after opening and changing the filters, O-ring problems, etc. I was very slow and deliberate taking everything apart and putting it back together to make sure I never cross threaded anything or damage the o-rings. When you insert the filter, there is a little play/movement possible while you try to screw the housing in around it. Hold it upside down so gravity helps keep the filter tight to the lid while you screw the cover back on. And by the way, it's been 3 months since I emailed customer support, no response besides the obligatory "thank you for emailing support, someone will be with you...", no follow up emails from support. **Update Jan 2026-Unit has been working great, no leaks. Haven't had any issues since 2024. I've changed the filters about every 6 months or whenever it starts beeping. If you set up auto-shipment direct from the manufacturer for filters, note that they charge your credit card, then ship the filters about 2 weeks later and it takes about a week to get to you.

I bought this Aquasana water filter system for my kitchen sink. For some reason, I was sent (and charged for) 3 units. Obviously, I contacted Amazon and made arrangements to return two units for refund. In the meantime, I hired a plumber to install the unit. The plumber is a licensed, insured and an experienced plumber. He had the worst time installing the filters. Installing the unit was very basic - no problem there. However when he put in the filters they leaked. Because I had two extra units. He tried those filter (I was willing to take the hit). After trying 5 different filters (on a 3 filter unit) he was finally able to get it to stop leaking. Fast forward 7 months…I knew I had to change the filters every 6 months. As luck would have it, I had a plumber out to fix an unrelated issue and I asked ‘can you change these filters for me as long as your here’. This was not the same plumber as did the install. I had purchased new filters last month and had them ready for install. This plumber also had the same issue as the first plumber…the new filters leaked. He couldn’t tell what the issue really was, because once the filters are in the housing, you can’t see them. He said they went in easy, and shouldn’t be leaking. Finally out of frustration, I said just disconnect it and I’d contact Aquasana since it’s still under warranty. After speaking with Julie at Aquasana tech support, I was told that she could not refund my money, only send replacement parts…which is impossible since I (nor the plumber) can tell what’s leaking. I was asked to take a video of the leak and email it to them??? What? I told them no, that’s ridiculous. I’d have to call the plumber back out to hook it up again, to take a video of dripping water? Riiiight! Julie at Aquasana said I needed to contact Amazon, since that’s where I bought the unit. I told her it was at the Aquasana Store on Amazon. She said she has no authority for returns, even under warranty and to go thru Amazon. The funny thing is, Amazon doesn’t give me an option to return this unit…it does refer me to the toll free number to Aquasana (the same number where I spoke with Julie). Basically the round around. So I’m now out my money. I don’t have a water filter and I still get to hire a plumber to remove the unit (he did disconnect it from the water, but it’s still under my sink, and the small faucet for the filter has to be removed and I need to put in a soap dispenser or something to fill that hole in the counter top. Thanks Aquasana for standing by your product, which has been problematic from the start, thanks for helping us out when finances are tight. By not offering a full refund to a defective product and not giving a second thought to me paying a plumber AGAIN to come out to remove there defective machine. Beware buying from Aquasana. The product I have is defective, still under manufacturer warranty and they will not refund me. That’s just wrong.

The filtering properties are great, and our well water tastes like spring water now. I like the faucet, but it would be nice if it was a little taller, like the Zuvo filter system this replaced. However, I wish Aquasana used a 5/8" nut to mount the faucet under the sink. A 5/8" nut is more standard, and would have worked fine with my sink installer tool. Unfortunately, Aquasana chose to use a 9/16" nut to hold the faucet. I wonder if they care that most of us are mounting these systems on existing installed sinks. It's a pain to swing a 9/16" wrench in this really tight space. The other issue is the plastic parts everywhere. In the faucet mounting I just mentioned, another concern is the hard plastic washer that's used underneath the hole in the sink. Make sure not to overtighten the 9/16" nut or you'll crack this plastic piece. This part should be metal, or the nut needs to be similar to what is used on faucets which has a broad base and works with sink installer tools. Also, the housing that the filters mount to and the flange that holds the housing to the inside of the cabinet is cheap plastic. Don't overtighten the mounting screws or you'll crack the mounting flange. The housing and mounting flange are all one piece. Crack the flange and this thing is toast. This needs to be designed as a mounting plate and a separate filter housing (what Aquasana calls the "manifold"), to prevent a mounting problem or filter replacement issue from causing total failure of the filter system if it cracks. The other thing I'm really wary of is all the reviews mentioning that the filters leak, the filter housings crack and explode, and then the kitchen floods. Note that in the installation manual Aquasana stipulates that the filter housings must be replaced every five years. I guess that's an acknowledgement that the plastic housings do indeed crack and fail. I have also decided to only use genuine Aquasana replacement filters. I read reviews of some of the knockoff filters and owners mentioned that the knockoffs are slightly shorter than the OEM parts, and that causes a flow (or even no flow) issue because the nozzles on the knockoff filters don't push far enough into the spring-loaded valve in the filter manifold. So far, so good, but it's only been installed for one day. I'm hoping I don't have to come back here in six months and update this to one star due to a failed filter and a flooded kitchen.

First, I've been through a lot of under sink water filters, from RO/DI to bulky 3 filter systems. NONE of them, including this one are easy to install IMO. The demos and instructions show how easy it really is, but they are done by pros with an empty cabinet to start with, all parts RTG, plus a hardware store is no doubt within a block away and opened 24/7. An RO/DI unit has a fatal flaw: It filters out everything including important minerals needed. Over the long haul this showed up in more dental work, and body damage. The added cartridges for replacement minerals aren't really compatable with the body either. The under sink three filter systems have one useless cartridge if you live in the city, that filters out silt, sand and debris. The Aquasana two filter system was a bit easier to install although it took about 3 hours, much easier than the clumsy space hogs of the above mentioned. As for installation, I had to adapt some of the fittings from the old system to the new one, since some of the fittings for Aquasana weren't compatable with the existing incoming lines. Might need to make a trip to your local hardware store before you begin and once you evaluate the needs. Once installed, NO LEAKS when it was tested, which for me is an achievement beyond measure. The taste was refreshing, not the thick tap water taste of the three filter system, or the sterile taste of RO/DI water. Hooked up my ice maker and I noticed the difference in good tasting ice cubes. Got rid of the plastic bottles. This 2 filter system seems to meet the needs across the board of taste, convenience and more room under the sink. The only con might be the life of the filters. We drink a LOT of water living in arid Arizona, and may be zipping through 500 gallons faster than 6 months. Perhaps the best part of this is I felt confident that I had purchased a system made in the USA with instructions that weren't laughable and parts that didn't break. Aquasana had good reviews across the board, and on Amazon as well. Will return to update once replacements are needed. Update: Something I missed which was the reason I bought the filters: Lab analysis of what is filtered. PEX tubing is know to leech specific chemicals such as Toluene and other dangerous VOC's. We had our whole house repiped with this tubing before I discovered this problem. The taste of our water was poor. Almost all the non RO DI units under the sink, that were best sellers couldn't back up what was being filtered. When inquiring about this, they either skirted the issue, gave a lame quasi technical response or just didn't respond to my inquiry. Aquasana has the analysis sheet of all the chemicals that are removed which IS extensive, on their website AND also send it with the instruction booklet. They talk the talk and seem to walk the walk.

(Note: See August and January 2025 updates on filter replacement at the end of this review.) My kitchen sink cabinet, now nearly 20 years old, remains pristine, like new .... and I would like to keep it that way. Water is our beloved friend, a huge part of our bodies, but, as homeowners, water is also our dreaded enemy. Did I really want to add another possible source of a water leak under the kitchen sink? Surveying the product reviews for the Aquasana introduced all sorts of potential leaky nightmares: faulty O-rings, shredded threads, pressure-cracked plastic housings ... Yiiii! But I really really wanted to cut the cord from the spring water company, save some money, and liberate the hall closet from the water cooler and 5 gallon bottles. So, I took the plunge (so to speak) into home-filtered water. So far, cautiously optimistic. Reading the product reviews in more detail, it seems like the bulk of the leak problems may be due to faulty installation. It seems important to hand-tighten only when installing new filter replacements, to be very careful to have the threads engaged properly when putting in the new filters, and - strange to say - to actually read and follow the product literature. Probably the most serious potential problem with the Aquasana units themselves is the tendency for the plastic housing containing the filter units to crack after some years of use. This was noted by several reviews, and is now tacitly acknowledged as an issue by Aquasana, which notes in the product literature you receive with the unit that the housing should be replaced every five years! I may have inadvertently given myself some added protection from these pressure-induced fractures: for reasons not related to the water filter, I recently had to have the water pressure coming into the house (measured originally at about 90 psi) reduced to about 65 psi. That may buy me some extra time against unit aging, although I think it would be foolish and a false economy to not do a replacement as recommended by Aquasana. It should be noted that the Aquasana product literature (but not the web description of the products!) includes these cautions: (1) "Do not install this system where the line pressure may exceed 80 psi." (2) "The filter housing must be replaced every five years. Failure to do so could result in potential leaks ...". A phone number is provided to order the replacement; but the price of the replacement and cost of shipping are not mentioned. Some extra precautions I've taken to protect my under-sink cabinetry (see photo): 1. I had a shut-off valve installed in the shunt (C) going to the Aquasana unit (A) from the main cold water line to the main faucet (B). Now, if there ever is a leak, I can isolate the Aquasana and still have use of the main faucet. The other advantage is when it comes time to change the filters, I can use this added valve to isolate the Aquasana, open the tap on the countertop Aquasana faucet, and thus relieve the internal pressure, which should make it easier to safely remove the old filters. 2. I added a silicone mat with a raised edge under the sink (D), so that if there is a leak it will first collect into this silicone basin; I've also added a wireless water detector (E) inside the mat area which will alarm and also email me if a leak is detected. The YoLink unit I used can detect not only water pooling underneath it, but also water dripping on top of it, which is why it is positioned directly under the Aquasana system. Of course the mat and water detector will guard against any leaks, including from the disposal or the main kitchen sink, so are definitely worth doing anyway. Note that the mat I purchased skirts the main water lines and drainpipe at the back (if you order a mat that includes this area, you not only have to carefully cut holes in the mat, but also - by doing so - you compromise the mat's ability to contain leaks). One note about the taste of the filtered water. I followed instructions and ran the filter unit for 10 minutes before trying to drink the water. The first taste at that point was extremely disappointing. There was a distinct sulfur-like taste to the water that is not present in my unfiltered tap water! I ran another gallon or so of water through the system and the taste was still there, but perhaps somewhat less noticeable. I probably ran another couple of gallons through and the taste was barely detectable, and after another gallon or so I can no longer detect the sulfur taste. So clearly it is a matter of properly and completely flushing the system (and new filter units in the future), and the Aquasana recommendation of 10 minutes is just not enough to do the job. First Filter Replacement, January 13, 2025. The Aquasana performed admirably since the installation described above, and at six months I ordered the authentic Aquasana replacement, AQ-5200R, from Amazon, with a standing order for a new filter every six months. I should note that on removal of the old filters they were gray, compared with the white new ones, suggesting that in fact they are removing something from my city water! The replacement filters arrive with a succinct, but adequate, description of how to swap out the old and replace with the new, and a new button battery to drive the replacement time indicator. The replacement went smoothly, although several of the steps required more strength and effort than I expected. That said, I was finally able to get it done. My wrists are beginning to show a little arthritis, which may have contributed to my struggles. The first challenge was in separating the top and bottom halves of the outer unit that contains the filter; finally I went to one of those thin rubber, cloth-like "grippers", which gave me a grip on the top half, and allowed me to twist and separate. The second challenge was to pull the filter out of the separated top. I'm wondering whether part of my problem was the factory source of the unit ... the fact that the filters had never been replaced before and may have been especially firmly attached. I'll be eager to see whether the next filter change goes any better. I noted in my original review above that I needed to run water through the Aquasana longer than suggested before the water lost a sulfurous aftertaste clearly due to the filter unit. This turned out to be true for the newly installed filters as well. I believe the longer time may be due to the fact that - as described above - my house water pressure was previously adjusted down significantly from the 90 psi that comes in from the city system. Likely this slows the flow rate of the water through the filter system so that more time is required to deliver the necessary volume of water. This time I carefully did some measurements: First, I found that the flow through my Aquasana, at the current, reduced, water pressure of my house, is about 1.5 quarts per minute. Second, I found that I needed to run about 6 gallons of water through the system before I lost the aftertaste. (At the 10 minutes suggested by Aquasana, I had run 15 quarts, or just short of 4 gallons, through the system.) Overall, I remain very positive about the Aquasana. Stay tuned for another update after the next filter change. Second Filter Replacement, Aug. 7, 2025. I continue to be quite happy with this water filtration system. Everything is going well. Once again both removed filters were dark gray indicating removal of something. As I hoped after the first filter change in January, the second filter change - involving replacing filters I myself installed in January - went a lot better, in that it was much easier to unscrew the components to free up the filter units for replacement. This time I didn't need any help from a gripper, nor was there any straining involved. Very smooth; replacement was a breeze. Air bubbles. It is worth pointing out two types of air bubbles that can appear in the filtered water that some might be concerned about. These may not be noticeable unless you collect filtered water in a clear pitcher for use around the kitchen. The first issue is the appearance of cloudiness in the filtered water that transiently appears after about the first gallon or two of water has been run through newly installed filters. The cloudiness is due to very small gas bubbles. Apparently this is gas that is slowly driven out of the dry filters as you run water through them after installation. After a few more gallons there are no micro-bubbles and the filtered water runs clear. The second is the appearance of larger gas bubbles that tend to adhere to the side of the pitcher you collect the water in. The source of these bubbles is the temperature difference between the cold underground water pipes leading to your home and the room temperature the newly filtered water reaches on standing. This is just "out-gassing" due to the solubility difference of gasses like oxygen and nitrogen in cold water ( higher solubility) versus warm water (lower solubility). You will observe this only in a cold climate. I see it here in Pittsburgh in the winter, and not in the summer. Totally normal. Interestingly, public water systems have to install special features in the water delivery systems to avoid problems arising from this out-gassing on a large scale. I don't see any reason to continue to post these biannual updates, so long as things continue to go smoothly with my Aquasana system. Of course if that changes I will update. I may also update when the time comes for the recommended five year swap-out of the basic unit, four years from now.

Sept 26, 2024 This is my 2nd edit of my original review. I must be fair to Aquasana and report that it was OUR ERROR that water stopped flowing from my Aquasana unit. Though we managed to replace the cartridges, we FAILED to line them up perfectly with those little plugs (because the tops spin around). THAT'S why water wasn't flowing! We finally took the unit off the bracket and looked at it upside-down and went, "OHHHH!" NOW we can see what we're supposed to do. So now everything is working great again and I'm once again drinking fresh, delicious water. It makes me wonder now if my niece had dumped her Aquasana (previous post) in haste because she believed it no longer worked, but perhaps she hadn't properly seated the cartridges. We'll never know now. I'm giving my Aquasana 5 stars again! **************************** I first wrote my original review on August 15, 2024, after being in love with my Aquasana unit for 3 years. NOW, TODAY – no water will come out!! My niece – the one mentioned in my original review – came over to change cartridges that I had just purchased, and she did some troubleshooting. She can't figure it out. By the way, she also just recently dumped her Aquasana unit because HERS stopped working! What's with these things? Is 3 years all you get out of them? I'm terribly disappointed but really I'm just downright angry! Now I DO know why they're only coming in at 3.8 stars. **************************** August 15, 2024 I've had my Aquasana unit working for me now for 3 years. I've replaced the cartridges just once so far. I don't know why reviews come in at only 3.8 for this thing. I love mine and give it 5 stars! I would never drink tap water and man I hated buying water. $$$! My niece lives around the corner from me and every couple of weeks she would fill gallon jugs for me using HER Aquasana. I finally bought my own unit and I'm so glad I did. This purified water keeps my Keurig from malfunctioning as I only put Aquasana water in it. My first Keurig took a dump in less than a year because I used tap water in it. So I got a new one and put only Crystal Geyser water in it until my niece started refilling my jugs. I've had this Keurig now for 8 years (same exact model as the first one but I removed that little filter thing) and it's still working great cuz I've never used tap water in it. Heavy metals and deposits are probably why Keurigs are always breaking down. Anyhoo, I drink a lot more water now and it's great having good tasting water at my fingertips anytime I want. No more buying water and having plastic bottles and jugs everywhere! Doesn't matter how much replacement cartridges are because it's still cheaper than constantly buying water. Anyone sitting on the fence about this should reconsider because this makes very good drinking water!

Installed in a little over an hour! Works and looks great! The water tastes awesome.