Water Filters & Softeners

Water filters are a must for any coffee brewer or espresso machine. They will improve the taste of your coffee and espresso, and will protect your equipment.

It is important to remove particulate matter from your water supply both to protect your commercial equipment, and to produce consistent, clean tasting, and sanitary coffee and espresso. In this section we bring you a very simple and inexpensive solution from Everpure. This is a compact low cost in-line filter system that is meant to be used with any coffee brewer or espresso machine if your building's water is not otherwise filtered.

These are compact and low cost precisely because the intended usage is for one coffee brewer (i.e., these are not intended to be used as filters for your entire business' water supply). They can hand conveniently on or near the back of your coffee brewer or espresso machine.

For commercial drip coffee, you will not need a water softener on top of a water filter unless you have unusually hard water. But if you are installing a commercial espresso machine, a water softener is a "must" even if you have a water filter. Calcification is the #1 service issue with commercial espresso machines, and it's completely avoidable by using a water softening unit.

Note that water filters are NOT water softeners. Water filters are for removing all particles that are 0.5 microns or larger from the water. Water softeners, which should also be used for espresso machines, do another job; they remove (nonparticulate) minerals from the water to prevent scaling. This is particularly important in an espresso machine because scaling will alter the flow and pressure in the internals of your espresso machine, and this will ultimately damage the compressor.

If you have a commercial espresso machine, you should use a water softener IN ADDITION to a particle filter. It is best to put the particle filter before the water softener, although the combination will work in either placement.

This compact water filter comprises the filter head, and your choice of filter cartridge. You simply connect the water input and output lines to the filter head, and then screw the filter cartride into the filter head, and you're ready to go. The only difference in the three cartridges is the price, and the lifetime (amount of water to be filtered) for the cartridge.

The OCS cartridge is good for about 1,500 gallons of water which will give you about 3,000 clean tasting pots of coffee. The BH cartidge will last twice as long (3,000 gallons, or 6,000 pots of coffee), and the MH will last three times longer than the BH (9,000 gallons, or about 18,000 pots of coffee). Note that these numbers are "average" numbers for "typical" water. Your water may be better or worse, and the lifetime may vary.

Once the flow becomes at all restricted (and you can use the numbers above as a guess), the cartridge needs replacement. Simply shut off the water supply, remove the old cartridge, and screw in a new one. Turn the water back on, and you're good to go.