We supply and fit under-sink water filters in kitchens across the Sunshine Coast. The filter sits in the cupboard below your sink and can run through the mixer you already have or its own tap. Blue Bourke Plumbing is a licensed plumbing company in Buderim.
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For most kitchens, yes, if you don't like the taste of your tap water or you're buying bottled water. An under-sink filter is designed to reduce the chlorine taste and smell and fine grit in town water. It's hidden in the cupboard, and it costs less to buy and run than a whole-house system.
It only filters the water at the kitchen sink, not the shower or the laundry. And a standard carbon filter isn't the type to rely on for fluoride. If that's what you're after, an under-sink reverse osmosis system is the one to look at.
The filter connects into the cold water line under the sink, so the cold side of your mixer gives filtered water. Nothing changes on the bench and you don't need a second tap. The catch is that the filter also handles the cold water you use for washing up and filling the sink, so the cartridges wear out sooner.
A small filter tap goes on the sink or the bench, and your mixer stays exactly as it is. We drill the hole, fit the tap and run the line down to the filter. The filter only handles the water you drink and cook with, so the cartridges last longer than on the mixer setup.
A twin system has two cartridges. The first is a sediment cartridge, designed to catch grit, rust and fine dirt from the pipes. The second is a carbon cartridge, designed to reduce the chlorine taste and smell. A triple system adds a third stage, usually a finer carbon cartridge, for people who want more filtering. Ask what the third stage does for your water before you pay for it.
An under-sink reverse osmosis system adds a fine membrane, and usually a small storage tank, to the sediment and carbon stages. It's the type designed to reduce fluoride and dissolved salts, which carbon cartridges let through. It takes up more of the cupboard, usually runs to its own tap, and sends some water down the drain while it filters.
Room on the cupboard wall for the filter housings, a cold water isolation valve to connect to, and a clear path for the line up to the tap. For reverse osmosis we also need space for the tank if the unit has one, and a connection to the sink waste, and some units need a power point. A tight cupboard or old pipes under the sink can add to the job.
The worry with any under-sink filter is a housing cracking or a fitting letting go and flooding the kitchen. Most leaks come from a housing that isn't fixed firmly to the cupboard wall, a loose fitting, or an O-ring that's worn or not seated after a cartridge change. For the first few days after an install or a cartridge change, check under the sink for drips.
Swapping a cartridge takes a few minutes with the water turned off at the isolation valve under the sink. Write the date on the housing so you know when the next one is due.
Use the quote form to send a photo of the cupboard under your sink, and tell us if you want to keep your mixer or have a separate tap.
We look at the cupboard and the pipes under the sink, then quote the filter and the install in writing before any work starts.
We fit the housings, then connect your mixer or the new filter tap.
We turn the water back on and test the filter and the tap. New cartridges usually need a flush before the water's ready to drink.
Before we go, you'll see how to change a cartridge yourself and know when the next one is due. We also go through what the manufacturer's warranty covers.
The system sets most of the price: a twin filter costs less than a triple, and reverse osmosis costs more than both. Then the tap: running through your existing mixer is the simplest job, while a separate filter tap needs a hole drilled in the sink or bench. It costs more if pipes need moving or there's no valve to connect to.
Then there's the running cost: the price of each replacement cartridge and how often it's due. A cheap filter with dear cartridges can cost you more over a few years than a better one with cheap cartridges.
The boys from Blue Bourke Plumbing did an excellent job installing my under sink water filter system. They were friendly, professional and helpful. I would definitely recommend them, and will be using them again
Super efficient service installing our water filter, would definitely recommend :)
Grace H.
Chris arrived on time his communication was spot on and did a great job
Coralie W.
Outdoor plumbing installation: After a prior meeting to plan, Chris arrived punctually and worked so hard on every aspect of the pipe laying and fixture configuration. He was so amenable to adjustments and achieving the best visual outcome. Thank you!
Leanne S.
We fit under-sink filters in houses, units and townhouses along the Coast, from our base in Buderim. That runs south to Caloundra and Pelican Waters, north to Noosa Heads, and up into the hinterland at Maleny. One of our recent jobs was a water filter in Coolum.
Send a photo of the cupboard under your sink and tell us if you want to keep your mixer. We'll come back with a written quote.
