We install water filters in homes and businesses across the Sunshine Coast: under-sink drinking water filters, whole-house systems, reverse osmosis, and boiling and chilled water taps. We also change cartridges and service the filters you already have. Blue Bourke Plumbing is based in Buderim.
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It depends on what you want to change about your water and where it comes from. If you want better water to drink and cook with, an under-sink filter at the kitchen is the usual answer. It's designed to reduce the chlorine taste and smell and fine grit, and it's the cheapest type to buy and to run.
If you want filtered water at every tap and shower, you need a system on the main line into the house. If you want to reduce fluoride, reverse osmosis is the type designed for that, and carbon filters aren't. For PFAS, pick a filter that's been independently tested to reduce it. On tank water, a filter handles grit, taste and smell, but not germs.
Some homes end up with two: a whole-house system for the showers and taps, and reverse osmosis under the kitchen sink for drinking water.
An under-sink filter sits in the cupboard below the kitchen sink and filters the water you drink and cook with. It can feed your existing mixer, so nothing new goes on the bench, or it can have its own small filter tap mounted on the bench or the sink.
A whole-house system goes on the water main where it comes into your property, so every tap, shower, toilet and appliance gets filtered water. It usually has a bypass valve, so the house still has water while a cartridge is being changed. The worry most people have is losing water pressure. That comes down to sizing: the housings have to suit your water pressure and how much water the house uses at once.
Reverse osmosis pushes water through a very fine membrane after a sediment and carbon stage. It's the type designed to reduce a much wider range of things than carbon alone, including fluoride and dissolved salts. The trade-offs: some water runs to the drain while it filters, it takes out minerals too, and it usually needs room under the sink for a small storage tank and its own tap.
If your home runs on a rainwater tank, as plenty of hinterland homes do, the water hasn't been treated the way town water is. We fit filters on tank-fed homes too. A sediment stage catches grit and a carbon stage deals with taste and smell, and the pump has to be able to push water through them. If you drink the tank water, a UV unit is the usual way to treat it for germs. Its lamp usually needs replacing once a year.
A boiling water tap gives you boiling water straight from a tap at the sink, so there's no kettle to wait for. Chilled and sparkling water taps give you cold filtered water, still or fizzy, the same way. The unit that does the work sits in the cupboard under the bench, out of sight. We fit them in home kitchens, offices and other commercial spaces. Most of these units take a filter made for that model rather than a standard cartridge, and those filters are part of the running cost.
We fit drinking water filters and boiling and chilled taps in offices, shops, cafes and medical rooms, either as a single job or as part of a commercial fit-out we're plumbing.
Every filter needs its cartridges changed to keep working, on the interval the maker sets for that model. On most under-sink and whole-house systems that's usually every 6 to 12 months, depending on how much water you use and what's in it. If you'd rather we did it, book us in and we'll change them for you.
| Under-sink | Whole-house | Reverse osmosis | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Filters water at | The kitchen tap you drink from | Every tap, shower and appliance | One drinking water tap |
| Designed to reduce | Chlorine taste and smell, grit | Chlorine taste and smell, grit | A wider range, including fluoride and dissolved salts |
| Where it goes | In the cupboard under the sink | On the water main outside | Under the sink, usually with a small storage tank |
| The tap | Your existing mixer or its own tap | Your taps stay as they are | Its own tap |
| Water pressure | No change at your other taps | A small drop if it's sized right | Slower flow at its own tap |
| Cartridge changes | Usually every 6 to 12 months | Usually every 6 to 12 months | Pre-filters usually yearly, membrane usually every 2 to 3 years |
| Water to the drain | None | None | Some, while it filters |
| Minerals | Left in | Left in | Mostly taken out |
| Running cost | Lowest | Higher than under-sink | Higher than under-sink |
Change times are a guide. How long a cartridge lasts depends on how much water you use and what's in it.
Ring or use the quote form. Tell us what bothers you about your water, if you're on town water or a tank, and send a photo of the sink cupboard.
We look at where the filter will go and the pipes it connects to, then quote the job in writing before any work starts.
We fit the system, then test it with the water running. New cartridges usually need flushing through before you drink from them.
Before we leave, we show you how the system works and how to change a cartridge. You'll know when the next one is due and what the manufacturer's warranty covers.
The price comes down to the type of system, the parts, the install and the cartridges. An under-sink filter that feeds your existing mixer is the simplest job. A separate filter tap means drilling the bench or sink, which takes longer on stone. A whole-house system costs more, because it goes on the main line and needs bigger housings. Reverse osmosis and boiling or chilled taps cost more again, and boiling or chilled taps need a power point in the cupboard.
What it costs to run matters as much as the price on the day. Before you choose any filter, ask three things: what each replacement cartridge costs, how often it's due, and whether only one company sells it.
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.
I would highly recommend Chris. He fixed a few plumbing issues in our place and was very efficient and prompt with it. He’s very knowledgeable and professional with his work.
Christy A.
I called Blue Bourke to organise a water efficiency test for my rental property. Chris was prompt, able to fit it in the next day and a great bloke to deal with. Definitely recommend
Vincent J.
We're based in Buderim and fit water filters right along the Coast, from Caloundra and Pelican Waters to Noosa Heads and inland to Maleny. Homes near the beaches are mostly on town water. Out in the hinterland, more homes run on rainwater tanks. A recent job of ours was a water filter in Coolum.
Tell us what you'd like to change about your water and if you're on town water or a tank. A photo of the space under your sink helps us quote.
