Which fridge filter do I actually need?

Where do I find my fridge filter's code?

It is printed on the cartridge currently in your fridge. Pull the old filter out and look along the body of it: you are after a short code like LT1000P or DA29-00020B. That code, not the fridge's model number, is what you order by.

This catches people out because it feels back to front. You would expect to shop by fridge brand and model, the way you would for an oven shelf. But several different fridges often share one filter, and one fridge model can take different filters across production years. The cartridge code is the only thing that is reliably true about your fridge, so it is the thing to trust.

If the old cartridge is long gone, your fridge's manual will list the filter code, and the code is usually also printed inside the fridge near the filter housing.

What if my fridge doesn't take an internal cartridge?

Then you are looking for an external filter, which fits onto the water line behind the fridge rather than inside it. The SUPERPURE Easy-Fit Generic External filter connects to any standard 1/4-inch water line, which covers most plumbed-in fridges and ice makers.

This is also the answer when you simply cannot find a code. An external filter sidesteps the compatibility question entirely — it is filtering the water on its way to the fridge, so it does not need to match anything inside the appliance.

One honest caveat: an external filter needs a fridge that is actually plumbed into the water supply with a 1/4-inch line. If yours is not connected yet, you will need a connection pipe kit, and that is sold separately.

Can I change the filter less often than twice a year?

Yes, if you move to the Easy-Fit Silver Nano. Internal filters and the standard Easy-Fit cartridges are designed to be replaced roughly every six months. The Silver Nano stretches to around twelve months, or 9,500 litres — about double the life of the standard Easy-Fit.

Whether that is worth it depends on how much you dislike the job. The filtration is doing the same work either way; you are buying a longer interval between the moments you have to remember it.

My water has visible dirt or rust in it — will a fridge filter cope?

Not on its own, and this is worth knowing before you blame the filter. A carbon fridge filter is built for taste, odour and chlorine. Sand, grit and rust will clog it early, so you get a filter that seems to fail long before its stated life.

The fix is to put a sediment filter in front of it. The Easy-Fit Sediment external filter catches those particles first, so the carbon stage behind it can get on with the job it is designed for.

What a fridge filter will not do

A fridge filter improves the water at one dispenser. That is its whole job, and it does it well — but it is not doing anything for the tap at your sink, your kettle, or your shower.

If you want better water at every tap in the kitchen, that is an under-counter system. If you want it at every tap in the house, that is a whole-house system. Neither is an upgrade of the fridge filter; they are different tools for a different question.