3M Aqua-Pure Whole House Scale Inhibition Inline Water System AP430SS, Prevents Scale Build Up On Hot Water Heaters and Boilers

Excelente and easy to install

Works with magic and unicorn tears. :o) It is not a filter. It is a water treatment system. The stainless steel head is robust and a nice solid chunk of metal. Easily could withstand brazing/soldering, on the spot, with the cartridge off. The 3/4" NPT inlet and outlet has nearly a clear flow path, so your GPM, will not be reduced. Install a ball or gate valve in front to permit easy cartridge changeouts. The tee must be orientated to the water flow, use the arrow on the side of the tee, for the water to get treated while flowing. There is an elevated tab in the tee with a single hole for directing a small portion of the water down into the center whole of the cartridge. The water slowly dissolves a small amount of food-grade polyphosphate from the beads and, using the venturi effect, the water is then pulled back through the 8 holes in the cartridge perimeter and through the 3 holes in the tee, surrounding the center tab, to mix with the flowing water. Only 2 to 3 ppm is needed to treat for scale. From past uses at a different home, I've gotten about 20,000 gallons out of a cartridge with still some beads rattling in the bottom when replacing the cartridge. I would say that if you used less than 2,000 gallons a month then one cartridge should easily last a year. The cartridge threads are plastic and you can easily cross-thread them if you get in a hurry replacing the cartridge. Just make sure you get the threads started straight and it screws up with no problems. The threads do no provide the seal, it is the o-ring so once hand-tight that is tight enough.

This is a very hard product to review as it will take years for me to know if it really works or not. I bought it because our Rinnai tankless water heater died from excessive scale build up. The model we had didn't have a bypass option for regular cleaning with vinegar. We replaced the Rinnai with a Navien tankless and even though it has a bypass for descaling and a stainless steel heat exchanger, we thought we'd use the Aqua-pure to protect the inner workings of the Navien from the minerals in our municipal water. Will it work? I assume so. I plan to have our plumber clean it out in a year or two and well see what the water looks like. If it's milky when vinegar is run through it, it's a failure. If it's clear, we have a winner. Now, what I CAN tell you is that I was worried about restricted water flow. We have to separate shower head systems in our Master shower. Not two shower heads, two operate valves, so we need a lot of water pressure to use that shower and run another appliance, like a bath tub or washing machine. I'm happy to report that the Aqua-pure barely reduces water flow. Only under extreme and manufactured circumstances does it produce noticeable reductions. In normal use, I honestly don't notice that it's installed. Since water flow is not affected, I'd say it's worth using to protect my investment in a tankless water heater.

2 weeks in so far so good

This turned out to be a simple, effective solution to two problems associated with my well water. At 12.86 gpg of CaCo3 (Calcium Carbonate) or 2.36 gpg above the "Very Hard" threshold, I had problems with calcium deposits in my boiler from the boiler feed water inflow and problems from my hot water throughout the house. Since all the water going to my dishwasher came from a hot water line, water spots on glassware were unsightly. I installed the Aqua-Pure AP430SS just before both the boiler feed and the supply to the indirect hot water tank. The water spots are gone and there are more soap bubbles when showering. A note to those who think the shiny silver thing on the top assembly is an overpriced ¾" SS tee. . . it's more than that. It is a machined casting with a scoop diverter to cause some of the water flowing through it to flow downward into the canister where it mixes with the food-grade poly phosphate in the replaceable canister before it returns through small holes drilled inside the tee to the pipe above where it ties up the CaCo3 as it flows on its merry way unable to plate our as scale. Time will tell, but, I prefer it over a water softener because it is sodium free which seems like a good thing in this stressful world of high blood pressure. Also, it won't kill the beneficial bugs in my septic system. Whew – enough said!

Be sure to flush the filter with something that doesn’t have a fine filters for 5-10 mins or so after installation. I have those electric smart toilets and it filled the bowls with little pieces black plastic and clogged their inline filters. Game changer in water quality. My showers and appliances are as grateful as I am. ZERO spots on the shower doors or sinks.

I hardly ever post reviews, but I must review this item. I purchased this in lieu of a water softener. I have very hard water and really didn't want to deal with salt delivery, so I gave this a shot out of desperation...with low expectations. Over the years, I've tried gimmicks on the market with 0.00% results (electrical coil thing comes to mind). After two months of use, I can say that this in fact does seem to prevent about 75% of hard scale build-up. Instead of hard to remove scale and large sediment chunks in my faucet aerators, I'm seeing more of a white dust. In removal of all my aerators for inspection, I'm seeing about 75% less hard clogging scale. My dish-washer also appears to have a white dust coating inside as opposed to hard scale all over the place. My wife says that the glassware is coming out of the washer much cleaner also. So far, so good. Not sure how long this "filter" will last, but I'm fine with the cost of replacement every couple of months if that's what it takes. Might last longer, not sure yet. Btw...I installed this filter right before water enters my tank-less water heater. Installation is simple...use Sharkbite PTC fittings, tubing and make sure to add a SharkBite ball valve before and after the filter. Pretty simple installation.

Este producto de 3M, en un par de semanas, me libro de las escamas de carbonato de calcio que se forma, al calentar en agua en el boiler. Una maravilla. Ahora aver cuanto me dura, porque dice que solo dura por un año... Espero que sea mas!

I live in a place with fairly hard well water, a septic system and no storm sewer. I've struggled with hard water scale build up for years. I can't put in a tradition salt-based water softener as I can't back flush. My research (as a chemical engineer) brought me to opt for a polyphosphate system. They are very affordable and super easy to install and manage. I have high hopes for this unit from 3M. It's downsides: 1) It seems very expensive for what you get. There's a metal Tee junction pictured above; it has some very fancy internals. There's a cartridge that you screw onto it. That's it; that's everything in the package. You can buy replacement cartridges for ~$40, so you're paying at least $60 for this metal Tee. 2) The price is highly variable, depending on when you look at it on Amazon. I've seen it as high as $130 and as low as $90 from this supplier. 3) The supplier ships via UPS and half the time, UPS can't find my house (they couldn't for this one). If you reliably get deliveries from UPS, this shouldn't be an issue for you. It was for me. 4) Polyphosphate systems aren't supposed to be able to handle "really hard" water. But there's no indication what the maximum hardness is to install this particular system (and I don't know how to measure the hardness of my water) The benefits, so far: 1) On day 1, there was a minor odour in my well water, but that went away by day 3. 2) I find softened water "slimy" somehow. This has not affected how soapy my showers are, or how the water feels. 3) In my short time using it, there appears to be a lot less scale forming on things like kettles. But it is early. Scale takes time to deposit and build up. I know how much I have been descaling various things in my house. Call me in 6 months. 4) It's super easy to install (or retrofit). Just make sure you have isolation valves on each side and a drain valve, too, as you need to shut water off around it and depressurize the line to replace the cartridges. 5) It's super quick and simple to change out a cartridge; 6) Replacement cartridges are widely available, and you can even get them from different manufactures, for about $30. I'm happy to spend $60 a year to get rid of scale. There are other copycat systems available (that use identical cartridges) that are cheaper. Given that what you're really paying for is the metal Tee, maybe they could be considered.

It really works. Effective to the extent of 75% in removing calcification.

Installed a hot water on demand at the cottage, installed the aqua pure in the plumbing going to the tank. Since this is the first year it will be a while to see if there will be a difference. The filter does not impede the water flow, had a little issue threading the filter on the fitting (supplied), easy to cross thread, a little flimsy.

Su instalación ayudó a que no se tapen los monomándos de las regaderas, con lo que no pasaba el agua caliente. Lo uso con un calentador eléctrico y mejora mucho la generación de depósitos.