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How often should you change the refrigerator water filter?

Updated

Short answer

Change the refrigerator water filter every 6 months. If a whole-house filter or a water softener treats the water before it reaches the fridge, you can stretch it to 12 months as long as the flow and the taste stay good. The filter is a cartridge inside the fridge, usually in the top corner or behind the kick plate, and it twists out and in. The swap takes 5 minutes and a filter costs $20 to $60.

Why it matters

The fridge filter is a block of carbon that water passes through on its way to the dispenser and the ice maker. Carbon grabs chlorine, which is most of what makes tap water taste like tap water, along with some of the lead, sediment and other things you'd rather not drink. It can only hold so much. Once the carbon is full, water passes through it without being cleaned, and the filter is just a bottleneck.

An overdue filter also slows the flow. Sediment packs the carbon block and the dispenser dribbles, and the ice maker struggles to fill its tray, so ice comes out small, hollow or cloudy. And a filter that has been wet for months, trapping organic matter, can start to grow bacteria. The water from an old filter can be worse than the tap water it came from.

When to do it more often

The index gives one modifier, and it runs the other way: a whole-house filter or a water softener upstream takes most of the load off the fridge filter, so it can go to 12 months. Watch the flow and the taste, and change it the moment either slips.

Everything else argues for staying at 6 months or going sooner. A big household that fills water bottles all day uses the filter up faster than one that pours a glass at dinner. Water with a lot of sediment, from a well or an old city main, packs the carbon sooner. And a fridge that's been sitting unused for a while, in a vacation home or during a move, needs a fresh filter when it goes back into service, however little water passed through the old one.

What you need

  • A replacement filter that matches the fridge's model number, or the number printed on the old filter

Steps at a glance

  1. Find the filter: in the upper right corner of the fridge compartment on most models, or behind the kick plate at the bottom on others.
  2. Twist the old filter a quarter turn and pull it out, or press its release button, with a towel ready for a few drops.
  3. Pull the cap off the new filter and push it in, turning until it locks.
  4. Run the dispenser for a couple of minutes to flush the carbon dust and the air out of the line, and throw away the first batch of ice.
  5. Reset the filter indicator, usually by holding the button on the dispenser panel.
  6. Write the date on the filter's edge with a marker.

You're done when the dispenser runs clear and steady and the indicator light is off.

Signs it's overdue

  • The filter indicator light, which on most fridges counts months rather than measuring the filter.
  • A slow dispenser that dribbles where it used to pour.
  • Water that tastes or smells off, often of chlorine, which means the carbon is full.
  • Cloudy ice from a struggling ice maker.

DIY or pro

This is as easy as changing a light bulb, and it's meant to be. There's no tool and no shut-off, since the filter housing has its own valve that closes when the cartridge comes out. The only thing to get right is buying the correct filter, and the model number on the old one tells you.

There's no professional service for this, and no reason for one. The one thing worth a technician is a dispenser that stays slow after a new filter, which means the problem is in the water line or the inlet valve, not the cartridge.

FAQ

What happens if you don't change the refrigerator water filter?

The carbon fills up and stops cleaning the water, the flow slows, ice comes out cloudy, and bacteria can grow in the old filter.

Does the fridge water filter light mean the filter is bad?

Not exactly. Most lights count time, not use. Treat it as a reminder to check the flow and the taste, and change the filter on its 6 month schedule either way.

Can I run the fridge without a water filter?

Many fridges take a bypass plug in place of the filter, and the dispenser and ice maker then run on unfiltered water. That's fine if the house water is already filtered.

Do generic refrigerator filters work?

Yes, if they're made for your fridge's model and certified for what you want removed. Match the model number, and check the fit is snug with no drips.