Everything people ask before and after buying. If your question isn't here, email aquapureshower@gmail.com and we'll answer it — and probably add it to this page.
Choosing
What is a shower filter, and what does it actually do?
It's a small housing that screws in between your shower arm and your shower head. Water passes through a filter cartridge on its way to you. The AquaPure cartridge has 20 layers that reduce chlorine, sediment, rust and some trace metals. It doesn't change your water pressure setup, your boiler or your plumbing.
What's the difference between a shower filter and a water softener?
They solve different problems. A water softener is plumbed into your mains and removes the dissolved calcium and magnesium that make water hard — that's what stops limescale in your kettle, your washing machine and on your taps. It costs hundreds of pounds and usually needs a plumber.
A shower filter does none of that. It sits at one outlet and reduces what's carried in the water — chlorine, sediment, rust — rather than the hardness minerals dissolved in it. If limescale is your problem, a shower filter is the wrong purchase and we'd rather you knew that before you paid.
Is a shower filter worth it if I live in a hard water area?
Honest answer: it depends what's bothering you. If it's limescale on the glass and in the kettle, no — buy a softener. If it's the chlorine smell, or grit and rust coming off older pipework, then a £25 filter with free delivery is a reasonable thing to try. We'd rather you bought it for the right reason than be disappointed.
How is this different from a cheap shower head with a filter built in?
A combined filter head replaces your shower head and usually holds a small amount of media. This is a separate housing with a 20-layer cartridge, so you keep the shower head you already have and there's more media in the path. It also means you replace the cartridge, not the whole head.
Fitting
Will it fit my shower?
If your shower head unscrews from the arm or hose by hand, yes. The filter uses a standard ½" (G1/2) thread, which is what UK shower arms and hoses use. It won't fit an electric shower unit with a sealed outlet, or a rain head plumbed directly into the ceiling with no accessible thread.
Will it work with a combi boiler or a gravity-fed system?
It works with either, because it sits at the shower head rather than in your plumbing. What matters is pressure: the filter is rated for 0.1–0.35 MPa and 8 litres per minute. On mains-pressure showers most people notice no difference. On an already-weak gravity-fed shower you may notice a small drop.
Do I need a plumber or any tools?
No. Unscrew the shower head, wrap the supplied PTFE tape around the thread, screw the filter on hand-tight, screw the head back on. Around two minutes. Full steps in the fitting guide.
Will it reduce my water pressure?
The filter is rated at 8 litres per minute. On a typical mains-pressure UK shower most people don't notice a difference. On a weak gravity-fed shower you may notice a small drop.
The filter
Does it soften hard water?
No, and we won't pretend otherwise. Softening means removing dissolved calcium and magnesium, which requires a plumbed-in ion-exchange softener. This filter reduces chlorine, sediment, rust and some trace metals — which is what makes a hard-water shower feel harsh — but your kettle will still scale up.
Will it stop limescale on my shower screen?
No. Limescale comes from the dissolved minerals the filter doesn't remove. Nothing that screws onto a shower arm will stop it.
What's actually inside the cartridge?
Twenty layers. Coconut-shell activated carbon and KDF-55 target chlorine; calcium sulfite, ceramic media, stainless-steel mesh and PP cotton catch sediment, rust and grit down to 1–5 microns. KDF-55 is also used to reduce trace lead and mercury. These are the manufacturer's stated media and ratings.
How long does a cartridge last?
The manufacturer rates the cartridge at 50,000 litres, roughly 4–6 months for an average household. Harder water, more people and longer showers will shorten it.
How do I know when to replace it?
The media discolours as it loads up, and you'll notice the chlorine smell returning. Most people set a reminder for four months.
How much are replacement cartridges?
We don't sell cartridges on their own yet. For now, buying more than one filter is the cheaper route per unit: two or more takes 10% off and three or more takes 20% off, applied automatically at checkout with no code. At £25 each that makes two filters £45 and three filters £60 — £20 each — with free delivery either way. If you'd like cartridges sold separately, email us; enough requests and we'll stock them.
Do I get a discount for buying more than one?
Yes. Two or more filters take 10% off, three or more take 20% off. It's applied automatically at checkout — there is no code to enter, and the price you see at checkout is the price you pay. One filter is £25, two are £45, three are £60.
Can I drink the filtered water?
No. This is a shower filter, not a drinking-water purifier, and it isn't certified for potable water treatment.
How do I know it's working?
The honest answer is that the most noticeable change for most people is the chlorine smell. We don't supply a test kit and we're not going to claim a result you can measure at home. If you notice no difference at all within 30 days, send it back.
Orders and delivery
Which countries do you ship to?
The United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and all 27 European Union member states. If you're somewhere else, the checkout will tell you before you pay rather than after.
If you want your country opened, email us — enough requests from one place and we will.
How much is delivery?
Delivery is free, everywhere we ship, on every order. There is no minimum spend and no threshold to reach — one filter ships free and so do three. That includes Northern Ireland, the Scottish Highlands and the islands, with no postcode surcharge, and every international destination.
How long will delivery take?
For UK orders: 1–2 business days to process, then 7–12 business days to arrive. Orders ship directly from our manufacturing partner overseas, which is why it's slower than a UK-warehoused retailer.
For international orders it takes longer, and customs clearance adds an unpredictable amount on top. We haven't shipped enough international orders to quote a reliable figure yet, and we're not going to invent one. If an order hasn't arrived within 40 business days of dispatch, email us and we'll resend it or refund you.
Will I be charged customs or import tax?
UK orders, no. Any international order may attract import duty, VAT, GST or sales tax, plus a carrier handling fee on delivery. Your own government sets those, they're not included in what you pay us, and we can't refund them.
European Union customers in particular: import VAT applies to goods entering the EU regardless of value — there's no low-value exemption — so expect your carrier to collect VAT plus a handling fee before delivery.
Where is my order?
A tracking link is emailed the moment your order is dispatched. You can also check it any time on the order tracking page.
Can I return it?
Yes — 30 days from delivery, in resaleable condition, wherever you are. If it's faulty or damaged we cover return postage and replace or refund in full. Your statutory rights sit alongside this, and the full detail is in our refund policy.
If you're returning from outside the UK, email us first — international return postage can cost more than the filter did, and there is usually a better answer than you paying it.
How do I contact you?
Email aquapureshower@gmail.com, or use the contact form. We aim to reply within one business day.