Clearly Filtered Water Pitcher Review
When the quality of drinking water concerns you, the Clearly Filtered water pitcher can save the day.
Boasting a simple yet highly functional design, this water filter pitcher stands out with its 3-stage filtration process that removes most contaminants, including chemicals, most pharmaceuticals, heavy metals, and even parasites.
With a capacity of 10 cups, it’s also compact enough to keep on a small countertop or take with you on camping and trips. Curious to find out more? Read our Clearly Filtered pitcher review.
Clearly Water Pitcher Specs
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What Is Clearly Filtered Water Pitcher?
The Clearly Filtered pitcher is a home water filtration system designed for smaller kitchens. In general, it will be a great alternative for:
- people who can’t install a bigger and more complex filtration system, such as the Express Water: Alkaline & UV RO Water Filter or the APEC WFS 1000 3 Stage Under Sink Water Filter
- students sharing dorms with other people, those living in a rented accommodation and who can’t alter anything in their home, the elderly, as well as nomads living in motorhomes.
- people that loves the concept of living in tiny houses.
Small enough to sit on a countertop, it delivers bottled water quality through its filtration stages that removes most contaminants.
Not only this filter is perfect for home use, but it is also portable.
Contaminants Removed
Despite its size, the Clearly Filtered water filter pitcher boasts a 3-stage filtration system capable to remove most contaminants, such as glyphosate, hormones, fluoride, chloride, volatile organic compounds and other tap water impurities.
It also removes bacteria and some pharmaceuticals – although not at the same extent as an under-sink water filter – while a physical filter does an excellent job in removing cysts.
Furthermore, the filter is also powerful enough to remove microplastics as well as heavy metals.
Compared to other filters, we particularly like that it doesn’t remove healthy minerals and nutrients in water, so you can still enjoy the benefits of calcium, sodium, potassium, and other elements needed for the well-functioning of our bodies.
Filter Specs
Most of the pitchers available in the market offer from three (3) to five (5) filtration stages. In this case, the filtration process for this pitcher is as follow:
- Stage 1: the removal of medium to large particles happens at this stage, by the use of a stainless steel mesh.
- Stage 2: GCC (granulated coconut carbon) is used to remove fine particles responsible for bad taste and odors.
- Stage 3: the proprietary composite shell (structurally and chemically designed) is the final stage. Here, the water passes through the micro pores of it, retaining most of heavy metals, organics, inorganics, most micro-organisms and chemicals.
If you need minimal water improvement, I would say a 3 stage process is enough. Nevertheless, consider other options if your potable water (after running a self test please) contains a high level of TDS and possibly a high microbiological activity (sometimes in private wells).
NOTE
I would suggest you review the list of microorganisms this filter removes (almost 100% removal but not all of them).
The downsides:
1. The amount of time the water has to be in contact with the filter has its cons. This is something very common in gravity fed water filters, so be patient.
2. For a filter that removes so many contaminants, it could also translate in a reduce filter life and more money buying replacement filters. Again, check your water quality before investing on it.
Setup, Operation and Maintenance
We know that looking at a water filter pitcher will make you think, how difficult could be to setup, operate and maintain a device like this? We know that some users struggle with at least one of the three (3) points.
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Setup
Thanks to its water pitcher design, the Clearly Filtered pitcher doesn’t have a complicated setup. The unit consists of a large water basin that holds a tap water reservoir.
The filter is installed on the reservoir, and all you have to do is pour unfiltered water into the top container and let the gravitational force do the rest.
A built-in water dam prevents unfiltered water from overflowing while pouring, so you can keep the unfiltered water container full at all times.
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Operation
While the concept and operation are simple, the filtration rate is painfully low. Luckily, the 10-cup capacity of the filtered water basin is enough to cater to the hydration needs of a small family.
Just make sure to refill the water reservoir constantly, to prevent running out of clean water.
A convenient pour spout makes it easy to pour the filtered water in water bottles, glasses, or other containers, should you want to store it in the fridge or in a cooler.
Talking about the actual filtration, the pitcher uses Affinity Filtration Technology to retain the most harmful substances. It can remove up to 99.7% of contaminants, as proved by different independent tests that meet all NFS standards.
Other highlights include an oversized, easy-grip handle, and, as you can expect from a water filter jug, the product is free of phthalates and BPA, so safe to use for the whole family.
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Maintenance
Like most water filter pitches, the Clearly Filtered model requires minimal maintenance. All you have to do is wash the basins periodically and change the filter every three (3) to four (4) months.
A thing that sets this filter apart from the competition is the long filter life. Depending on the water quality in your area, you can expect effective filtration for up to 100 gallons.
Clearly Filtered Water Pitcher Downsides
Overall, the Clearly Filtered water pitcher is exceptional. However, it comes with a few downsides too.
1. Perhaps its main drawback is the filter change guesswork. Sure, you can keep a calendar or sign up for buying filters on a subscription.
Depending on the actual quality of the water in your area, you might have to change it sooner rather than later.
The best way to measure when the filters need to be replaced, it is by observing a reduction in the filtration flow rate (sometimes even after 3-4 weeks).
A change filter reminder would have been a nice addition, considering the product’s price tag.
2. The slow filtration rate is also a pain. While you could fill the reservoir with water in the evening and let it filter overnight, know that it takes over an hour for the pitcher to filter a full reservoir and a few solid seconds to fill a glass.
Whether or not this is a drawback, it’s up to you to decide. Just know that you won’t get instant pure water if that’s what you’re after.
Water Filter Pitcher Comparison: Clearly Filtered Water Pitcher Vs. Zero Water Vs. Aqua Gear
So far, there are three (3) main gravity fed water filters for 2020 that stand out among other countertop water filtration systems. The table below show a list of the main points:
| Factor | Clearly Filtered | Zero Water |
Aqua Gear |
| Contaminants Removed | 230+, including heavy metals, PFOAs and micro-plastics. | Total Dissolved Solids (TDS), heavy metals and some inorganics. | Heavy Metals, Organics and some inorganics. |
| Filter life (gallons) | 100 | 40 | 150 |
| Capacity (cups) | 10 | 8 | 8 |
| Filtration Stages | 3 | 5 | 5 |
| Filtration time (hrs) | 2 – 3 | 2 – 3 | 2 – 3 |
| Cost | $$ | $ | $$ |
From the table above, the following can be observed:
- Filter life: Aqua Gear provides more gallons overtime than the other two (2) brands.
- Stages: less contact time for Clearly Filtered Pitcher.
- Time: it is the same on all the three (3) pitchers compared.
- Price: Zero water seems to be an affordable water pitcher.
From our perspective, Clearly Filtered is a good match against Zero Water and Aqua Gear. Not only it has good basin capacity, but also can remove a few more other contaminants out of the water, such as PFOAs.
PFOAs is a new contaminant that is found in water and can create long term health issues.
Having said that, we would go with this filtration system.
Where to buy Clearly Filtered Water Pitcher?
Based on the investigation we carried out, the price ranges vastly between the manufacturer and other platforms (we are not going to publish costs).
I would recommend buying this filter pitcher directly from the manufacturer, since the tag price is much more affordable (not sure why the big difference) and costumer services would be more proactive.
Wrap Up
This water filter pitcher is one of the handiest products to have in your kitchen. It can remove contaminants from tap water effortlessly, and also purify well water.
The 3-stage filtration can eliminate a wide range of chemicals, as well as parasites and heavy metals.
A built-in water dam inside the top reservoir prevents unfiltered water from spilling out while pouring clean water in a bottle or glass.
Large capacity but compact dimensions also make this water filter perfect for taking with you on trips.
In a nutshell, the Clearly Filtered water pitcher is an excellent choice if you’re concerned about the drinking water quality, but you don’t want to spend a fortune on more sophisticated filtration systems. No doubt, a water filter we recommend.
Images courtesy of ClearlyFilteredTM
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