What Is the Difference Between Shower and Sink Filters?

Location

• The filter on a sink’s faucet sits on the spout opening. If you look closely, a small ring sits on the spout opening, which you can turn counterclockwise to remove from the spout. The ring holds the aerator assembly in place, which you can dump out by turning the ring over once you remove it from the spout. A shower’s filter sits inside the shower head, instead of where the water exits the shower head. You must remove the shower head from the goose neck water pipe in the shower wall, then look in the shower head’s inlet hole to see the filter.

Function

• A sink’s aerator is in place primarily to remove sediment from the water supply so the sediment does not end up in water used for drinking or cooking. Unless the sink‘s faucet is a low-flow model, the aerator does not slow down the flow of water through the faucet unless it is clogged with sediment. There is a filter disc inside a shower head, as well as a flow restrictor that is found only in low-flow models, since the restrictor actually slows down the flow of water as well.

Filter Pieces

• The aerator on a faucet’s spout may be made up of several parts, or the aerator may have just a screen and body. Some sink aerators have a flow restrictor disc that is similar to what shower heads have, as well as a mixer that introduces air into the water stream, a rubber gasket and a bushing between some of the aerator’s parts. A shower head’s filter may have a flow restrictor as well as the screen, and a metal retainer piece that holds the screen and flow restrictor in place. While you may remove the aerator from a faucet and screw it back in, once you remove the flow restrictor and screen from a shower head, you cannot reinstall them.

Cleaning

• Cleaning a sink faucet’s screen is not as complicated as cleaning out a shower head’s screen. You may need to use pliers to turn the aerator off the faucet’s spout, and when you do you should wrap a rag around the aerator’s body or wrap duct tape around the pliers’ jaws so you do not damage the finish on the aerator. You then turn the aerator’s parts upside down and flush them with water or soak them in vinegar to remove hard-water deposits. You can still use the sink’s faucet with the aerator removed, although sediment may flow into the sink. With a shower head, you can shoot water inside the shower head, but only in the same direction the water normally flows. If you have to soak the shower head in vinegar, you cannot take a shower until you are done.