Culligan FM-25 Faucet-Mount Advanced Water Filtration System, 200 Gallon, Chrome

I would have loved to buy the chrome colored one but when I bought my filter system - the chrome was $10 more - and I got an entire spare filter for that - so I had a big problem with feeling ripped off if I went for the chrome. Seriously - like $18.86 versus $30 bucks. So I settled for the white. My fridge is near the sink and it is white - so at least it matches something in my kitchen.Anyway - I had used Brita filters for years and years and years as they were available in BJ's and Costco - so super easy to pick up more filters. Then about a year and a half ago - my Brita just sort of burst and spewed water at me and all over my kitchen sink area. I then decided to try Culligan as Consumer Reports voted it the best sink filter - although it was quite a few years back when they were awarded that honor.Other reviews complained about the filter being hard to loosen to change - so before I even installed the system - I took the filter off and put it back on. I must admit the filter that came attached to the system was tight - but with a rubber dish glove on each hand for traction - I was able to get it off. When I put a new filter on I do tighten it securely - but don't go all Hercules on it - so I have had no issue getting the filters back off - again wearing a pair of rubber dish gloves for traction.Compared to my old Brita - the Culligan is SO much EASIER to use. Pulling the little pin out and then automatically having it retract when you turn the water off is so much better than Brita. Plus my Brita was always loosening and sometimes fell off the faucet because you had to handle the whole thing to turn the filter on. My Culligan has never ever loosed off the tap. Plus one handed operation is super easy.A huge plus for me is that my sink faucet is curved - so this Culligan system literally tucks out of my way fully under the faucet. If you have a curved faucet - totally get this - you will be so happy. Stays out of my way with cooking and doing dishes and everything - you practically do not even notice it is on the faucet at all because it is tucked away.The filters seem to last a loooooong time too - I just changed mine for the New Year - even though it was still decent after about 5 or 6 months. Change it when you need to, I say.Totally recommend - although I still have a HUGE problem with Culligan's insane mark up for the chrome colored system...

My town is currently going through upgrades to most of the water mains around my house. This has caused our water to take on a horrible chlorine like smell and sour taste. The water department told us that it is just the residual ......(they never explained what the residual is!!) and that the smell and taste would be gne within a few days. After a full week and living off of bottled water, I decided to give this faucet water filter a try due to its low price.I got the filter and had it installed in under 30 seconds. For me, that is huge as I am petrified of anything plumbing related. For anyone with modern plumbing this filter just screws on to your existing faucet with no tools necessary. If you have an older faucet, this comes with multiple attachments that are supposed to fit most other connections. I can't comment on that as mine went on without needeing them.Once it is installed you need to run the water for about 10 minutes or so to completely clean out the filter and then you are ready to go. To activate the filter you need to pull out the metal tab. Once the water is shut off, the tab automatically returns to its closed position so the filter is shut off. The water will automatically run through the normal faucet until you pull the tab agin for filtered water.After my filter was "cleaned" I filled to glasses with water. One from the unfiltered tap and one from the filter. The unfiltered water had the horrible chlorine smell and sour taste(and waht appeared to be a lot of sediments). The filtered water had zero smell, no sediments and tasted, well...didn't really have a taste at all. Just plain water which is what I expect from my water!So far, I am very happy with this filter. I will post back once I need to change out the filter (2 months or 200 gallons) to give an update if I have any problems. But for now, the price can't be beat to get great tasting and clean water from my tap. And I am happy I don't have to spend $1 or more per gallon for water at the market which, in my opinion, is no better than most tap water.Update: February 18, 2009*****After a full two months of use I can say that my initial impressions have not changed. The water filter has continued to operate as expected and I find myself drinking more water than in the past due to the clean taste.My only issue is with replacement cartridges. The only place I can find them is here on Amazon. Problem is that the seller has them listed for $9.50 or so plus $7.50 for shipping bringing the total cost to $17.00 (or my original purchase price of the unit itself. The listing only states one filter so the cost to replace a filter is the same as buying an entire unit.Amazon recently reduced the price of the whole unit to $14 and change. Because of this, I find it cheaper to just buy the entire unit rather than just the filter. I get free shipping from Amazon so I ended up buying two more units. Hopefully the filters will become available through Amazon (as the seller) so we are not hit with shipping charges that are almost as much as the filter itself. Otherwise, I will end up with a ton of leftover parts!