Doing a deep clean of the kitchen means showing some attention to the parts of it you likely don’t think about every day: wiping splatters off the microwave, throwing out items in the pantry that have been there way too long, emptying your toaster’s crumb drawer …
Even if you’re a meticulous cleaner, there’s likely one task that’s been left off your spring cleaning list: changing your refrigerator’s water filter.
If your fridge has an ice and water dispenser, food safety experts say it’s important to regularly change the filter — and you should be doing it more frequently than you might think. Keep reading to find out how often you should do it and what happens if you ignore it completely.
How Often You Should Change Your Refrigerator Water Filter
You may be wondering how the water from your fridge compares to what you get straight from the tap. Is one healthier or safer than the other? Gerald Joseph McAdams Kauffman Jr., the past president of the National Institutes for Water Resources, associate professor at the University of Delaware and the director of the university’s Water Resources Center, emphasized to HuffPost that water from both sources are safe — as long as the fridge’s water filter is kept clean.
Kauffman explained that the main benefit to using the water from your fridge versus from the tap is that it’s sure to be cold (since it’s coming from the refrigerator) and it’s less likely to have a taste or odor. Ever go to someone’s house or a hotel, drink the water from the tap and find that it tastes differently than what you’re used to? Kauffman said this is much less likely to happen if you get your water from the fridge.
Keith R. Schneider, a professor of food safety at the University of Florida, also said that both water sources are safe. “Water from the tap coming from the municipality typically has trace amounts of chlorine in it that keeps bacteria from getting in the water to your home. The water filters in the refrigerator have an activated carbon filter that removes things like chlorine. That’s why the water from the tap can have a taste or odor that water from the fridge doesn’t have,” he said.
James Beix, a food safety expert with J.S. Held, explained that refrigerator water filters work by forcing water through a filtering material, such as activated charcoal or a similarly porous material. “Depending on the construction of the filter, different contaminants are targeted for removal. The simplest filters are designed to remove unpleasant tastes and odors from water, while more advanced filters can reduce contaminants such as lead, chromium and waterborne pathogens,” he explained.
But here’s the thing: All three experts told HuffPost that water filters must be changed regularly to work properly. In terms of how often you should change your fridge water filter, all three experts recommended checking your fridge’s manual, which you can search for online if you don’t still have it. “Most refrigerators have a timer that’s either built on a time basis or a volume basis,” Schneider said. For example, your water dispenser may have a small light that turns red once it’s time for the filter to be changed based on how much time has passed or how much water has been used.
If your fridge doesn’t have a timer, Kauffman said that it’s best to change the filter once every one to three months. Yep, that often. “It’s best to check the filter every month and see if it’s clogged. Or, you might start noticing the water having an off taste or odor. Those are all signs that the filter needs to be changed,” he said.
Changing the water filter is easy and only takes a few minutes. The first step is locating the filter, which is typically inside the fridge. Then, you just remove the old filter and insert the new one.
What Happens If You Don’t Replace Your Water Filter?
Let’s say you neglect to change your water filter. Are you putting your health at risk? “Failing to properly replace the filter can lead to the filter becoming clogged which can compromise its effectiveness. A clogged filter will not be able to effectively trap contaminants, allowing them to pass through the filter,” Beix told HuffPost.
Here’s the good news: The experts all said that the water you’re drinking will most likely still be safe; it just may have a funky odor or taste to it. This, Kauffman said, is because even without the water filter, public drinking water must be safe for consumption.
What’s a bigger risk, according to both Schneider and Kauffman, is getting your water from a water filtration system such as a Brita, or something similar, and never changing the filter. Unlike with a fridge water filter, they explained that when these types of filters aren’t changed regularly, they can become a breeding ground for bacteria, which can lead to some not-fun symptoms, like nausea and diarrhea.
The big takeaway is to not ignore your fridge if it’s signaling to you that the water filter needs to be changed. If your fridge doesn’t have a sensor system, Kauffman recommends writing a date on your calendar every three months to check the filter and change it if it looks clogged (or if your water or ice is tasting weird). That way, you can rest assured that you’re truly drinking the cleanest and best-tasting water possible.