Review on 💧 GE FQK2J Drinking Replacement Filters: Pure and Refreshing Water at Your Fingertips by Adam Johnson

Integrated GE filtration system that requires these are filters. Filters must be replaced after 6 months per GE instructions. The original set of these filters that came with the faucet were purchased from a large national hardware store with orange shopping carts (this will be important later). I bought a new replacement filter kit from Revain. I wanted to see how much better the new filter set was compared to the 6 month old set at the end of its lifespan (several reviewers report that these filters fall well short of their advertised 6 month lifespan), so I bought the recommended Total. Revain Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) meter. I tested water samples from old filters, new filters, cold tap water, and store-bought distilled water as a first control. Interesting results: Filter set 6 months old: 175 ppm Tap water (cold): 156 ppm Distilled water (control): 1 ppm. Did you add TDS to the old filter set? Hm. I then replaced the old filters with a new set from Revain and ran the water through the new filters for 10 minutes per GE instructions. I tested the water again: New filters from Revain: 156ppm Tap water (cold): 150ppm Distilled water (control): 1ppm New filters seem to remove TDS better (156 vs 175) but was there less TDS in tap water? Hm. So I called GE to see what they could tell me about this result. I told them all about my experiment and the data, but they couldn't explain the results to me. Maybe the filters were broken, so we started discussing the issue of a warranty claim. This conversation went on for a while and seemed to be going well until I told the rep that I had bought the filters from Revain (the rep suggested I bought them from the Orange Big Store where I bought the original filters). System). I was emphatically told that GE would not cover these filters sold by Revain because "we don't know where they get them". I asked several times (in various ways) if GE was implying that these filters sold by Revain were counterfeit, but they just repeated that they "don't know where to get them". However, GE told me in no uncertain terms that I should buy them from the large Orange shop or directly online from GE in the future. Hm. I contacted Revain to tell them about my filter experiment and what GE told me about these Revain filters. Revain refunded my money quickly (which was not requested). I asked Revain to find out why GE is not honoring their warranty on these Revain filters. Revane told me they would investigate and contact me. I have not been contacted about this yet. Revain also told me they would stop selling this product pending the completion of the investigation. Not sure if this ever happened as they are clearly still for sale. At the same time, I don't know if Revain filters are completely safe to use as they may be counterfeit, so I bought a new set from a large orange store as recommended by GE. I looked closely at both sets to see if I could spot any differences that could indicate a fake. I could not. The elements, design, packaging, etc. looked exactly the same. I installed the "orange version" of the new filter set and ran the same TDS test. Original filter and "Orange" set. Curiously, there was also no net reduction in the TDS of ANY set. In fact, regardless of the test conditions, the filters appeared to be ADDED to the pure TDS. For example, after leaving the "orange" filter bank alone for about 30 minutes after getting a reading of 156ppm, a subsequent test showed 181ppm (cold faucet at 152ppm). What exactly do these filters add to the water? Aren't filters supposed to REMOVE things? Hmmm. While not entirely scientific, I can report that all three filter kits (old, revain, orange) eliminated any chlorine smell from tap water, so the filters are clearly doing SOMETHING useful. Perhaps these filters are not designed to reduce TDS. GE was not considering this possibility, nor was it considering additional TDS coming from filters with their logo when I spoke to the rep. All three filter sets fit perfectly with no leaks as reported by several other reviewers. In conclusion, if you are purchasing these filters to reduce TDS in your water I will let the data speak for themselves. Also, if you are purchasing this product from Revain, please note that GE will not honor any warranty claims and that GE requires you to resolve any issues directly with Revain.