Pentair Pentek GAC-BB Big Blue Carbon Water Filter, 10-Inch, Whole House Heavy Duty Granular Activated Carbon (GAC) Replacement Cartridge, 10" x 4.5"

I accidentally purchased this blue GAC-20BB filter instead of my usual RFC-20BB whole house filter which claims to allow more pressure through. I was worried at first but given I had already opened the blue filter anyhow I figured I'd try it. I have not noticed any pressure decrease from the usual and showers are just fine. Writing this review to tell others not to worry. I'll make sure to get the RFC next time.

Hard to find in stores

No other filter I've tried in thirty years can match this filter's ability to clean water. I mean CLEAN! It removes EVERYTHING they say it will and leaves your water tasty and clear . . . for the most part. However, if you got any clay in your water, well, clay particles, as you may know, are, like, .0001 microns in size and will sail right through this filter and most others too. But, over, all it's a dandy filter.

These are "odor and taste" water filters comprised of granulated activated carbon.The work great, but MUST be preceded by pleated paper filters (also sold by Pentair). The paper filters remove particulates which would quickly clog these more expensive filters.We have been using both for about 30 years (only recently bought them from Amazon). We have well water containing manganese oxide--a fine black material.How long do they last? That depends on how much water you use. But, we find changing the paper filter quarterly, allows us to change the carbon filter every 6-8 months.Finally, to use these filters you must also buy the containers they fit into and plumb the system into your water supply. Strongly, recommend putting in a bypass so you still can have water while someone in your family is replacing the cartridge. Also be sure to have a drain, so you can the drain the holders.For us, the process takes 30-45 minutes depending on whether we are replacing one or both filters and whether we have been good and not allowed them to get too fouled. Cleaning out the cartridge holder is the most time-consuming part of the job. And, remember when you remove the top, the filters are filled with water. So be prepared. Have a medium garbage bag at the ready for the spent filter. And, have lots of paper towels.Last tip, don't lose that o-ring. Be sure to clean it thoroughly and the groove it sits in. Then use Vaseline liberally to grease it before reinstalling it.Invest in a big jar of the generic stuff from CVS, etc.Not fun, but worth the effort if you want clear, good tasting water.

Working perfectly after replacing these on my well prefilters.

Shipped fast! Installed fast!Worked beautiful!

Easy install. Make sure you have some spare gaskets for your Big Blue. Need to rinse several gallons of water through the filter before the water is clear of charcoal, but that's expected. I like that this filter can provide full faucet flow rate so that nobody is waiting for a glass of water. The best part is that the water tastes great!

Installed this carbon filter with 2 pleated filters in my (3) filter "big blue" setup. Been doing this for 14 years in my home. Immediately upon finishing up the install I noticed a major pressure drop across the filters but most specifically from the input to the output of the carbon filter. Pulled this carbon filter back out and realized that it had physically squished/crunched down and had stress marks in the plastic (after 5 min MAX). Removed it from the system and everything was back to normal. RETURNED this back to amazon. Will go back to the big blue carbon filters that I never had issues with before. The price and ease of Amazon was appealing but the filter was a problem right out of the box.