Review: Dupont WFPF13003B Standard Whole House Water Filter
Written by: Gene Fitzgerald // Expert Fact-Checking: Buddhini Dolapihilla, MBSS // Last Updated: Aug 4, 2023
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The Dupont WFPF13003B Standard Whole House Water Filtration System is about as barebones as it gets when it comes to whole house water filters, but its impressively low price could make it an intriguing option for the budget-conscious shopper.
With its low maintenance requirements, ease of swapping between filter cartridge types, and NSF certification, the system merits a second look.
Let’s take a closer look at the system and compare it to several other whole house water filters.
Contents
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Dupont WFPF13003B Standard Whole House Water Filter |
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| Price: | $ |
| Filter Media: | Sediment Filter (10 Microns) |
| Filter Life: | 15,000 gal |
| Flow Rate: | 5 gpm |
| Annual Cost: | ~$30-60 |
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Overall Rating: 3.5/5.0 ⓘRating based on filtration performance, filter life, price and yearly cost, NSF testing/certification, customer support, product warranty, our testing/experience, user feedback, and other factors.
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Dupont WFPF13003B Standard Whole House Water Filter System – All Specs
- Model: Dupont WFPF13003B
- Annual Maintenance Cost: ~$30-60
- Filter Media/Process: Sediment Filter (10 Microns)
- Flow Rate: 5 gpm
- Filtering Capacity: 15,000 gal
- WxHxD: 5″x13.75″x5″
- Weight: 2.94 lb.
- Water Temperature: Up to 100 °F
- Water Pressure: 30-100 psi
- Fitting: ¾”
- NSF Certifications: Standard 42 (Material Safety and Structural Integrity)
- Warranty: 3 Years
Dupont WFPF13003B – Key Features
The Dupont WFPF13003B is a basic whole house water filter system designed to remove sand, silt, and other sediment from your home’s water supply. It offers barebones sediment filtration at a reasonable price point.
Sediment removal will extend the life of your water-consuming household appliances like your washing machine and dishwasher as well as protect your plumbing.
The system comes bundled with a 500 series cartridge poly block filter with a 15,000-gallon capacity, but this can be swapped with any standard-sized 10-inch cartridge should you wish to upgrade the filter’s performance.
Dupont sells several cartridges in the ‘WFP’ series that are compatible with the system, but you can also opt for a third-party cartridge if you wish.
The system features a 5 gallon per minute flow rate, which is on the low side for a whole house system. Realistically, this is only enough capacity to handle one bathroom, so larger homes would require a bigger system to avoid low-pressure issues.
The system comes with a 3-year manufacturer’s warranty, which although not groundbreaking, is still nice to have for a budget system like this.
Dupont Whole House Water Filter Pros
The biggest advantage of this Dupont whole house water filter is its low cost. Retailing for way less than $50, the system is about as cheap as it gets, even when compared to other basic sediment filters.
Annual cartridge replacements will run you between $10 to $50 depending on the cartridge type and usage level, so ongoing maintenance costs are also minimal.
Swapping filters is effortless – with a large red pressure-relief button on the filter head designed to stop the flow so you can change filters without making a mess.
The system is also highly versatile, with the ability to change between different filter types. Dupont sells a carbon/sediment hybrid filter for removing chlorine taste and odor, which can be a useful upgrade to the system.
What Contaminants Are Being Removed?
The exact contaminants removed will depend on the specs of whichever cartridge you have installed. The universal whole house poly cartridge that comes with the system, for example, will remove sediment, rust, and sand down to 10 microns, which is fairly good for a cheaper system like this.
Other cartridges will remove varying degrees of sediment and/or chlorine taste and odor depending on the model selected.
The Dupont WFPF13003B – learn more on Amazon.com
Installation
DuPont’s WFPF13003B Standard Whole House Water Filtration System is fairly easy to install providing you have basic plumbing and DIY skills. Additionally, detailed installation instructions and illustrations are provided in the manual. The only issue: There is no built-in bypass valve, so if you want a bypass you will have to create one yourself.
Please consider these instructions as a general guideline. Always make sure to check and follow your user manual before getting started.
Tools and materials needed:
- Adjustable wrenches
- Pipe wrench
- Pipe cutter or hacksaw
- Metal file
- Pencil or marker
- Plumber’s tape
- Silicone grease
- Pan or bucket
- Compression fittings/valves
- Grounding kit (optional)
Before installation, make sure to determine the size of fittings and valves you’ll need by measuring the existing pipe diameter. Choose a location away from sunlight and with enough clearance below the system to change cartridges.
To install the Dupont WFPF13003B:
- Turn off the main water supply line to your home.
- Purge the water remaining in the pipes by turning on all the faucets in your home and draining them.
- The exact setup of the fittings and valves will depend on the type and diameter of your pipe so consult the manual for specifics (3/4” copper, 1” copper, 3/4” PVC, 1” PVC).
- Now assemble the entire system including the fittings and valves required. Measure the length of the system. Reduce this measurement enough to allow for engagement between the fittings and pipe.
- Mark the section of plumbing to be removed and then cut it with a pipe cutter or hacksaw. Remove any rough edges using a file.
- Align the system head so that inlet and outlet are in the correct positions. The ‘in’ port on the system head should be facing the incoming water.
- Allow the system to temporarily hang in place while you apply plumber’s tape or sealant to the fittings and lines.
- Make the connections and tighten the fittings.
- Use the included mounting screws to attach the mounting bracket to the wall.
- Now, insert the filter cartridge over the standpipe at the bottom of the filter housing.
- Screw the filter housing back into the head. Hand tighten and turn a ¼ turn with the included filter wrench.
- Now, slowly turn the main water supply back on and then press the red pressure relief to release any trapped air.
- Check for leaks between the system head and the filter housing and on the inlet and outlet ports.
- Finally, flush the system for at least 40 minutes before use.
The Package (Parts)
- Filter System Head
- Filter Housing
- Filter O-Ring
- Filter Cartridge
- Housing Wrench
- Mounting Bracket
- 4x 3/4″ Mounting Screws
- 4x 2″ Mounting Screws
Maintenance
The only regular maintenance required with the Dupont WFPF13003B is changing the filter cartridges periodically.
To change the filter cartridge:
- Shut off the main water supply to your home and then open all faucets in your home to drain the lines.
- Press the red pressure-relief button on top of the filter system.
- Use the included wrench to unscrew the filter housing. Keep a bucket handy to catch any water.
- Remove the used filter cartridge.
- Rinse out the bottom of the filter housing and add enough water to fill the housing 1/3 full. Then add 2 tablespoons of bleach and clean the housing and system head with a clean cloth.
- Rinse out the bleach mixture.
- Remove the O-ring, wipe it clean, and then add silicone grease to lubricate it. Then place the O-ring back into the groove in the filter housing.
- Now insert the new filter cartridge over the standpipe in the filter housing bottom. Then, screw the housing back into the system head and hand tighten. Use the filter wrench to tighten a ¼ turn.
- Slowly turn on the main water supply. Then press the red pressure-relief button to release the trapped air.
- Check for leaks and turn on the nearest faucet for 40 mins to flush the system.
Manual
Here is a link to the official manual:
https://images.thdstatic.com/catalog/pdfImages/90/90eb7b78-734d-48c3-be31-e29a7248aeb2.pdf
NSF and Other Certifications
The WFPF13003B is tested and certified according to NSF/ANSI Standard 42 for material safety and structural integrity – at least that’s what the description says. We couldn’t verify this.
Earlier Product Versions
The DuPont WFPF13003B Standard Whole House Water Filtration System has no earlier versions as far as we know.
Dupont Whole House Filter Cons
The system’s biggest drawback is its low flow rate of just 5 gallons per minute. While it’s marketed as a whole house system, in reality, the system would only be appropriate for apartments/condos or small houses with 1 or 1-5 bathrooms max.
Some users had issues with the system failing when exposed to freezing temperatures, but as the system is not designed to handle freezing this is not a serious concern.
Other users had issues with the system leaking from the mounting screws attached to the system head or the pressure relief button. Leaks like this would be a major headache, but as the number of users affected was small, it does not seem to be a widespread issue.
Our 2 concerns are the missing bypass valve and the fact that we couldn’t verify the NSF standard 42 certification. That said, NSF testing isn’t that important for a sediment water filter.
Dupont WFPF13003B Review: Our Verdict + Best for
Overall, the Dupont WFPF13003B whole house water filter would work well for basic sediment removal in apartments and small houses. As the flow rate is too small for anything more than a single bathroom, the system is not truly a “whole house” system as it’s advertised.
Our Rating in Detail:
- Filtration Performance: 3.0/5.0
- Filter Capacity (Life): 3.0/5.0
- Purchase Price: 5.0/5.0
- Annual Cost: 5.0/5.0
- Overall: 3.5/5.0
Comparison to Other Whole House Water Filters
Finally, let’s take a look at two other whole house water filtration systems to give you a better idea of how the Dupont WFPF13003B stacks up against the competition.
SpringWell CF |
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| Price: | $$$ |
| Filter Media: | 5-Micron Sediment, Catalytic Carbon, KDF |
| Filter Life: | 1,000,000 gal or 6 Years |
| Flow Rate: | 9-20 gpm |
| Annual Cost: | ~$40 |
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Overall Rating: 5.0/5.0 ⓘRating based on filtration performance, filter life, price and yearly cost, NSF testing/certification, customer support, product warranty, our testing/experience, user feedback, and other factors.
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Kind E-1000 |
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| Price: | $$ |
| Filter Media: | 5-Micron Sediment, Catalytic Carbon Block |
| Filter Life: | 12 Months |
| Flow Rate: | 15 gpm |
| Annual Cost: | ~$145 |
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Overall Rating: 4.5/5.0 ⓘRating based on filtration performance, filter life, price and yearly cost, NSF testing/certification, customer support, product warranty, our testing/experience, user feedback, and other factors.
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Dupont WFPF13003B Standard |
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| Price: | $ |
| Filter Media: | Sediment Filter (10 Microns) |
| Filter Life: | 15,000 gal |
| Flow Rate: | 5 gpm |
| Annual Cost: | ~$30-60 |
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Overall Rating: 3.5/5.0 ⓘRating based on filtration performance, filter life, price and yearly cost, NSF testing/certification, customer support, product warranty, our testing/experience, user feedback, and other factors.
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Firstly, the SpringWell CF is a whole house tank-based filter system with a 5-micron sediment pre-filter to remove large particles, a KDF media bed to remove chlorine and heavy metals, and a catalytic carbon filter to remove chlorine/chloramine, VOCs, herbicides, pesticides, PFAS, and more.
The system features significantly higher flow rates of between 9 and 20 gallons per minute depending on the size selected. These units provide true ‘whole house’ filtration and can accommodate up to 6+ bathrooms.
Next, the Kind E-1000 is a 2-stage cartridge-based filter system with a 5-micron sediment pre-filter followed by a catalytic carbon filter block. As it’s a cartridge-based system it requires annual filter changes, which run about 145$ per year. It features a 15 gallon per minute flow rate – enough for both small and large-sized homes.
Comparing the Dupont to the above two systems shows that while the Dupont system is much less expensive, it only provides a baseline level of filtration. The included cartridge will only remove sediment and other large particles, and even if you upgrade to a carbon/sediment filter, you still won’t get anywhere near the performance of the SpringWell or the Kind.
Overall, both the SpringWell and the Kind would make better whole house filter systems for the majority of users (also thanks to the long satisfaction guarantee and limited lifetime warranty), but if budget is your primary concern then the Dupont merits consideration.
This completes our review of the Dupont Standard whole house water filtration system. If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to leave a comment below!
About the Author Gene Fitzgerald
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