Reverse Osmosis System Installation & Service

Arizona tap water meets EPA safety standards — but meeting a safety standard and tasting good are two different things. Arizona tap water frequently has TDS levels ranging from 300 to over 700 parts per million depending on your city and water source. For comparison, most bottled water has TDS levels between 50 and 150 ppm. The dissolved minerals that give Valley water its distinctive mineral taste, spot your glassware, and leave buildup in your coffee maker and ice machine are real and measurable — and a reverse osmosis system removes them at the point where it matters most: your kitchen tap.

At American Home Pros of Arizona, we install under-sink RO systems across the Phoenix Valley. We're licensed plumbers — which means we handle the full installation including the water line connection, the dedicated faucet, the drain line, the storage tank, and the refrigerator connection if you want it. One company, same visit, no coordination required.

What Is Reverse Osmosis?

A reverse osmosis system uses water pressure to push tap water through a series of pre-filters and then a semi-permeable membrane with pores small enough to block dissolved contaminants that other filters cannot touch. The purified water is stored in a small pressure tank under the sink and dispensed through a dedicated faucet — separate from your main kitchen faucet — whenever you want it.

The RO membrane has pores so small that it blocks dissolved contaminants including lead, arsenic, fluoride, chlorine, chloramines, PFAS, and excess minerals. Water is pushed through the membrane and up to 97 percent of dissolved contaminants are blocked — including heavy metals, chemicals, and dissolved solids.

The filtered water dispensed through your RO faucet is consistently cleaner than most bottled water, produced on demand, and costs a fraction of a cent per gallon to produce once the system is installed.

Why Arizona Water Specifically Benefits from RO

Most of the country's tap water is hard. Arizona's is harder, and it carries a specific combination of contaminants that makes an RO system more valuable here than in most markets:

What We Install

Under-Sink RO System (most common)

The standard residential configuration. The system sits inside the cabinet under your kitchen sink, connected to the cold water supply line. Purified water is dispensed through a dedicated faucet that we mount on your sink or countertop. A small pressurized storage tank provides instant water at the faucet without waiting for on-demand filtration.

Most residential under-sink systems use 5 or 6 filtration stages:

• Stage 1: Sediment pre-filter — removes large particles (rust, sand, sediment) that would damage downstream components
• Stage 2–3: Catalytic carbon pre-filters — removes chlorine and chloramines before the membrane; protects membrane from chemical degradation; critical for Arizona's chloramine-treated water
• Stage 4: RO membrane — the core filtration stage; removes up to 97% of dissolved contaminants including TDS, PFAS, fluoride, lead, arsenic, nitrates, and heavy metals
• Stage 5: Post-carbon polishing filter — final taste and odor refinement as water leaves the storage tank before the faucet
• Stage 6 (optional): Remineralization cartridge — adds back a small amount of calcium and magnesium to improve taste and raise pH slightly; preferred by homeowners who find pure RO water to taste flat

Tankless/Membrane-Only RO Systems

Modern compact systems use a high-flow membrane that delivers purified water on demand without a storage tank. These have a smaller under-sink footprint, no tank to maintain, and faster flow rates than traditional tank systems. They require adequate incoming water pressure (typically 40 PSI minimum) and produce purified water in real-time rather than drawing from stored supply. We assess your water pressure before recommending a tankless system.

Refrigerator and Ice Maker Line Connection

We connect the RO output line to your refrigerator's ice maker and water dispenser as part of every installation where the refrigerator is plumbed and the distance is feasible. Connecting the fridge to the RO system gives you purified ice cubes and cold water dispenser output — ice made from unfiltered tap water has a noticeable mineral taste that most homeowners prefer to eliminate.

RO Service and Filter Replacement

We service existing RO systems regardless of brand or who installed them. Filter change services include:

• Pre-filter and post-filter cartridge replacement (typically annually)
• RO membrane replacement (typically every 2–3 years in Arizona's high-TDS environment)
• Storage tank recharge or replacement
• Faucet repair or replacement
• Leak diagnosis and repair at fittings, tubing, or the storage tank
• Full system sanitization

What's Included in Every RO Installation

• Water pressure test — we verify incoming pressure is adequate for the system type we're recommending; low pressure may require a booster pump
• Under-sink space assessment — we confirm cabinet dimensions and plumbing access before recommending a system footprint
• System recommendation — tank vs. tankless, stage count, remineralization preference, refrigerator connection
• Full installation — cold water supply saddle valve or tee connection, system mounting, storage tank installation, drain line connection to sink drain, dedicated faucet mounting (including countertop drilling if needed), tubing routing and connections
• Refrigerator line connection (if requested) — tubing run from the RO output to the refrigerator with proper fittings and shutoff
• System flush and startup — we run the system through its initial flush cycle, verify no leaks at all connections, and confirm water is flowing through the faucet before we close up the cabinet
• TDS reading before and after — we test and show you the TDS of your tap water and your RO output so you can see exactly what the system is removing
• Filter change schedule — we give you a written schedule for when each filter stage needs replacement and what to order
• 5-year workmanship guarantee on all installation work

RO Maintenance in Arizona — What You Need to Know

The single most common reason RO systems underperform or fail prematurely in Arizona is skipped or delayed filter maintenance. Arizona's high TDS and chloramine treatment create a more demanding environment for every component in the system.

Pre-filters (Stage 1–3): Replace every 6–12 months

Pre-filters and post-filters typically need replacement every 6–12 months, while the RO membrane lasts 2–3 years depending on water usage and the extreme hardness of Phoenix water. In Arizona, we lean toward the 6-month end of that range for most households. A clogged or exhausted pre-filter restricts flow to the membrane and allows chloramines to contact and degrade the membrane surface — the most common cause of premature membrane failure.

RO membrane (Stage 4): Replace every 2–3 years

The membrane is the most expensive component in the system and the longest-lasting. In Arizona's high-TDS environment, membrane fouling from scale buildup, bacteria, or particulate matter can shorten the membrane's life, particularly when pre-treatment stages are not maintained properly. A softener upstream of the RO system significantly reduces mineral fouling and extends membrane life.

Post-carbon filter (Stage 5): Replace every 12 months

The post-filter is the last line of taste and odor refinement. Replace on the same schedule as pre-filters.

Storage tank: Inspect every 2–3 years

Tank bladders can lose pressure over time, resulting in slow or weak flow at the faucet. We check and recharge tank pressure during membrane replacement visits.

Annual system sanitization

We recommend a full system sanitization every 1–2 years — a cleaning process that flushes the internal tubing and tank to remove biofilm accumulation. Covered under our A-Team Maintenance Club.

We cover annual RO filter changes under our A-Team Maintenance Club — one of several plumbing maintenance items included in the $17.76/month membership.

RO vs. Bottled Water — The Real Cost Comparison

This comes up on almost every RO installation call. Here's the actual math:

A family of four spending $30–$50/month on bottled water spends $360–$600/year. An RO system installed under the sink typically costs $400–$800 for the system and installation — paid once. Annual filter replacement runs $60–$120/year. The system pays for itself in 1 to 2 years and then delivers purified water at effectively zero marginal cost for the following 15+ years of system life.

Beyond cost, the quality comparison is clear: RO membranes filter water at the molecular level, removing 95–99% of dissolved solids along with chlorine, fluoride, lead, arsenic, and the chloramines that typical pitcher filters can't touch. The result is bottled-water clarity and flavor at a fraction of the cost of buying jugs.

And unlike a water delivery service or a case of bottles, your RO faucet never runs out.

RO and Water Softener — How They Work Together

A water softener and an RO system are complementary systems that work at different points in your plumbing for different purposes:

• Water softener — installed on the main supply line; removes calcium and magnesium hardness from all water entering the home; protects pipes, appliances, and fixtures from scale; does not purify drinking water to the same standard as RO
• RO system — installed at the kitchen sink; purifies drinking water at the point of use; removes TDS, PFAS, heavy metals, nitrates, chloramines, and other contaminants; does not soften whole-home water supply

Used together: the softener reduces the hardness mineral load that the RO membrane has to handle, extending membrane life and reducing maintenance frequency. The RO system produces purified drinking water that's cleaner than what softened water alone delivers.

Used separately: a softener alone doesn't purify drinking water; an RO system alone doesn't protect whole-home plumbing and appliances from hard water scale.

Most East Valley homeowners who are serious about water quality install both — softener on the main line, RO under the kitchen sink — and connect the refrigerator to the RO output.

Service Area

RO installation and service across our full territory:

• Queen Creek
• San Tan Valley
• Gilbert
• Chandler
• Mesa
• Tempe
• Scottsdale
• Phoenix
• Anthem
• New River
• Florence
• Apache Junction
• Gold Canyon
• Surprise
• Sun City

Frequently Asked Questions