We have spoken with the well company before and apparently the sediment issue is very common in our area. Our next door neighbor has the same issue. blindsta- thanks for the recommendation! It looks like exactly what we need(we'll probably use 1 for the house and 1 for the irrigation system). Was it a DIY installation or did you just have a plumber install it?

Filters are usually compatible across brands of canisters, but there are exceptions. Move your filter canister closer to the keyboard so I can see it. I have no idea what you have but if you look down the bottom of the canister you should see a nipple sticking up and that is what centers the filter on the bottom. Regarding your inherited filter... there is a vast amount of water treatment hardware that is inherited when a house is bought and sold. Some of it is there for a reason and some of it is there because the previous homeowner experimented in solving a problem they didn't understand and didn't solve. That the filter is there neither makes it appropriate or correct or incorrect unless a water test is done to determine what is in the water and what you want/should remove or treat. We started to discuss this in your first filter thread and unless you get a comprehensive water test there is no correct answer regarding whether a filter is needed at all. I can say that 5 micron is unusual at POE and unless there is a specific reason for it that filter will cause more harm than good and that without pressure gauges before and after the filter housing when to change the filter is a blind guess... but I said that before and we still don't know whether the filter is necessary. As I recall, you have a softener that you don't know is working correctly, have a filter that you don't know that you need, and in your Newbie water softener swap advice post you said "I know nothing about water softening so any advice or warnings are welcomed..." yet the same questions travel from one of your threads to another and the advice you're given doesn't seem to suit you. This post was edited by justalurker on Mon, Aug 19, 13 at 11:43

You need to isolate the filter - close the inlet / outlet 1/4 turn ball valves. I see the outlet valve just to the right of the filter. I see the supply valve down by the blue tank. Press the red button - this will release the water pressure, and a little water. You can change the filter as you described. Be sure to run the cold water for a bit - sometimes a new filter will be cloudy for a short period of time. I don't know what the reset button is for. Where is it located? Looks like a wood floor in the background?

We get the black sand like sediment with our well water. Our sediment filter is after the pressure tank. We have a clear canister which helps to know when it is time to change the filter. We buy pleated filters from Discount Filters.