I previously had a water softener along with a whole house filter. The whole house filter only had a pleated filer in it to remove large p;articles if I tried to use a 20 micron filter the Iron in my water would plug it up in less than a week. That's how bad my water is and the sulfur smell is just disgusting. I Installed this water softener along with a new style filter.The filter is another whole house filter put out by Aquashure also. The installation for me took some time because I removed all the plumbing that was previously there, a whole house filter along with a water softener that was leaking. The installation was fairly easy to install. I would recommend purchasing the stainless steel hoses along with the water softener. I would also highly recommend the purchase of this water softener. It's a fairly decent price and the quality of the water I have now is just amazing. My body actually feels clean when I get out of the shower, My clothes are already getting brighter and the sulfur smell is also gone. I would highly recommend the purchase of this water softener and also the whole house filter they recommend. My water was horrible before, lots of Iron, everything would turn orange along and sulfur smell. I have none of that anymore. My water is extremely sparkling now I can't say enough on how happy I am with the turnout. a very happy customer.