How to Change the Water Filter on a Breville Barista

Table of Contents

How to Change the Water Filter on the Breville Barista Express
How to Change the Water Filter on the Breville Barista Pro and Breville Barista Touch
Breville Barista Replacement Water Filters
1. Resin or Charcoal Water Filter
2. The ClaroSwiss Water Filter
Compatibility list of water filters and Breville espresso machines
Breville Barista Express Replacement Water Filter: Charcoal or Ion-Exchange Resin?
Is the Breville Barista Water Filter Necessary?
How Long do Breville Barista Water Filters Last?

How to Change the Water Filter on the Breville Barista Express

1. Remove the water filter from the packaging.
2. Soak the water filter in a cup with cold water for 5 minutes.
3. Rinse the water filter under running cold water for 5 seconds.
4. Wash the stainless steel mesh in the bottom part of the filter holder with water.
5. Insert the water filter into the water filter holder and assemble it. You should hear a “click”.
6. Set the reminder for the month of replacement. It is recommended to replace the Breville water filter every 2 months.
7. Push the water filter holder with the filter into the adapter inside the tank.
8. Fill the water tank with cold water and lock it into place.

How to Change the Water Filter on the Breville Barista Pro and Breville Barista Touch

1. Remove the water filter from the packaging.
2. Set the reminder for the month of replacement. It is recommended to replace the Breville water filter every 3 months (for more information, click here).
3. Wash the water filter holder using cold water.
4. Firmly connect the water filter to the bottom part of the filter holder. Then connect the top part of the filter holder. You should hear a “click”.
5. Fill the water tank with cold water.
6. Submerge the assembled water filter into the water tank and let all air bubbles come out from the bottom of the filter.
7. Let it soak for 5 minutes. Make sure that the bottom part of the filter does not get above the water.
8. Keep the water filter submerged, not letting any air get into the bottom part of the filter, and push it into the adapter inside the tank.
9. Lock the water tank into place.
10. Pull a blank double shot and check the clarity of the water. If it is not clear, pull more shots until the water is clear (it took us three double shots).

TIP: How to Position the Water Filter in the Water Tank
The filter has no front or back side. As long as the longer side of the filter holder is parallel to the machine, you are good to go. But our tip is to keep the month reminder facing the espresso machine. This way, you will have a clear view of the filter change reminder whenever you add water into the tank.

Breville Barista Replacement Water Filters

There are two types of water filters for Breville Barista espresso machines, each mounted with a different filter holder.

1. Resin or charcoal water filter in a tea bag like packaging
2. ClaroSwiss water filter in a plastic container

1. Resin or Charcoal Water Filter

The Breville water filter in a tea bag like packaging comes in two variants. One is filled with resin (Amazon link), small orange balls that act as a water softener. The other is filled with activated charcoal (Amazon link), which improves water taste. In the US, Breville espresso machines come with a resin filter, whereas, e.g., in the UK, they come with a charcoal filter.

Not Sure If You Should Choose Resin or Charcoal?
If you are not sure which one you should choose, click here to jump to the relevant chapter of this article, where you can find helpful tips to select the best filter for your espresso machine.

2. The ClaroSwiss Water Filter

Breville’s ClaroSwiss water filter (Amazon link) consists of activated coconut carbon and ion-exchange resins. The activated coconut carbon makes the water taste better (eliminating chlorine, pesticides, hormones, etc.). The ion-exchange resin reduces the water hardness. It partially retains calcium from water, which prevents the limescale from forming in the espresso machine. Also, it removes toxic heavy metals, like lead. So even though this type of water filter is pricey, you get a much better filtration compared to the smaller resin or charcoal water filter.

Here is a link to the compatible water filter holder on the original Breville website.

Compatibility list of water filters and Breville espresso machines

Disclaimer: Before purchasing, check your existing filter or machine batch code to make sure that the machine is compatible. If you decide to change the type of your water filter (e.g., you want to start using the simpler resin water filter on your Breville Barista Pro), you will have to buy a compatible filter holder.

US MARKET

ClaroSwiss WATER FILTER – Amazon link
(Budget alternative – Amazon link)
Filter Model: BES008WHT0NUC1
the Oracle® Touch (BES990 – Batch 1747 & up)
the Oracle® (BES980 – Batch 1814 & up)
the Barista Pro™ (BES878)
the Barista Touch™ (BES880 – Batch 1801 & up)
Source

UK MARKET

ClaroSwiss WATER FILTER – Amazon link
(Budget alternative – Amazon link)
Filter Model: SES008WHT0NEU1
the Oracle™ Touch (SES990)
the Oracle™ (SES980 – Batch 1750 & up)
the Bambino® Plus (BES500)
the Barista Pro™ (SES878)
the Barista Express™ (SES875 – Batch 1735 & up)
the Barista Touch™ (SES880)
the Dual Boiler™ (BES920 – Batch 1749 & up)
the Duo-Temp™ Pro (BES810 – Batch 1738 & up)
the Precision Brewer® Thermal (SDC450)
Source

Breville Barista Express Replacement Water Filter: Charcoal or Ion-Exchange Resin?

When looking for the Breville replacement water filters, you can find similar filters filled with ion-exchange resin or activated charcoal. So which should you choose? Since they both have different functions, the resin reduces the water hardness, and activated charcoal makes your water taste better, It all comes down to the quality of your water:

• If you don’t have hard water, your best bet is the activated charcoal water filter.
• If you have hard water, you have two options:
  1. Choose the activated charcoal water filter. A regular descaling cycle of the Breville Barista espresso machine will take care of the mineral buildup (to learn more about the descaling cycle, click here to go to our dedicated post). The downside is that you will need to perform the descaling cycle more often. Alternatively, you could opt for an external water softener to treat the water before pouring it into the machine.
  2. Choose the ion-exchange resin water filter, and if you want to improve the taste of your water, use an external activated charcoal water filter.

Is the Breville Barista Water Filter Necessary?

The Breville Barista Water filter is not necessary if you already have properly filtered water. The official Breville user manual of the Infuser (BES840XL) explicitly states on page 23 that “The water filter should be removed if using filtered or bottled water.” (Note: the Infuser uses the small water filter.) So a proper active carbon and ion-exchange resin filtration can substitute the Breville water filter so that you can use your Breville Barista espresso machine without the water filter. As an external filter, you could use this water filter pitcher from Amazon.

How Long do Breville Barista Water Filters Last?

The Breville water filters last for 2-3 months. The Breville Barista water filters should be regularly replaced to ensure a consistent taste of your coffee and to reduce the need for descaling the machine.

The Breville Barista Pro and Breville Barista Touch water filters last for 3 months or 10USgal / 40l of water (based on water hardness level 4) or 15USgal / 60l of water (based on water hardness level 2).

The Breville Barista Express water filters last for 2 months.

Besides changing the water filters regularly, you should also remember to clean Barista’s water tank. If you want to learn how often to clean the tank and much more, check out our Complete Guide to Cleaning the Breville Barista Pro.