This page contains affiliate links. If you buy through them we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. How we make money

SpringWell WS1 vs Aquasana Rhino Well Water with UV: Which Should You Buy?

Specs verified 2026-10-05 from manufacturer pages and retailer listings. We have not lab-tested either system.

These two come up side by side in most whole-house well water filter searches, and they are not doing the same job. The SpringWell WS1 is an air-injection iron filter: a single tank that oxidizes iron, manganese and hydrogen sulfide and backwashes them to drain. The Aquasana Rhino Well Water with UV is a carbon and KDF filtration tank with a sediment pre-filter and an ultraviolet lamp, built to handle taste, chlorine-type contaminants, particles and bacteria, and it makes no claim to reduce iron, manganese or sulfur at all.

That difference decides the comparison more than price or warranty. If your water test shows iron, black staining or a rotten-egg smell, the WS1 is the one that treats it. If your test shows bacteria, sediment and taste problems but clean metals, the Aquasana's certified UV stage is the thing the SpringWell lacks. Many wells need both kinds of treatment, in which case the question becomes which to buy first.

SpringWell WS1 Whole House Well Water Filter vs Aquasana Rhino Well Water with UV Whole House Filter: specs side by side

Verified fields only. A row is omitted when neither manufacturer publishes the figure.

SpringWell WS1 Whole House Well Water Filter versus Aquasana Rhino Well Water with UV Whole House Filter specifications
Spec	SpringWell WS1 Whole House Well Water Filter	Aquasana Rhino Well Water with UV Whole House Filter
Model	WS1 (Core, 1-4 bathrooms); WS4 (Pro, 4+ bathrooms) is the larger size on the same listing	WH-WELL-UVS (item 100403461). Owner's manual model WH-WELL-UV (Sep 2025; the earlier manual used EQ-WELL-UV); earlier retail SKU EQ-WELL-UV-PRO-AST included a salt-free conditioner and install kit.
Type	Iron filter	Whole-house filter
Treats	Iron, Manganese, Sulfur; also orange/black staining, rotten-egg odor	Bacteria, Sediment; also viruses (UV, up to 99.8% maker claim), chlorine, chloramines, lead, mercury, asbestos, microplastics, '78 contaminants' (Claryum claim)
Service flow	12 GPMWS1: 12 GPM service flow. WS4: 20 GPM on the product page, but the WS1/WS4 installation manual lists WS4 at 18 GPM service. Page headline says 'Up to 20 GPM with no drop in water pressure'. Removal limits published: iron up to 7 ppm, hydrogen sulfide up to 8 ppm, manganese up to 1 ppm. Operating pressure 25-80 psi, pH 6.5-10.	7 GPMRated flow 7.0 GPM; 'up to 14.7 gpm' peak flow per product page. Operating pressure 20-100 psi per owner's manual.
Capacity	Not stated'10+ year media life' per product page; no gallon figure published.	500,000 gallons500,000 gallons or 5 years; 20 in. pre-filter replaced every 2 months (or 6 months with the optional Low Maintenance pre-filter); UV lamp replaced annually.
Media / technology	Air injection oxidation (AIO) single-tank system; backwashes oxidized contaminants to drain	Upflow dual-tank carbon + KDF (copper-zinc) media with 20 in. sediment pre-filter, 10 in. post-filter and UV lamp
Connection	1 in.	3/4 in. or 1 in. main lines (per product page)
Installation	DIYMarketed as 'ready to install on your terms' with a downloadable installation manual and video walk-through; requires a drain line and 120V power for the electronic head. Bypass valve is an add-on ($58.79). Manual says to follow all applicable plumbing codes.	DIY or proShipped with an assembly kit (Schedule 80 PVC components, drain valve, shut-off valve, tank connections) and a DIY owner's manual, but Aquasana states 'We strongly recommend hiring a licensed plumber'. No drain line or backwash required; UV needs a power outlet.
Warranty	Lifetime manufacturer warrantyLifetime: 'Manufacturer's lifetime warranty against defects' on fittings, media, tanks, housings, bypasses, valves and in/out heads under normal use; registered owner at the original installation address only. Electronic-head term conflict (read 2026-10-06): the Warranty tab on this product page says "Limited Warranty for a period of 5- years" for solid-state electronic heads, while springwellwater.com/warranty/ says "Limited Warranty for a period of 7- years"; both say 10 years for retention/mineral tanks 14 in. or larger. Page badge still reads '6-month money-back guarantee'. Return fine print on the product page: returns accepted within six months only for unused, uninstalled items in undamaged packaging, with a 10% restocking fee (up to 25% for refused deliveries) and shipping not refunded; the "6-month Performance Promise" says installed systems are not eligible for return unless SpringWell determines them defective.	5-year manufacturer warranty'5-Year Limited Warranty' on the product page. Warranty PDF (Sep 2025) coverage table for WH-WELL-UV: Rhino system 5 years / 500,000 gallons; installation kit (fittings purchased with the original system) 12 months; pre- and post-filter housing units 12 months. Registration not required; void if moved from the original installation location; filter cartridges excluded; UV unit covered under its own manual. '90-Day Satisfaction Guarantee'.
Certifications	Not statedNo third-party system certification is stated on the product page. SpringWell's About page says systems are built 'with certified components, made in the US'. Re-checked 2026-10-06: product page text still contains no NSF, WQA, IAPMO or "certified" wording. WQA certified-product database (find.wqa.org/find-products) keyword searches for "SpringWell", "Spring Well", "Wise Water", "BlackComb" and "FutureSoft" each returned zero listings (a control search for "Pentair" returned listings). IAPMO listing directory could not be queried by script, so IAPMO status was not checked. NSF certified-product database (info.nsf.org), searched 2026-10-06: no matching listing found for this model.	NSF/ANSI 55 Class B (UV component)Product page: 'UV Filter is NSF tested and certified to NSF/ANSI Standard 55, Class B' and sterilizes 'up to 99.8% of bacteria and viruses'. Linked UV performance data sheet (May 2026, models AQ-UV-SF / AQ-UV-MF): 'System tested and certified by NSF international against NSF/ANSI 55 for Disinfection Performance, Class B.' Class B is the supplemental-disinfection class, not Class A. Owner's manual (Sep 2025) says only that the Rhino system is 'Independently tested for the reduction of bacteria, viruses, cysts, and other contaminants commonly found in well water'; no NSF/ANSI 42 or 53 certification is cited for the tank. WQA product database (find.wqa.org, read 2026-10-06) returns no listing for 'WH-WELL', 'EQ-WELL' or 'AQ-UV'; its Aquasana Rhino entries are other models (WH-1000, WH-1010, WH-1011, WH-1021). NSF certified-product database (info.nsf.org), searched 2026-10-06: System model WH-WELL-UVS / EQ-WELL-UV is not named in any NSF listing. Aquasana, Inc. (Haltom City, TX) has an NSF/ANSI 55 listing for two UV units only: "AQ-UV-MF \| bulb AQ-UV-510L \| 19 gpm \| Disinfection Performance, Class B" and "AQ-UV-SF \| bulb AQ-UV-300L \| 6 gpm \| Disinfection Performance, Class B", Point-of-Entry[G] [POE], where "[G] Product is Certified to NSF/ANSI/CAN 372" and "[POE] Product conforms to NSF/ANSI/CAN 61 health effects requirements." Whether this row's bundle ships the AQ-UV-MF was not established from the NSF page.
Dimensions	Tank 10 in. W x 54 in. H (64 in. with head); shipping 14 x 14 x 58 in.	57 in. H x 11 in. diameter
Weight	133 lb	Not stated
Price	$2,231 (sale) at SpringWell as of Oct 2026	$1,749 (sale) at Aquasana as of Oct 2026
Stages	Not stated	4

SpringWell WS1 Whole House Well Water Filter

Check price at SpringWell

Aquasana Rhino Well Water with UV Whole House Filter

Check price at Aquasana

What each one treats

SpringWell publishes removal limits for the WS1: iron up to 7 ppm, hydrogen sulfide up to 8 ppm and manganese up to 1 ppm, working between pH 6.5 and 10 and 25 to 80 psi. It does this with chemical-free air injection in one tank: an air pocket oxidizes the metals and gas, the media traps them, and an automatic backwash flushes them to drain. SpringWell gives the media a 10+ year life and publishes no gallon figure.

The Aquasana is a four-stage system: a 20 in. sediment pre-filter, upflow dual tanks of carbon and KDF copper-zinc media rated for 500,000 gallons or 5 years, a 10 in. post-filter and a UV lamp. Aquasana's claims cover chlorine, chloramines, lead, mercury, asbestos, microplastics and what it calls 78 contaminants, plus bacteria and viruses through the UV stage. It does not claim iron, manganese or hydrogen sulfide reduction, so on a typical iron-bearing well it needs an iron filter such as the WS1 ahead of it, and the carbon tank is better understood as a polishing and disinfection stage.

The one thing the Aquasana does that the SpringWell cannot is disinfect: its UV unit is certified to NSF/ANSI 55 Class B, and Aquasana claims up to 99.8% of bacteria and viruses (a maker figure). The WS1 has no UV stage.

Flow rate and sizing

The WS1 is rated 12 GPM service flow for one to four bathrooms, and the WS4 on the same listing is the larger size (SpringWell's page says up to 20 GPM; its installation manual lists the WS4 at 18 GPM). The tank is 10 in. wide and 54 in. tall, 64 in. with the head, at a 133 lb shipping weight.

The Aquasana is rated at 7.0 GPM, with the product page citing up to 14.7 GPM peak flow and 20 to 100 psi operating pressure per the owner's manual. That is workable for a one- or two-bathroom house and low for a larger one, and the pre-filter adds a 2-month change interval to the maintenance calendar (6 months with the optional $174 Low Maintenance pre-filter). The unit stands 57 in. tall and 11 in. across and fits 3/4 in. or 1 in. main lines.

Warranty, certifications and support

SpringWell's warranty is the longer one: a manufacturer's lifetime warranty against defects on fittings, media, tanks, housings, bypasses, valves and in/out heads under normal use, with the electronic head limited to 5 years per the product page (7 per SpringWell's warranty page) and the warranty tied to the registered owner at the original address; returns are accepted within 6 months only for unused, uninstalled items, with a 10% restocking fee. Aquasana offers a 5-year limited warranty (5 years or 500,000 gallons) on the Rhino system, with 12 months on the installation kit and the pre- and post-filter housings, void if the system is moved, with cartridges excluded and the UV unit covered under its own manual; the satisfaction guarantee is 90 days.

On certifications the order reverses. No third-party NSF/ANSI system certification is stated on the WS1 product page; SpringWell's About page says its systems are built with certified components. Aquasana's UV stage carries an NSF/ANSI 55 Class B certification on the product page, although the Rhino tank is described only as independently tested, the pre-filter is marked not NSF certified in the manual's parts list, and no NSF/ANSI 42 or 53 certification is cited for the 78-contaminant claim. Class B is the lower UV disinfection class, not the Class A rating meant for water known to be unsafe.

Price, install and running cost

The WS1 was $2,231.25 at springwellwater.com as of Oct 2026 (sale; regular $2,625.00). SpringWell requires a $134.25 Well Water Test Level 1 plus Bacteria add-on and holds the order until the results are approved, the bypass valve is a $58.79 add-on, and shipping is free. The Aquasana was $1,749.00 at aquasana.com as of Oct 2026 (sale; MSRP $3,498.00), with the Pro-Grade Bypass Kit a $124 option.

Install and upkeep differ in kind. The WS1 is marketed as a DIY install with a manual and video but needs a drain line for the backwash and a 120V outlet for the Bluetooth head; after that, SpringWell gives the media a 10+ year life with no scheduled consumable. The Aquasana needs no drain or backwash, only an outlet for the UV, but Aquasana strongly recommends a licensed plumber, and you will buy a pre-filter every 2 months and a UV lamp every year. Over five years, cartridges and lamps eat into the Aquasana's lower purchase price.

Verdict

Let the water test choose. Iron, manganese or sulfur in the result means the SpringWell WS1, because the Aquasana does not treat them; its 12 GPM rating, lifetime warranty and near-zero consumables make it the stronger whole-house core for most wells, which is why it ranks first on our list. A bacteria result with clean metals, or a house that already has an iron filter, is where the Aquasana Rhino Well Water with UV earns its place: it is the only one of the two with a certified disinfection stage, it costs less up front, and it needs no drain. If you have both problems, the realistic plan is the WS1 first and a UV stage after it.

Both systems have full spec pages: SpringWell WS1 Whole House Well Water Filter and Aquasana Rhino Well Water with UV Whole House Filter. For the wider field, see the ranked list, and size either one against your flow with the sizing guide.

Frequently asked questions

Does the Aquasana Rhino Well Water with UV remove iron?

No. Aquasana's product page does not claim iron, manganese or hydrogen sulfide reduction for this system; its claims cover sediment, chlorine-type contaminants, metals such as lead and mercury, and bacteria and viruses through the UV stage. On a well with iron, it belongs after an iron filter.

Does the SpringWell WS1 kill bacteria?

No. The WS1 is an air-injection filter for iron, manganese and hydrogen sulfide and has no disinfection stage. SpringWell sells a separate UV system, and it is the Aquasana's UV stage, certified to NSF/ANSI 55 Class B, that treats bacteria in this comparison.

Which one is easier to install?

The Aquasana needs no drain line or backwash, only an outlet for the UV lamp, but Aquasana strongly recommends a licensed plumber. The WS1 is sold as a DIY install with a manual and video but needs a drain line and a 120V outlet, and the bypass valve is sold separately. Neither is a weekend job for someone who has never cut into a main line.

Which has the better warranty?

SpringWell: a lifetime warranty against defects on tanks, media, valves and heads (5 years on the electronic head per the product page, 7 per the warranty page), against Aquasana's 5-year or 500,000-gallon limited warranty with a 90-day satisfaction guarantee. Both are void if the system is moved from the original installation, and SpringWell's 6-month return window covers only unused, uninstalled items, with a 10% restocking fee.

Need it installed? Find a well water pro