Bissell 1132A Water Filter
$12.99
Product details
Part 1603521 is the water filter Bissell lists for its Symphony steam cleaners, the range that includes the 1132A and the 1409. It works on the water going into the machine rather than on the air passing through it.
That difference changes what failure looks like. A tired water filter does not cost you suction, it costs you steam. Output thins out, the machine takes more passes to lift a mark it used to clear in one, and in a hard water area a white crust builds where the water sits. Scale is the real enemy in anything that boils tap water, and this filter is the cheapest part of the defense against it.
Pull the filter when the tank is empty and look at it in good light. Mineral crust on the surface restricts flow just as effectively as a tear does, and a filter that has gone brittle or lost its shape should be replaced rather than cleaned, since a distorted filter seats unevenly and lets water find its way around instead of through.
Running distilled or filtered water in the tank slows scale considerably and stretches the interval between filter changes, particularly where the tap water is hard. It does not remove the need for the filter, but it does keep the machine closer to the steam output it had when it was new.
- Part: 1603521, water filter
- Fits: Bissell Symphony steam cleaners including the 1132A and 1409
- Symptom: thinner steam output, mineral crust on the filter or in the tank
- Helps: distilled or filtered water slows scale between changes
