i seem to disagree with the other reviewers. i followed the instructions, but the filer was very difficult to remove, so the first time i called samsung's help line to see if it was ok to remove with a pliers. they said "yes". i removed and reinstalled with no problem. we drink a lot of water, so i knew the filer wasn't going to last 6 months; it lasted about 3-3 1/2. our house has a whole house filter on it anyway, but this filter seems to make the water taste cleaner. even the cats prefer water from the refrigerator than the tap!  i usually order two filters at a time, in case they are on back order. this will be my third filter. i have no complaints!