Buckeye Field Supply

No - that should be OK. I'm talking about something like the blue tank is this pic that can store pressurized RO water: "Efficiency" is a term that is used sort of loosely when people talk about RO systems. There's really two things people are typically concerned with: REJECTION RATE (how much of the impurities in the water does the RO membrane reject) and NOT allow to pass; and RECOVERY (how much of the feedwater ends up as RO water rather than waste water. Let's talk about each one of these rather than "efficiency." REJECTION RATE: The higher the membrane rejection rate, the cleaner the RO water will be, and the longer your DI will last. Here are the factory specs on the membranes we deal with most often. You'll see the rejection rate for the 100 gpd membrane is low relative to the others RECOVERY: Outside this hobby, "Recovery" is typically expressed as a percentage - it's the percentage of the feedwater that ends up as RO water. In this hobby, the convention is to express this same data as the ratio of waste water to purified water. So for example, a 4 to 1 ratio is the same as a 1/5=20% recovery rate. With all residential scale membranes, the manufactures suggest a 4 to 1 ratio to give you a reasonable membrane life. Can you fiddle with this ratio? Sure. *If you increase the pressure, the recovery will increase. *If you heat the feedwater the recovery will increase *If you restrict waste water to a greater extent, the recovery will increase. But, remember that if you increase the recovery (that is, decrease the waste to purified water ratio), you'll likely shorten the life of your membrane. Russ

From our FAQ's: Horizontal DI housings are a design intended to minimize the original cost of the system - you should be prepared for the trade offs. Horizontal DI units typically contain 8 oz. to 16oz. of resin. Typical vertical DI cartridges contain 20 oz of resin. Obviously the more resin contained in the housing the longer it will last and the better treatment it will provide. Many horizontal DI housings are not refillable - you'll therefore have to pay for a new housing every time you need to replace the DI resin. The cost of repeatedly replacing the horizontal housing will far outweigh any money saved up-front in purchasing the unit. Perhaps most importantly, horizontal DI housings are a less than ideal arrangement for water treatment. DI resin beds shrink/settle through normal use over their life span. You'll note that a cartridge that was full when new can sometimes have a

Before you invest in a pump, try a different flow restrictor for $4. Russ

Here's a suggestion for you. First study up on these systems enough so that you have some idea of what you want in a system, ans some things you DO NOT want. Then shop for a system that meets your needs or a vendor who will make the system you specify. Not comfortable specifing just what you want? Work with a vendor who knows RODIs as used in the reefing world and is willing to help you. Here are some things to look for in a good system for this hobby: No more than 4 stages (sediment, carbon, RO, DI) unless you have specific water quality issues you want to address Standard-sized prefilters, membrane, and DI cartridge Brand name, high-rejection membrane Specifications provided for each stage Pressure gauge after the prefilters and before the membrane Thermometer TDS meter (handheld or in-line) DI bypass Vertical DI stage Refillable DI cartridge Aluminum bracket Quick connect fittings No water from pressurized storage container delivered to DI Flush valve Clear housings High-quality instructions written in clear English Customer support before, during, and after your purchase A vendor involved in your hobby Some things you don't want: horizontal DI stages a system w/o a pressure gauge a no-name membrane prefilters with no specifications provided a system that has been sitting on a vendors shelf for an extended period a system that takes non-standard sized filters a system that delivers water from a pressurized tank to the DI a system with compression fittings a system with a steel bracket Russ

Thnaks! I appreciate the sentiment!

Right. The more pure the water is that feeds the DI, the longer the DI resin will last. Russ

Regarding the pore size on prefilters: It is a good idea to have smaller pore sizes on successive prefilters, BUT this applies to sediment filters ONLY. So for instance, if you have a 10 mic sed -> 5 mic carbon-> 0.5 mic carbon, the two carbon blocks will act as sediment filters. Not a good idea. You want those carbon blocks free of sediment so they can do the job they are intended for - removing VOC's including chlorine. Let's say however that you are on well water and have lots of sediment - your single sediment filter cloggs too quickly for you. It's a perfectly good idea to use multiple sediment filters, like this, followed by a carbon block(s), with the smallest pore size on the carbon blocks about equal to or larger than the smallest pore size on any of the sediment filters: 20 mic pleated washable sed filter->10 mic pleated washable sed filter ->5 mic poly depth sed filter ->1 mic poly depth sed filter ->0.5 mic carbon block. In our experience using a carbon block with a pore size one-half micron smaller than the sediemnt filter works ok. We don't go any larger than that however. Russ

Not to put too fine a point on this, but... If you want to run your waste water to some location distant from the system, and you install anything over about 20 feet of waste water tubing, realize that you are further retricting the waste water flow. Thei may or may not be a bad thing, depending upon your waste water to purified water ratio. Russ

Hi guys. This may help: A good rule of thumb is toreplace your sediment filter and carbon block after six months. A more preciseway to maximize the usable life of these two filters is to use a pressure gaugeto identify when pressure reaching the membrane starts to decline. This is yourindication one or both of the filters is beginning to clog. Also be cognizant of thechlorine capacity of the carbon block. A good 0.5 micron carbon block forexample will remove 99% of chlorine from 20,000 gallons of tap water presentedat 1 gpm. Some original equipment suppliers commonly provide carbon cartridgesrated at 2,000 to 6,000 gallons. Regarding your RO membraneand DI resin, use your TDS meter to measure, record, and track the TDS(expressed in parts per million) in three places: 1. Tap water 2. After the RO but beforethe DI 3. After the DI. The TDS in your tap waterwill likely range from about 50 ppm to upwards of 1000 parts per million (ppm).Common readings are 100 to 400 ppm. So for sake of discussion, let's say yourtap water reads 400 ppm. That means that for every million parts of water, youhave 400 parts of dissolved solids. How do we go about getting that TDS readingdown to somewhere near zero? If you do some experimentingwith your TDS meter, you'll note that your sediment filter and carbon blockfilter (collectively called

Shoot. Just saw this thread. Had I seen it earlier I could have walked you through saving that unit and some money. Russ

Did you just snap off the fitting? Or did you break the housing itself. If you just snapped off a fitting, it is pretty easy to get it out and screw in a new fitting. Russ

We don't recommend use of standard GAC as a prefilter for the high capacity RO membranes we use in this hobby. If you have chloramines in your water, under some conditions, a single high quality carbon block is sufficient to break the chlorine-ammonia bond. Most of the ammonia makes it through the RO and it is processed by the DI resin - that's why you'll see a reduced DI resin life with chloramines. We prefer a configuration that includes two carbon stages, and have had good luck with customers with both of these combinations: 1. 1 mic sed filter -> Catalytic GAC -> 0.5 mic carbon block; or 2. 1 mic sed filter -> 0.5 mic carbon block -> 5 mic carbon block If you have sufficient pressure and can afford to lose a little (most people don't), two 0.5 mic carbon blocks would be good as well. If you opt for a C-GAC catridge, make sure you flush it well and don't allow the flush water to go into later filter stages. Russ

Supernova - the gpd capacity of the membrane you installed - 50 , 75, or 100 gpd for example, wouldn't cause the membrane to come unseated. The cup inside the RO membrane housing into which the 2 orings seat should hold the membrane tightly. When you pressurize the RO membrane housing, that pressure "pushes" the membrane to stay seated. I suspect that little cup inside the RO membrane housing is cracked/broken, and therefore it isn't holding the membrane stem securely. If that is the case, the defect can't be fixed and the RO membrane housing should be replaced. Russ

I know this is an old thread, but the issue is one that we help customers deal with frequently. There are a number of posts in the thread we wanted to respond to, so here goes. Is a pressurized storage tank a good idea? It's a fine idea to store RO (not DI) in a pressurized storage container - but only if your intent is to provide a ready supply of RO water - typically to a faucet for drinking. It's not a good idea to send water from a pressurized storage tank on to a DI stage. Back pressure from the tank is a critically important issue here. We can explain why if folks are interested. Re the ratio of waste water (a.k.a. "concentrate") to purified water (a.k.a. "permeate). Filmtec membranes for instance are tested under conditions of 77 F water, 50 psi, 250 ppm softened feedwater, and about a 5.5:1 ratio. Membranes are often set up in RO systems to run at about 4:1. If a customer came to us with a 10:1 ratio we would look to fix that situation. They would be needlessly sending water to the drain. Re the devoneb system I would not rank this system as one that's a good deal for anyone in the hobby. Why? No pressure gauge, horizontal DI, GAC stage after the DI, inappropriate use of a pressure tank, etc... We've reworked a lot of these systems once folks understand what they bought. Russ

Did you get this system suared away? Russ

For those with the type of RODI system pictured above - you'll want to unclip that horizontal DI stage and mount it vertically with bottom up flow to increase the efficiency of the system. Russ

We can look up water quality reports for folks if you are unsure if your water contains chloramines. Russ

Not really... The color changing resin (we sell) is a great product, and provides a nice visual clue as to when you need to start using your tds meter more frequesntly. Remember that not all resins are the same, so one color-changing resin might be great, another may not be. Russ @ BFS From the FAQ's on our website: When should I replace my filters? A good rule of thumb is to replace your sediment filter and carbon block after six months. A more precise way to maximize the useable life of these two filters is to use a pressure gauge to identify when pressure reaching the membrane starts to decline. This is your indication one or both of the filters is beginning to clog. Also be cognizant of the chlorine capacity of the carbon block. The Matrikx+1 (

You may have toasted yur membrane. Use your tds meter to keep an eye on it. Russ @ BFS

Its not uncommon for DI water to have a "fishy" smell - is that what it smells like? Russ @ BFS

More often than not problems with ASO valves can be traced back to a faulty check valve. Russ @ BFS