Auto top off selection

[kirtdog]

I was at TFP today as I am in the area for work and wanted to use the 30% off one item coupon i got in the mail. I was looking for an auto top off and the only one they had there was the JBJ. Is that a good one or what are my other options?
They had a few different floats that connect directly to your RO/DI unit but my unit is in my basement and the tank is on the next floor on the opposite side of the house.

 

[Ricunger]

I like my JBJ...

 

[viper3166]

mine works well also, i just have my drawing from a 5 gal bucket under the tank using a aqua lifter pump and a timer. waiting for something fishy to get in the neptune energy bar 8 so i can add the ato along with more stuff to the apex controller. I used one sensor in the sump and other in the 5g bucket.

 

[PerezAF01]

Does anyone know if I can use these coupons to buy off their website? I would probably end up burning more gas than what I will save...

 

[tnyr5]

perez, they are good but if you have a big tank put it on a timer and set the timer to leave it on most of the time and turn it off for 15 mins 4 -5 times a day. The JBJ has a safety feature that will only let it pump water for 14 mins max ( and you have to pull it open and adjust a knob to get it to do even that), if the 14 mins expire it will shut off whether your sump is full or not. This isn't a problem normally, but if you have a power outage and evaporate a lot of water you'll end up with a dry sump if you don't know about the fail safe feature.

 

[PerezAF01]

Thanks for the advice. Rich has one installed in his tank and I really like that setup. I dont trust the ball valve controlling the RODI.. Im afraid it will fail. I tried buying it online today with the coupon and I dont think it will work. I may take a trip to Lancaster to pick it up. Thanks again

Al

 

[Ricunger]

I wish i got the coupon!

 

[Fizz71]

Is your sump in the basement or are you pumping the top-off up to the tank?

I ask because my current setup has zero pumps for top-off (not counting the pressure pump on the RO unit). I use a standard float on the reserve tank fed by an RO on a water timer. Then the reserve tank runs to the sump on a small line where it is gravity fed though another float. It's all gravity fed, low pressure, and setup with redundancy to make it nearly failsafe. It's been up for a year now and the only problem I had was algea buildup slowing it down so I had to clean it, which was easy. It failed...safely..the water just wasn't topping off fast enough anymore. No harm, no foul.

I could tell you more if you want, but it's a moot point if you have to go uphill from your RO reserve to the system somehow.

And Ricunger...get on their mailing list!! You get one a month. Half of my new equipment was bought one month at a time. I'm waiting for the swap to see if they offer a "come back" coupon like last time to buy a new CO2 regulator/controller.

 

[Ricunger]

I am on the email list... do i need to get the catalog?

 

[PerezAF01]

Well I would have to raise the line up a little but not much. The RO unit is across the basement about 25 feet away and I wouldnt want to run the line across the room. I was thinking of purchasing a large container which I can fill once a week or so and have the top off unit pump the water from there. Its alot easier than manually pouring and measuring. It would have been nice to save 80 bucks and install a gravity fed unit instead.

Rich: I think you have to join their mailing list. They will send you a catalog and send you coupons once in a while. Add yourself today.. Maybe you will get one before the swap.

 

[Fizz71]

I've gotten their catalog for years so I don't know if it's the catalog or the rewards card that gets you on the list for the mailer coupon.

Perez...I actually have two 50 gallon drums, one to hold RO water, the other to hold salt mix. They are about 5 feet away from my sump but I run the feeds along the outside walls so it's a good 30ft run. The sump is ground level, the 50 gallon drum is slightly elevated so I have storage water that is higher than my sump. The trick of it is..the top-off drips from above the sump less than 2 feet below the top of the drum water level so even though it's 50g, the height can only feed about 15g-20g of water into the sump tops (in case of failure) before there isn't enough pressure in the drum to push it into the sump..and it's off the water so it's an instant siphon break. Then the RO runs once or twice a day to top-off RO drum which is on a water feed timer AND a float shutoff.

The rest of the RO water not used for top-off is pumped into the SW mix drum to heat, mix and sit until I'm ready to pump it into the tank so the RO storage is cycled whenever I water change.

I spent MONTHS plotting this puppy out and made more revisions than I care to share. ....I'm still not done with the electrical but once I'm done water changes will be just as simple and safe as top-offs. This is setup #5 in the near 20 years I've been doing it so I've screwed up enough times to know where the weak points in my plans have always been. Heck..I even know the weak point of this one but I'm living with it for now.

 

[zooty]

I've gotten their catalog for years so I don't know if it's the catalog or the rewards card that gets you on the list for the mailer coupon.

You need to have a rewards card

 

[Ricunger]

Damn... it must be the only rewards card that they really reward you... Thats the last time i pass on any store reward card!

 

[PerezAF01]

Sounds complicated when explained but I am sure its easier than it sounds. Perhaps I can see this setup in person some day. You have 20x the experience I have and I can probably learn from the mistakes you have made in the past. Thanks for the ideas! I will continue to brainstorm and find ways to integrate them in my setup.

Al

 

[Fizz71]

Sounds complicated when explained but I am sure its easier than it sounds. Perhaps I can see this setup in person some day. You have 20x the experience I have and I can probably learn from the mistakes you have made in the past. Thanks for the ideas! I will continue to brainstorm and find ways to integrate them in my setup.

Al

I see you're coming to the TFP swap...you'll be passing right by my home if you really want to stop by and see the setup. In the winter (when the trees have no leaves) I can see the new Rt. 222 from my backyard.

I won't be around in the morning before the swap, so you'd have to stop after. Put the 19609 zip code in google maps for an idea of where I am.

Hopefully the electrical will be done by then because it's a mess in the sump room right now.

Let me know.

--Fizz

 

[PerezAF01]

Sounds good Fizz. Look forward to seeing you at the swap.

Al

 

[MAMGM]

Damn... it must be the only rewards card that they really reward you... Thats the last time i pass on any store reward card!

It's not a store credit card. It's more like a discount card when you shop there. you don't build points from purchases,nor can you use it to charge anything. It does put you on the mailing list for the monthly discount coupons.