Cold incomming water affecting RO production

[alazo1]

Since it's wintertime now reverse osmosis units can decrease significantly in production due to lower incomming water temperature. This much I know. I can't seem to find a solution such as an inline heater or pipe heating cable that can be thermostatically controlled. Since water is under pressure (65psi in my area) I'm not sure if an inline heater will work.

Any possible solutions to this would be greatly appreciated.

thanks,
Albert

 

[redox]

this has already been talked about. I suggested to everyone with this problem is to use a mixing valve and add some hot water to the mix to bring the temp up. good luck

 

[billsreef]

I don't recall exactly where, but I have seen inline heaters sold for incoming water lines. Check with a few of the RO filter guys on the sponsor list, one of them is likely to know what I'm talking about

 

[coralnut99]

fwiw, I have your problem (all year), and low water pressure to boot. I had to bite the bullet about 5 years ago and bought a Kold-Steril unit. RO was just a nightmare for me. 12 gallons waste to 1 gallon product November through April. At its' best I got it down to 6:1 in summer. Though I pay almost nothing for water, I do have a septic system, so I just couldn't put all that water down there. I was very fortunate in that my source water is very low in phosphates, but silicates are a little high. It worked perfectly for me. Maybe too perfect. I evaporate almost 5 gallons a day with all the sw in my basement now. RO water would be nice, but in my case not a necessity. Poly-Bio-Marine is a real PITA to deal with, since their filters occasionally go AWOL in the market for months, but they are cheaper and easier to deal with that RO, imho.

If your needs aren't too great, mxing your incoming water line to get the right incoming temp. may be your best solution.

I think one of the RC sponsors designed a cold-water RO system, though I can't remember which.

 

[GreshamH]

Kold Steril is by Poly Bio Marine

http://www.poly-bio-marine.com/faqkold.htm

FWIW, I'm not in your neck of the woods, but, what I did to get my source water temp up is to wrap a bunch of RO tubing around my hot water heater (away from the fire/beneath the insulation).

 

[Ebmorri]

I had the same issue and the mixing vale worked for me. Heres my thread.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=973508