How to recharge DI resin

I just went to my local Lowe’s and found that they are no longer carrying Roebic Lye. I went right around the corner to a mom and pop True Value hardware store and they had a different brand by Rooto. On its label is posted 100% Lye. The Roebic brand came in 2 lbs containers and the Rooto comes in 1 lb containers.

96845DSCF0019.JPG
 
I have been doing this for over a year. It is not too much trouble. My friend brought over a years supply of di resin. It weighed over 20 lbs. I took some of it, enough to fill two canisters, it cost me $1.50 in materials to regenerate it. New resin for 1 canister cost $12.00. I saved $22.50 regenerating two canisters. I must order the stuff too. When I regenerate resin, there is no wait or shipping cost.
 
I agree...I have been doing my own recharge for a few months now and it's NO trouble at all...and SOOOO much cheaper than buying more resin. (plus I have a ton of the old stuff)

This is more economical and I feel like I'm not just wasting the old resin. I'm saving tons of money too because my water uses up THREE fresh DI canisters, in just one trashcan of water. SO I need to buy a lot of DI...this is a lot cheaper.

Having said that, I just want to know how the new stuff you got is working out. I bought some "Drano Kitchen Crystals" and I don't think it's 100% Lye. I haven't tested it yet, but all in all I don't have high hopes. (I'm gonna research it online real quick)

but yea, let us know how the new stuff works out.

dave
 
Question...

I've been running a separated bed Cati Ani filter for about a year. The instructions say to simply regenerate the resin in the filter housings - not to remove it and regenerate it separately.

It seems not mixing it and then not having to remove it to separate it would make this process a lot easier. I use 2 carboys i got from usplastics. I mix my acid and base solutions, pour into the carboys, connect the filters - then just run the solution through the filters for about 45min. After that, i run about 5gal of fresh water through to rinse.

This seems like an easier method than having to empty out the resin into a separate container to regenerate.
 
hey thanks...

I got 4 jars of the stuff you put up in the picture...and tonight I just finished using it for the first time. I have to agree...I think it worked BETTER than the last kind. The color change was VERY dramatic. Again I bought 4 (the guy probably thought I was a meth cooker or something) at a local mom and pop hardware store...and the guy pointed right at it...I barely finished saying "lye" and the guy knew right were it was...man those smaller places are the place to go...and I didn't have to wander for hours looking...the guy came right out when I walked in and asked, " do you need any help" I said "I am looking for some lye for..." and the guy was pointing at it by then. They got my business from now on. Lowes and HD are big and have a lot of selection, but they have no CS and the prices are higher for stuff I DON'T want.

Anyways that stuff did the trick and so now maybe I can get back to making a bunch of water for my water changes that are long over due.
 
Pbrown
With separate resins, yes I would not mix them. I did try to run separate resins, for some reason I could not get the TDS down. I have not tried it again.
Dave
I completely understand every aspect of your visit to the HD and Lowe’s, I do not know how many times I have gone into one of those stores and asked for a widget and a CS person looks back at me for 15 seconds and then says I don’t know let me call Barney.
The same thing at the mom and pop store, almost exactly. I asked for lye he said right over here. He had two bottles; I asked if he had more or larger containers. His next question was, what are you doing with this stuff. I said it was for DI regeneration, then he was so puzzled he said, we will have more on Thursday.

I agree I think the stuff works better but, cannot tell you why. They are both supposed to be 100% Caustic Soda. It might be how one manufacture from another store the finished product, I think CO2 will weaken it.
 
I just did my first small batch, about 2#. Just to get the feel and technique down. I have another ~30# to do. A couple of questions...
1. Should the canisters that hold the lye/anion resin and the muriatic acid/cation resin be glass or are the basic Rubbermaid square canisters acceptable? Will the lye and/or muriatic acid solutions eat thru plastic if left for 2 - 3 hours?

2. In the last step when rinsing the off the resins, you are suppose to use RO/DI water, correct, or is tap water OK?

3. In stead of using the coffee filters/window sheer and strainers, I used a large 100 micron media bag that I got from Bulk Reef Supply. It seems to work nicely and can hold a lot of resin. Do you see any problem with using these media bags?

Thanks,
winland
 
Sorry I am so late answering your questions.
1. I used cheap rubber maid containers to hold my resin and lye. Make sure you clean them after. As the water evaporates the lye solution becomes stronger and will eventually go through the plastic. I have seen no problems with the muriatic acid and the plastic.

2. Yes use RO/DI, the additional TDS in tap water will degrade the recharge.

3. I no longer use coffee filters, the window sheer works best for me. I bet the 100 micron filter works for you go with it.
 
Does anyone know if the resin that is in the SpectraPure MaxCap DI cartridge can be regenerated in this same method?

Thanks for any info.

winland
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14224485#post14224485 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by winland
Does anyone know if the resin that is in the SpectraPure MaxCap DI cartridge can be regenerated in this same method?

Thanks for any info.

winland
Click to expand...

I asked Spectrpure today if the regen would achieve a full "charge". They stated they had never tried, so I would expect this would regen similarly the same as "regular" resin. I'm testing the total volume of DI water these new MaxCap cartridges produced when combined with the Silicabuster cartridge and if the claims are correct the savings would be tremendous! I need a couple cartidges exhausted before I try, so I won't be able to try until 10-12 months from now (if each casrtidge lasts 600gallons....).

DW302
 
This is a great thread, very helpful and well laid out procedures. I'm a bit embaressed because I am an industrial chemist, 26 yrs. designing building and operating large ultrapure water treatment plants and kept saying to myself I needed to write up how to DIY regeneration. You did a much better job than I could have anyway!
It amuses me that so many on this thread have asked "why bother". We regenerate resins, since a single charge of resin on my present system costs $45,000! It will usually last about 10 years since we have an RO in front of it (less fouling of resin), for anyone wondering how many times you can regenerate it.
Maybe I should search and see if anyone is cleaning RO membranes. We do that too. Our RO has $24,000 worth of membranes in it so we want them to last as long as possible too! (also about 8-10 years)
Thanks again Dude!
Oh and for the person wondering earlier, seperate bed DI's produce nearly as good of water as mixed beds (the same for aquarist's purposes) and used to be the standard (a vacuum degassifier between the cation and anion reduces the load on the anion) but with the advent of RO's, mixed beds are cheaper (only one tank) and a degassifier between the RO and the mixed bed works okay (may have to feed acid to lower pH) too.
And yes, resins can be regenerated in a mixed bed vessel, just a little trickier, and not very suitable for home use.
 
I tried this using the inverted 2 liter bottle and the on/off spout (transmission filler). The concept is great but I had trouble getting all the anion to rise up out of the cation. I stirred it, I let it just sit, I tapped and jiggled the bottle... stirred some more. It just wouldn't all float.

I ended up draining out the cation into a pitcher, then removing the anion which had separated and pouring the cation and a good amount of lye mix back in a couple of times to get most of the anion out.

The problem seemed to be from trying to do a double batch (two canisters) which filled most of the 2 liter bottle. The anion just had too much cation above it for my stirring to fluidize it enough to rise.

Am I alone in this problem or have others had a similar problem and found a way to overcome it? I wondered if putting in the lye solution first, then spooning in the resin would allow better separation.

TIA.

PS: This is a GREAT thread!
 
The process depends on completely exhausting the cation resin and completely recharging the anion resin. At that point the densities are sufficiently different that they separate. In an industrial vessel it does take a lot of backwashing to get them to seperate. I'd guess that you either used up all your lye solution (doubtful if you followed the mixing procedure, or as you think, you used too much resin at once and it was physically difficult for the resins to move past each other. Agitating certainly helps, and using smaller batches likely does too.
 
I do use the inverted bottle during the process. I also do two batches at a single time. I have not had any problem getting the resin to separate. Stirring and then letting it sit for a minute may help. You may also want to verify your solution is mixed correctly. If the solution sits for a long period of time after adding lye to the water, it may have settled at the bottom of the mixing container. Then when you transfer the lye to the resin some of the lye is still at the bottom of the mixing container. This stuff is solid and can be pretty thick.

Seperating resin is pretty quick. The process takes me about 45 minutes.
 
Even though I followed the ratio exactly, I did wonder if my measuring vessels were inaccurate until it separated just fine in the pitcher. Wider and less depth made stirring and separation quite quick. I mix the lye immediately before use, only giving it time to get cold before using, shake the bottle before pouring. Nothing ever seems to be left at the bottom. I'm the first to suspect operator error when something I am doing doesn't go as expected but nothing is obvious.

Today I did try putting the lye mixture (very cold) in the inverted bottle first, then spooning in the resin. Just single batches so it would stay low in the bottle. There was very minor splashing until there was a thin layer of anion floating on top. Not outside the bottle but the potential is definitely there. Really need to start with small amounts, not for the impatient. Can't say I recommend it but it was a lot more interesting to watch. All the resin floated at first. Then the cation settled out from the anion, backwards of what was happening yesterday. Some kind of agitation is still needed but it was much MUCH less than what was UNsuccessful yesterday.

Could be I had more than two canisters worth of resin in the bag (unlikely), it may have still been too wet (possible) or perhaps was just unusually acidic (who knows). I'll try again with exactly 2 canisters and make sure it is dryer when I start. It was still better than the turkey baster and infinitely better than buying new resin.

Thanks to both of you!
 
When I mix the lye this is how I do it for two canisters. I put 24 ounces of RO/DI water in a container. Then I put 6 ounces of lye in with the water. I give a slight shake then put it in a 5 gallon container with cool water. I let it cool, you can feel the difference, and then I shake again until it gets hot, then back in water to cool. Cooling time is less than a minute. I repeat this until it no longer gets hot after it is shaken.

I forgot to ask you what type of lye you are using.
 
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