questions about ro/di

H

Herman G

New member
Ok everyone,
I realy need some input here!, I will be moving soon and will need to buy a ro/di unit and I know crap about them!
Where I live now we have well water and my tanks have done great with no purificaton systems for years! (lucky I know)
but when I move I will be on tampa's wonderful water!(yuck)
I have 6 tanks so i will be looking at geting a 100gpd unit, also I want to get one with a drinking water outlet.
What should I be looking for in one? how much should I pay out?
I dont want to have to sell one of the kids on the black market to get one!!!
I see many on ebay that dont seem to expensive but I dont know enough about them to make a informed choice!:confused:
 
I am shopping around for one too. I have read and searched here on RC and it seems that everyone agrees Ebay is the place to go. Do a search on ebay for aqua-safe and you will find they have about 5 models ranging from about $90 to $200 with shipping. If you want a tank and faucet without a case of refill cartridges, it looks like it will run about $103 for an RO system. The same thing with a DI part, runs about $140 or so. Just read and decide if you want a RO/DI or just an RO. Maybe someone can post what the DI does.
 
I just bought one a few months ago and this is what I came away with

* From what I understand the Ebay units use DI chambers that are half the normal size and the RO membranes aren't so good - they let too much water through and too high a TDS. The already small DI will take out the extra but you end up going through DI resin quicker. So... it will work fine but will cost more in the long run. Search for posts by AZDesertRat ... he explains it well.
* Tampa has Chloramines in the water. There seems to be some controversy about what you need to remove Chloramines but from what I gathered you probably need a 5 stage with one of the carbon stages with GAC. I liked the one at filgerguys and the one I ended up buying from buckeye.
*Folks here say FAOIS has a great deal on a unit that fits our needs but I can't say first hand.

I think all the main RODI suppliers will sell you add-ons for making a RODI faucet for the sink. Home Depot probably even has the kits. I just fill jugs with RO myself. My unit is 100gpd and I paid 185$
http://www.buckeyefieldsupply.com/showproducts.asp?Category=170&Sub=166
I think I had to spend 35$ more for tubing and a TDS meter but I forget.

Like GregDoug implied - maybe DI isn't necessary.... I used RO water from the machines at the grocery store for a couple years and it worked fine. The difference between RO and RODI is that your filter usually works like this:

Tap water - At this point your TDS meter will say 100-200 probably?
Stage 1) Sediment (big particles stopped)
Stage 2) Carbon block (several micron particles stopped)
Stage 3) (Optional) Carbon, maybe GAC (granulated activated carbon)
Stage 4) RO - Reverse Osmosis Membrane
-- After the RO if you have a typical good membrane your water will have a TDS reading of around 10
Stage 5) DI - After this stage your TDS will be probably 0 or 1

The idea with all those stages is that you prolong the life of each following stage by filtering out smaller and smaller particles.
 
Please this is JMO, but buying from EBay is a shot in the dark. I've received good things and bad, I'd never spend hundreds on EBay unless I really know and trust the seller. That said, dealing with one of the most important units on your system "Water" I wouldn't take a chance.

I know John at FAOIS is well known in the Tampa Bay area for his RO/DI units. If you want a good unit and know you will be taken care of - that's where I'd go. He will take the time and teach you everything about RO/DI, and how to use and maintain the system. If I was looking for a new system, John would be the person I'd see.
 
ReefArtist has said it all, but I would like to add that first you have to compare apples to apples and its hard to tell what you are actually getting from an ebay unit, they all look the same on the outside.

I have bought 2 units from John and haven't looked back. If you buy one from FOIS you will get as good a price as on the internet and that excellent customer service we all have come to love, try getting that from an ebay unit.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9216443#post9216443 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by GregDoug
I am shopping around for one too. I have read and searched here on RC and it seems that everyone agrees Ebay is the place to go. Do a search on ebay for aqua-safe and you will find they have about 5 models ranging from about $90 to $200 with shipping. If you want a tank and faucet without a case of refill cartridges, it looks like it will run about $103 for an RO system. The same thing with a DI part, runs about $140 or so. Just read and decide if you want a RO/DI or just an RO. Maybe someone can post what the DI does.
Click to expand...

I have to disagree, if u dig deeper you'll find the complete opposite, the units purchased off ebay are often lesser quality units. The Filters used are not quality, and will be short lived.
 
Mnestroy, thank you for posting. The information is difficult to find and read, everyone seems to say different things. Here are three places that are sponsors, I only know Russ who owns the first one listed. He is in our club and has an awsome tank and is a biologist so he may know what he is doing :)

www.buckeyefieldsupply.com
www.purelyh2o.com
www.thefilterguys.biz

I did not find any bad posts about Aqua Safe on RC but found many about how cheaply priced they are and how well they work. I would typically say you get what you pay for but to some degree, most ro/di units are fairly similar, with just the contents being the most important.

I have never ordered from any of the 4 places mentioned above and have no idea if they are good or bad, but I too would like to know a place to find a decent unit as I need to get one too.

Also, if someone has several to choose from, contact AZDesertRat on here, he is the man when it comes to water cleaning stuff.
 
Last edited:
Like Warnberg, I also got a Typhoon III from Air Water & Ice and I love it. They are very helpful over the phone when you can get a hold of them (based out of Orlando) and the product is excellent.

That being said, customer service is always a plus when dealing with FAOIS. I would check there and if the price is right, you know the quality and service will be there also.

I would stay away from ebay. You may save a hundred bucks or so, but I've heard too many horror stories about inferior RO/DI units on ebay.
 
sorry kinda of in a rush and cant reed peoples feed backs, but i bought my RO/DI unit from john with a TDS meter (i strongly recommend getting a TDS meter built in), PSI meter, and a pinch to increase the PSI. FAOIS (fish and other ichthy stuff) has some custom made, and very easy to use and understand. Plus john does a great job of explaining how to hook it up and other maintance info.
 
Aqua-Safe

Aqua-Safe

I got an Aqua-Safe from ebay and have been pleased so far. 245 ppm in 0 ppm out.
 
Thank you everyone, I have shopped at FAOIS for some time now
and I truly love the place its always clean with healthy livestock.
I have never spoken with john he has always been busy so I never wanted to bug him, but his wife has always cheerfully helped me out.
perhaps i will stop in sat and see what he has.
What kind of price range does he sell them for?
I truly belive they would be high quality units just by prior experinces shopping there.
its a decent drive over there passing several LFS but as I said I think its worth it. the ebay stuff may still get the nod but at least if I get it there I know there will be great local support!
 
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