RO help

[_ShotgunShrimp_]

ok i gotta resolve a problem and hopefully someone has gone through this. my water seems to destroy RO filters in 3 months or less. i have changed the config to try and resolve this.. 2 pre-filters, 2 carbon blocks 1 ro membrane and 1 di.. now i would think this would help but alas it still kills the filters. a pre test with a tds meter shows my water before the ro at about 350 ppm my problem is to destroy these filters that quick is costing me alot.. any thoughts? maybe a water softener or something i dont know.. please offer any info

i also use a ro pump that pushes the water pressure to about 80 psi and its also about 75 degree's on passthrough maybe 80

 

[jimmer]

is it producing good water in the right ratio?i will check my manual i think its 1:4 compared to bad water output

 

[_ShotgunShrimp_]

yes

yes

for the first week or two after new filters then it starts dropping off quickly..

 

[puter]

Hi Tim:wavehand:

350 is pretty high on the input side. You're using 1 micron sediment filters and changing the carbon regularly? Did you hook up a RO flush kit?

- Mark

 

[_ShotgunShrimp_]

hey mark

hey mark

.5 micron on everything and ive flushed the membrane before and it seems to still get plugged.. makes me wish i had monroe county water.. im pretty sure that the old pipes and poor water treatment (my water smells like a pool) i wish i was back on the old well here it was hard water but it wasnt like this canadaguia water...

 

[bigkev76]

High levels of chlorine destroy RO filters rapidly. You may want to tyr a prefilter sediment cartridge followed by a carbon block filter to remove some of the chlorine before the RO unit. A lot of hastle, but it should save some cartridges. Good luck and hope this helps.

 

[_ShotgunShrimp_]

??????

??????

obviousley kev yah didnt read.. 2 prefilters and 2 carbon blocks.. i have 2x the ammount most others use.. what im trying to do is find a way to extend everythings life... i cant believe no one else has this problem... but then again no one in this area is prolly doin a 180... i really dont want to go buy water.. but the cost of the ro has outwieghed the water.. maybe i should move the ro somewhere else but then im carting water all the time ughh

 

[Kent E]

who is adding the chlorine? I would talk to that authority. There may be a big problem, water shouldn't smell like a pool (unless your going to swim in it ). The only other thing than fixing the source of the problem is to use one sediment filter and 3 carbons.

I was recently shown by aquasource that there is an actual carbon cartrige rather than a carbon coated filter. It has much more longevity to it. It looks like regular aquarium carbon, I opted for that.

 

[gary greguire]

man if you are spending that much on filters it might be cheaper to buy ro water from walmart and just run it through your di cartrige.

 

[puter]

Tim,

You might want to call your water department and see if they're using chloramines (chlorine + ammonia) to keep the chlorine they add from releasing harmful byproducts. If so, that will supposedly dramatically reduce your RO membrane lifetime. There's a prefilter (basically more carbon) you can get to better remove the chloramines if need be.

- Mark

 

[Gary Majchrzak]

Wow. If your water is tearing up your RO that quickly what's it doing to you? Are other reefers in the area are dealing with this same water supply problem? (Maybe URS member jaf has some insight.)

 

[_ShotgunShrimp_]

hmmm

hmmm

yah john is on a well in his area i believe.. we used to be on a well here but they have since switched to canadaguia city water ive always torn them up since day one.. i do notice it has to be really heavy with nitrates as the diatoms will show quickly that your ro is dieing.. and ive considered putting on a whole house carpon filter (take a old pool filter and fill it with carbon instead of sand.. but i believe this will be just as expencive in the long run.. maybe the culligan guy can help.. ive had it tested by a friend (they could only see what grows out of it) not very good.. i dont personaly drink the water here very often and the cats dont like it much either.. maybe ill just move the ro to my parents house but i really really didnt want to cart water arround... thanks for all your input guys.. maybe ill add another chamber (8 stage) and look into those carbon filters that kent mentioned.. (URL??? ) and see how that does??

 

[Kent E]

I don't know where to find it online. My nearest neighbor South of me is Aquasource. They are a well/water place like culligan. They have them there. I guess if you call around some place will have it.

 

[Kent E]

Actually, its like having a "stage" or whatever you call it in the RO thats just filled with carbon. I bet you could fenangel this thing yourself.

 

[_ShotgunShrimp_]

i have

i have

i have a refillable DI canister maybe ill fill it with some high end carbon and put it inline... thanks for the idea...

 

[bigkev76]

If you read MY response, I said to put a prefilter and carbon cartridges BEFORE your RO unit, or use a Whole house sediment/carbon filtering system. If you are relying on the sediment/carbon filters in a 5 or 6 stage RO/DI you will keep going through them. And yes a water softener may also help. A friend of mine in Canandaigua had the same problem. He did this same thing and it worked. Maybe I wasn't clear enough earlier and I apoligize.