Serious RO/DI question?

Honestly, this is a broken record thread (no offense to the OP) but many of hte eBay units are just garbage.
Click to expand...

I'm sorry, you said they were garbage, not junk..... :rolleyes:

FYI, I am not trolling nor trying to start a fight. It gets so old hearing people coming in here and saying that you have to purchase the name brand units! I did my research before purchasing my filterdirect unit and I knew what I was getting. Yes mine has been "customized", but I still have less in my set-up than I would for a comparable "name-brand" unit.

As a comparison: an AWI 75gpd is $199 for the unit, http://www.airwaterice.com/product/1DUALHR, comparable to my filterdirect. My filterdirect, http://cgi.ebay.com/RO6100-DI-2-out...4961QQcategoryZ46310QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewItem, was $115 plus the DI at $40 for a total of $155, a savings of $44. I did request the 75gpd membrane. The membrane is a Filmtec membrane.

According to the current listing, the filterdirect units come with the GE Desal membranes.

Some people can afford to buy the name brand units and if you sleep better at night, fine, it's your money. Some people can not afford the "name brand" units and look to the less expensive units. I just feel that totally dismissing the ebay units as being no good is doing a disservice. Like everything else in this world, caveat emptor, you need to know what you are getting.

You seem to be blatantly bashing the ebay units rather than "relaying information."
 
There are several problems.

Firstly, the "ebay" units are advertised in such a way that they "look better" than the name brand units. The ads have BLATANT falsehoods and severely misrepresent the capablities of the units. They List "FILMTEC" membranes but not the DOW units, instead they pawn off cheap imitations that simply use dow fabric. They point blank say that the GE DESAL membrane us being used because it is better, then paste a bunch of irrelevant numbers. Dishonesty in the part of the vendor warrent some kind of scepticism (bashing if you prefer).

Secondly, the average buyer has no idea what constitutes a good RO/DI unit. They are led to believe that those crummy undersized horizontal DI stages are superior and that "stages" is better than the other guys 5 stages! We already covered the lies about the membranes.

Many people have no idea how these units work, let alone how to assemble, troubleshoot or repair these units. The Filterdirect comes with questionable support (from dozens of accounts), little or no instructions, and in many case no or incorrect assembly.

Also, affordability is directly related to the performance of such a unit, just as gas mileage and maintenance are directly related to owning a car. This point seems to get whitewashed time and time again.

Because the "ebay" units use membranes with poor rejection ratios that are rated to run at high pressure, the DI usage and water waste add up very quickly. This is a real cost and has everything to do with the quality of the unit.

As you stated yourself, the difference was $44. Piece of mind may be worth that to some. The customer support may be worth that to others. The extra attention to detail to yet others. If you have a true DOW FILMTEC membrane and quality resin, then you can expect the same performance as my name brand unit. You may not have all the features (or may) and you may not need the support or the better quality fittings, housings, brackets or pre-filters. However most folks do (or don't know any better).

You will find person after person here on RC every week that has a Filterdirect unit and singing with glee that they have an output TDS of 10! They just assume that 10 is good, because they unit is good and those of us who say it isn't are infatuated with brand names.

Bashing? Maybe I am but not without solid evidence and good intentions. Most of the ebay units (there are some good vendors) are simply poor imitations of quality products, you yourself at least knew enough to upgrade your unit to the bare minimum for suitable performance.

:)
 
You've made some valid points, but like any purchase the buyer needs to do the research so they know what they are getting.

FWIW, I'm getting about 97% rejection rate from my membrane, however that is on a well water system where the maximum pressure is 40psi and the temp around 60 degrees. I suspect I'd get better performance if I used a booster pump.
 
The rejection rate will not change much, but the waste water will decrease (the higher the pessure, the more water the membrane can process). Temperature has the same effect, warmer water works better, but if it is to warm, the TDS at the output will rise.

Bean
 
I would think that as long as you receive the membrane pictured it would be fine. It is a Filmtec membrane which are supposed to be good.

Heck, it says he has a 30-day return guarantee. Can't see where you'd go wrong.

The same membrane is $45 at buckeyefieldsupply.com.
 
Nope, there are some good people out there that are honest with their ads and honest with their customers. PurelyH20 seems to be one of them. I have never dealt with him, but know others who have. His units are about the same as the other quality brands mentioned, good membranes, housings, filters, resins, fittings and other parts.

Bean
 
I've dealt with him on several occasions and have referred several people to him. Very good products and customer service. Always willing to help.

Just a little added info...
Bryan (www.purelyH2O.com) has a regular store in Orlando as well. He's not just a web/ebay guy.
 
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Can anyone recommend a name brand (not the e-bay units) RO/DI system that contains the drinking water system (tank, faucet, etc.) for around $200? It seems like you can get a quality RO/DI unit for around $200 but when you piece together the drinking water add-ons + shipping = $300 plus. :eek1:
 
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