What RO system do you use?

[xtlosx]

Just finding out today from our village water commissioner that the water here blows and they add a whole bunch of phosphates (more so in the summer). Right now I'm using the 75gpd BRS setup, but wondering what people are using? The TDS coming out of my faucet is ~650-700..

What RO system are you using, how many stages, etc? Just curious..

 

[madadi]

just a regular 3 stage pre, and DI resin after. I live near midway and its worked for me well producing 0 tds out

 

[xtlosx]

just a regular 3 stage pre, and DI resin after. I live near midway and its worked for me well producing 0 tds out

I'm producing 0 TDS on the way out, but for whatever reason i don't believe it... Need to change my membrane shortly.

 

[madadi]

I just changed mine after two years. Before I changed it, water was coming out around 5ppm

 

[SkullV]

I use a mighty might from air water ice. Only 50gpd though so useless for most people with bigger tanks.

 

[madadi]

only problem I have is I only have 35PSI in the city so it takes forever to full up my brutt trash can. I have to wait overnight for it to fill.

 

[TheReefNinja]

I have the 75gpd 5 stage from BRS My tap is about 180ppm in and pushing 0 out. I will be ordering a new filter kit soon as I have never changed them in years. Still reading 0 though. I have a hand held tds meter also I double check with and it reads the same.

 

[dja1980]

Do you finally believe me that your RO/DI was causing your problems... or did you get the previous issues under control? TDS meters are only good for relative measurement and won't tell you the entire story of the final product water. For what it's worth, SpectraPure MaxCap systems are the only systems that I will purchase. And really, it's the filter sequence you use that's important. I have an old Air Water Ice (great company and customer service) system on my maintenance account that I converted with the MaxCap filter sequence, and that solved ALL my problems. I also have a MaxCap system for my home tanks, and I'm actually thinking about upgrading that to one of their new 2:1 systems with a booster pump.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1020296

 

[taylor t]

I'm on a well, so I don't really count, but here it goes...

I've got a tankless unit, (3) 100 GPD membranes. 5 gallon bucket is filled in around 6-8 minutes? Two membranes get fed with a pump, then the waste from the two feed a third membrane, so I get 1 gallon of product water, and 3/4 gallon goes down the drain. Sediment filter before the unit, then charcoal filter after for the product water. NO DI resin. Pretty basic, I guess one would consider it a 3 stage? Prefilter, membrane, carbon. TDS going in varies, 700-1000+ (high rust) and I filter it down to around 10-15. I use Filmtec membranes. Osmonic membranes filter better, but produce less product. I want more product, so I use less efficient membranes to produce more water faster.

 

[dja1980]

Taylor... actually, I think you are almost better being on a well since you don't have to deal with chlorine or chloromines added to your water by the city. If you did, you would definitely have your charcoal installed upstream from your membrane. You probably start off with high TDS water, but TDS is easily removed by the membrane... it's the other crap that's so difficult to get out!

 

[taylor t]

With all the chemicals they put in the water, I agree!

 

[TheReefNinja]

My step dad works at the wheaton sanitary plant and says if there were ever a accident there they would have to evacuate a 10 mile radius. Thats how nasty the stuff they use to clean and condition our water is.

 

[xtlosx]

Do you finally believe me that your RO/DI was causing your problems... or did you get the previous issues under control? TDS meters are only good for relative measurement and won't tell you the entire story of the final product water. For what it's worth, SpectraPure MaxCap systems are the only systems that I will purchase. And really, it's the filter sequence you use that's important. I have an old Air Water Ice (great company and customer service) system on my maintenance account that I converted with the MaxCap filter sequence, and that solved ALL my problems. I also have a MaxCap system for my home tanks, and I'm actually thinking about upgrading that to one of their new 2:1 systems with a booster pump.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1020296

Got the vast majority of it ironed out, i'm just trying to get an idea of what people are using that's all.. Having talked with our local water commissioner and learning they load phosphates into our water, he got a chuckle out of the fact we spend our money on things like GFO to remove phosphates.

 

[dja1980]

I'm glad to hear that things are looking up in your tank... I know it was causing quite a headache for a while! I agree... the RO/DI is a piece of equipment that should not be skimped on... this is what allows you to start with a clean canvas in your tank. If you're starting out with sub-par water, you end up spending so much time chasing issues to no avail, and water changes end up doing no good... been there, done that!

Unfortunately, you're still going to have to deal with phosphates to some extent no matter what RO/DI you use. Even if you start with 0.00, that number will start to go up if you don't have some form of exportation. It's when you get your number down to say 0.02, and then you do a water change with water starting off at say 0.08... then use GFO to bring them back down... that's a big waste of time, money, and energy!

Seriously check into SpectaPure. They have a vendor forum here with tons of good information. Read and ask questions. Again, an RO/DI system is just a bracket, filter housings, and tubing. Sure there's something to be said for quality there, but using high quality filters and the proper filter sequence is key. The MaxCap sequence is .5uM Sediment > .5uM Charcoal > 99% Rejection Membrane > MaxCap DI > SilicaBuster DI. By the time your water leaves the membrane, you should be sending 002 TDS water to the MaxCap, and 000 water to the SilicaBuster for the final polish. You can do even better if you add a booster pump. You replace the MaxCap filter when water going to the SilicaBuster hits 001, and you replace the SilicaBuster with every 3rd MaxCap.

 

[SpectraPure]

I would not assume that it would be better on a well. Typically wells have much more Co2 and organics than city water. Co2 leads to premature DI exhaustion, and organics will def foul up your membrane faster.

Rejection is very important when it involves DI. The better that your membrane is rejecting leads to longer DI life. This will save you money in the long run.

I hope that you all have a wonderful weekend. Long live Air Jordan!