which ro system off fleabay is ok?
- Thread starter gerry46
- Start date
AZDesertRat
In Memoriam
Steer clear of most e-bay vendors. They are cheap for a reason.
There are several vendors here on RC that build good units including:
www.thefilterguys.biz
www.spectrapure.com
www.buckeyefieldsupply.com
www.purelyh2o.com
Air Water & Ice also builds good units although they are not an RC sponsor, but if you mention RC they usually throw something extra in like a float valve or something.
There are several vendors here on RC that build good units including:
www.thefilterguys.biz
www.spectrapure.com
www.buckeyefieldsupply.com
www.purelyh2o.com
Air Water & Ice also builds good units although they are not an RC sponsor, but if you mention RC they usually throw something extra in like a float valve or something.
RichConley
New member
Gerry, you really should find out what your incoming TDS is, and get an analysis of your water. That'll determine what you need to run for prefilters (chloramine, etc)
what happened to AWI? Werent they a sponsor before?
what happened to AWI? Werent they a sponsor before?
Henry Bowman
Reefing since '87
I have an ebay unit that I have had to upgrade through other sources to get the TDS within acceptable reef-range. Go through the filterguys or purley h2o. The filterguys are reef enthusiasts and wont steer you wrong.
AZDesertRat
In Memoriam
Aquasafe is a perfect example of one I would stay away from. It uses an Applied membrane that requires 65 psi instead of Dow Filmtecs 50 psi. It uses a hollow horizontal tube that only holds 16 oz of resin and calles it a DI filter instad of others standard sized vertical canister with a refillable cartridge that holds 24 oz and is a true engineered design. It uses granular carbon instead of a solid carbon block in the 1 or less micron range, much less chlorine or volatile chemical capacity. It does not include a pressure gauge, the list goes on and on. Unless you have almost pristine water to begin with don't even consider it for reef use, maybe for drinking water but not a reef system.
2NDTIME AROUND
New member
I don't know what they go for on Ebay, but several of our sponsors have units for less than $150.00 thay will do a fine job.
AZDesertRat
In Memoriam
Yes 0 TDS is the goal. But to know how cost efficient your system is you also need to track tap water TDS and RO only TDS which determines how ling DI resin lasts. You should also read the article written by Charles Mitsis regarding the Myths surrounding 0 TDS, its a pretty informative read. I will bet money my DI lasts a minimum of 3.5X longer than yours and I get true 0 TDS water, actually its 18.2 megaOhm true semiconductor quality water unlike any e-bay unit that I am aware of. Yes I paid more initially but I will save money in the long run plus have the benefit of better water so I suppose its a matter of pay me now or pay me later to some extent. I prefer the better water and long membrane and DI life.
Sorry, but I gotta go with 46bfinGA on this one. Our reefs don't need 18.2 megaOhm water (not that a typical conductivity meter can really measure that low anyway; the lowest calibration standard is 0.1 megaOhm). 0 TDS means that the water has a conductivity of at best a few microSiemens, which can come from ppb levels of Cl, SO4, PO4, or NO3. That's really not a problem.
As for the horizontal DI cartridges, I agree that they will not last as long as a standard 10" vertical conister. However, you won't blow through them unless your inlet water really sucks. I've just exhausted my first canister (second is in-line after it) after about 6 months and several hundred gallons of water. Heck, I'd want to replace or regenerate the resin every year at a minimum to prevent bacteria build-up. Resin (and carbon) beds are great bug farms.
As for the horizontal DI cartridges, I agree that they will not last as long as a standard 10" vertical conister. However, you won't blow through them unless your inlet water really sucks. I've just exhausted my first canister (second is in-line after it) after about 6 months and several hundred gallons of water. Heck, I'd want to replace or regenerate the resin every year at a minimum to prevent bacteria build-up. Resin (and carbon) beds are great bug farms.
caferacermike
New member
I bought a nice 6 stage unit used locally. He recommended buying the filters from Ebay to replace the ones in the unit. I did. I bought 2x everything for sediment and DI. I bought one membrane. Yep garbage. I bought a nice dual TDS meter and found almost 32 ppm at discharge. I should have bought from a real source. All the membranes and filters were cheap Chinese knockoffs that looked exactly like what I took out but had these great broken english translations and had cheap little standards stickers on everythign proclaiming them to be NASA grade. Devondeb I believe was the seller. Also 4 other Ebay user names linked back to that shop.
I would highly recommend BuckEyeFieldsupply. They did an awesome job of walking me through my crappy set up. Buy the Dow 75gpd filter, it's the best. Purely H20 was having some business troubles after the buyout, they may be back to normal by now.
I would highly recommend BuckEyeFieldsupply. They did an awesome job of walking me through my crappy set up. Buy the Dow 75gpd filter, it's the best. Purely H20 was having some business troubles after the buyout, they may be back to normal by now.
Buckeye Hydro
.Registered Member
Re: which ro system off fleabay is ok?
Gerry - if you have any specific questions we'd be happy to work with you.
Dave @ BFS
Gerry - if you have any specific questions we'd be happy to work with you.
Dave @ BFS
twkenny
New member
Yes get a good unit with a DI.
Not going to get into a long thing here....
Trust me when I say this....go with one of the above mentioned units that AZ mentioned. I've been the fleabay route...the horizontal tubes are junk. When they are new, they work okay....they must use a press or something to get the resin in. You'll never get it to work well after you change the resin yourself. That's a whole other story...what a mess. Swapping a standard DI cartridge is SO much easier.
I've "modded" my Ebay junk by adding a DOW Filmtec membrane, better filters and a standard DI unit. I could have purchased a purelyh20 unit or whatever cheaper in the long run.
Not going to get into a long thing here....
Trust me when I say this....go with one of the above mentioned units that AZ mentioned. I've been the fleabay route...the horizontal tubes are junk. When they are new, they work okay....they must use a press or something to get the resin in. You'll never get it to work well after you change the resin yourself. That's a whole other story...what a mess. Swapping a standard DI cartridge is SO much easier.
I've "modded" my Ebay junk by adding a DOW Filmtec membrane, better filters and a standard DI unit. I could have purchased a purelyh20 unit or whatever cheaper in the long run.
well i do track my incoming tap water and it is 27ppm.plus i only run mine when im filling my storage tanks.i normally flush it for a few minutes before i start to refill my storage tanks.my horizontal cylinder is very easy to change out the resin im not sure what everyone finds difficult about it.its just a matter of opening the side cleaning it and pouring new di resin in?i guess spending more money on something makes you feel like it works better?
Just trying to post my success with a fleabay unit.Not trying to be argumentative ,but honestly you should buy whatever you can afford and feel comfortable with.If i had all the money in the world i would have bought a $3-400 dollar unit,but as much reading i have done on this site and others,i found that there are many $100 dollar units that accomplish the same thing without all the expensive packaging that goes along with it.
My advice is to buy what you can afford and upgrade later if you have to. Like most I didn't have an unlimitted budget when I started the hobby so I bought a $90 unit off ebay. My water is 700 going into the first canister. In the beginning I was around 25 coming out of my RO then 0 out of the DI. After about 6 months I was 50 out of the RO and 2-3 out of the DI, 6 months later 230 out of the RO and 100 out of the DI. I probably should have replaced filters sooner, but didn't. Well now I'm in a better position so I spent about $75 and upgraded to a 75GPD Filmtech and a verticle refillable DI from Russ at one of the local Frag Swaps. Now in the long run I'm still out $165 and I have a unit that rivals any of the brands mentioned above. I've read all the posts on why you shouldn't buy the units on ebay,but from personal experience I think I'm ahead from where I would have been had I spent the $165 in the beginning.
My opinion for what it is worth.
Joe
My opinion for what it is worth.
Joe
twkenny
New member
I agree with you. I did the same thing. I just wish I saved the time and effort and spent the money up front. I think you can get an Optima from www.purelyh2o.com for like $139 or $159.
I guess as long as you end up with a DOW membrane and vertical DI, your better off than you were.
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