R/O unit

[andrew catling]

Im thinking about buying an R/O unit the problem is all the units I have seen produce far too much water for my requirements.
As my tank is only 50 gallons and the smallest unit I've seen produces 35 gallons per day, a 10% water change per week for my tank would only be 5 gallons plus top up water of about 3 gallons per week, so what do you do with all this surplus water as I've read you shouldn't turn the units off due to damaging the membrane.
I am currently using water from my lfs but I have doubts about the quality of it as he keeps it stored outside in large containers I have at times had to filter it first due to particles in the water

Any advise please.

 

[steelhealr]

HI Andrew...I bought a unit with both a faucet and garden hose adapter. I connect my unit which I keep in the garage, run it overnight outside into a covered bucket. In the morning I have 5 gallons of water to make SW and 'toss ' the RO unit back into the garage. If you make it indoors and don't attach it under the sink, consider using it in the tub in case any thing bursts or if a tube moves so it doesn't soak down the floor. SH

 

[Def]

You can buy stop valves for R/O units. Check R/O Man website, he has pretty much everything.

 

[andrew catling]

Cheers guys,

Steelhealr,

In the morning I have 5 gallons of water to make SW and 'toss ' the RO unit back into the garage.

Does this not damage the membrane I've read they must be kept moist at all times.

Def, looked up R/O man he does have pretty much everything.

Do the units need to be hooked up to our drinking water mains or is it safe to connect to my garden hose connecton which comes from my watertank which is not drinking water.

Sorry if I appear dim, just want to do it right.

 

[steelhealr]

HI..the unit always has water in the system and I can't believe that there is any chance of the RO filter drying out. The water, should be made 98-99% clean whatever the source. Certainly if one source contains particulate matter, it would clog up the filter. I was connecting my filter to the bathroom sink with a faucet connector, but, it just got in the way. So...runs off my garden hose. My phosphates test zero. My tap water runs 5-20ppm nitrates and the RO effluent tests 0 for nitrates. SH

 

[andrew catling]

Thanks SH,
More the wiser now.

 

[andrew catling]

I purchased an R/O unit from R/O man, 50 gpd with DI but the flow seems to be quite low, its hooked up and running and is taking roughly 10 hours to fill a 20 ltr container (approx 4 gallons) is this normal?
The pressure gauge on the unit registers 25psi which apparently is low according to the spec for the unit but the cold water from my sink tap is very strong so I thought my pressure would be fine.
Do I need to purchase the booster pump from R/O man?

What flow rates are you guys getting just for comparison.

Cheers.

 

[steelhealr]

Sounds about right. I put my 5 gallon Home Depot bucket out in the evening, cover it and by next afternoon I have about 5 gallons. Very slow. Unless you are in a rush, I'd save my money and just plan ahead. JMO. You have enough things to spend money on in this hobby. SH

 

[andrew catling]

Flow rate has improved, now only takes 7 hours to produce 5 gallons.
I'm happy with this and dont need the booster pump.
Guess it needed a settling in period.

Thanks again SH.

 

[fraservet]

I have recently bought the same unit - which i can highly recommend.
Is your pressure reading still 25psi?
If so, consider getting a pump as the membrane works best over 40psi - I think also the life of the membrane is better. How much rejected water are you getting, this may be more at such low pressure, and if you're on a meter getting a pump will be more economical in the long run. ( on a side note - anyone who just runs reject water down the drain, please don't - use it to water plants etc. especially with hosepipe bans around the corner).
I have fairly low water pressure in my house, but have my unit running off the garden hose from an outside tap and I get around 60psi, and fill a 25l container in 4-5 hours (roughly, I haven't actually timed it). Are you measuring the pressure with the flush valve turned off (it is considerably lower when flushing)?

I run my unit intermittantly. I try to have it going weekly where possible, and flush it before and after each time. I don't think there should be any problems with the membrane from this.

 

[andrew catling]

Fraservet,
Still have 25psi with valve closed, I may well purchase the pump as 7 hours is a bit of an awquard time, 5 hours would be ideal as I would be able to switch it on when I get in from work and turn it off before sleep, and as you mentioned it would also run at an optimal performance.
I would say my reject rate compared to water produced is around 5/1
I could purchase the auto shut off valve but a bit nervous of these valves failing.

Cheers

 

[Salt Freak]

It takes about 10 days of running time before it starts putting out its ful potential most RO units are sent to u dry in a special protective plastic to keep it dry this time pores are all close when they get wet they slowly open and get faster water flow. this is y you should always make sure that the RO membrane stays wet or when it gets dry the pores close and dont open back up or something like that and that is what you call a fouled membrane.

 

[Sean_Buckley]

Whats "R/O man's" website?
Sean

 

[smithrc]

Fraservet,
Still have 25psi with valve closed, I may well purchase the pump as 7 hours is a bit of an awquard time, 5 hours would be ideal as I would be able to switch it on when I get in from work and turn it off before sleep, and as you mentioned it would also run at an optimal performance.
I would say my reject rate compared to water produced is around 5/1
I could purchase the auto shut off valve but a bit nervous of these valves failing.

Cheers

[snapback]823081[/snapback]​

I bought a 2nd hand RO unit in a bulk marine setup i bought about a year ago.

It had the stops on the pipes to keep it wet... well yesturday i screwed it to the wall in the garage and today I put the first fresh water through it for over a year.

TDS of our tap water is about 500ppm - the first 200ml was at 60ppm - I've not even run it for 10 mins to clean it all through yet...

not sure how long it'll take for a 25l drum but i do know im getting 6:1 waste: RO

the stops seem to work fine.

 

[Chac]

Whats "R/O man's" website?
Sean

[snapback]854497[/snapback]​

RO-MAN