RO DI thoughts

[kevinathom]

I am considering starting to use an ro di unit to mix my own water and have a couple of questions. I am considering for the potential cost savings, convenience, and quality. I have a 70 gal system and change 9 gal a week. My first question is whether this going to be a time suck. Secondly, i noticed that similar units can have different flow rates. For example, the BRS 4 stage dual membrane is 150 / day. The equivalent SpectraPure is 180. Is this due to the cartridges used or something more specific tothe brand. Thirdly, i do not have a lot of space but assume these units must be permanently mounted. Any thoughts anyone may have and willing to share will be appreciated. As a side note, BRS has their units on sale. Are they decent units?

 

[rdnelson]

BRS are decent. The flow rate is based on design and the flow restrictor. Incoming water pressure has a lot to do with it.

You can get portable ones from http://www.purewaterclub.com">www.purewaterclub.com</a> but they are not the best in the world.

My best recommendations are these:

1. Buy from a club sponsor if you can. They do a lot to support this club.
2. Make sure you get one with pressure gauges and in-line TDS meter. As you use it you will learn why they are important.
3. Go permanent install. That keeps it from becoming a time suck. Install a float valve on the storage container and a solenoid valve and you will always have water available.

Doing the above will save time and money. Buying water costs money and time to go get it. I put a hose Y fitting on the cold water line for the wash machine in the laundry. The waste line for the RO/DI dumps into the wash machine drain line. Very easy, costs almost nothing and I always have water available. You won't regret it.

 

[jbdreefs]

Agree with Rich. A rodi unit is a must in my opinion. A quasi permanent setup is best, like rich described. Permanent enough that you can avoid setup time, but temporary enough that you can move it, replace it, etc when needed.

 

[kevinathom]

Thanks for the advice, and I agree with supporting the sponsors. One other question: How do you hook it up so that the water cuts off when the fill tank is full, or is this a manual process (I know this is probably a stupid question, but I'm not a plumber and don't know if this is possible).

 

[nicoli627]

when you put a float valve on the storage container that will become your shut of for the unit. it's easy to install watch the videos ob BRS website

 

[rdnelson]

Nicoli627;1003501 wrote: when you put a float valve on the storage container that will become your shut of for the unit. it's easy to install watch the videos ob BRS website

That is half the answer. . Doing that alone will waste a lot of water because the waste will continue to run. That is why you also need the solo pod valve. Cheap and easy.

 

[kevinathom]

Thank you

 

[camellia]

I am very happy with my SpectraPure. It uses a lot less water which is important to me.
Due to water pressure issues in my last house, my RODI was completely portable (with no issues). I kept it under the counter and carried it to the spicket at my back door, made my water, put it away when done... It's doable and not a big deal!

 

[jbdreefs]

I just recently bought a BRS unit and it has a solenoid that shuts the unit off when the float valve closes.

I would argue that most refers started out with manually turning the unit off and inevitably found a flood because of forgetting about the RODI unit. I have more than my fair share...

 

[rk4435]

I use an Air, Water, Ice unit that I store in a spare bedroom and hook to the kitchen sink when I need to make water. Since my wife gets ticked I'm getting another unit tomorrow that will produce a quicker but will use it the same way.

 

[hnguyen]

I would recommend the biggest RO/DI unit you can afford as it will save you a lot of time. Having your own will allow you to make water on demand instead of having to go out and buy water. You never know when you need RO/DI water in the middle of the night when no one else is open. I'm the odd ball out of the group and have a GE Merlin unit that produces nearly 800 GPD and it's permanently hooked up to a from a T on my cold water line in the fish room. I do not have a float valve for any of that fancy stuff and I'm not even sure if I can since I also run a booster pump which needs to be shut off when there's no water flow. I just turn it on to fill my top off container whenever I'm in the fish room messing with the tank and it usually fills the 20 gallon container by the time I'm done feeding and and poking around at the tank. When I need to fill up my 100 gallon new salt water containers (2x 50 gallon containers), I just set a timer on my phone and go about my business until my timer goes off.

 

[ghbrewer]

Have a Spectrapure unit myself, the 90 GPD CSPDI unit. It has served me well.
Definitely look at getting an Autoshutoff and float valve.

 

[kevinathom]

I can see where an auto shut off is a must. I get absent minded as it is and have left the faucet running just filling up the sink to clean my socks. I can imagine the mess with an RO unit could make, and I'd be the one to do it.