some ro/di questions

[joejoe1055]

i'm going to be moving into a house that runs off of well water
tired of buying water from stores to do waterchanges
i don't need one with alot of gallons per day and one thats easy to turn off and on
any web site suggestions would be great
not looking to break the bank, and needs to be able to find replacement filters easy
plus any tips would be useful
thanks

 

[boehm742]

Got my 75gpd unit from the filter guys. It works great on the well water here. Make sure and get the TDS meter as well.

 

[RBursek]

A number of things here to explain, most wells cycle about off at 60-65psi and on about 40-45 psi. well water runs 56*F in most areas and depending on how deep your well is. RO membranes are rated at there GPD at 60psi @ 77*F water, so anything less in any combo will give you less performance, also most membranes at there designed rating run 96-98% rejection rate of TDS's except 100GPD they run 90% so stay away from one of those because they will eat up DI resin faster. Well water can be very high TDS or low, if you are getting a water softener run the supply off of softened water. You may need a booster pump do to the low pressure. Jim at TheFilterGuys.biz is great and so are there products, as well as Bulk Reef Supply and Buckeye Field Supply, all you will need is a 4 or 5 stage, more stages is not always better, you will not need a 6 stage, and stay away from Ebay products.

Water is the single largest ingredient in a reef system by far, why not provide the very best? The key is consistency, with a good RO/DI you get the same consistent water quality every time, unlike purchasing water or tap water both of which you have absolutely no control over and may be hit and miss.

Do not get hung up on the word "stages", this is an old ebay ploy to make low quality drinking water systems sound like the best thing since sliced bread. They tack a few cheap filters on like a 10 micron carbon or GAC carbon, both of which are completely exhausted in 300 to 1000 total gallons of water (total gallons means all water passing thru the filter including waste so at the normal 4:1 waste ratio that’s only 60 to 200 good gallons and 240 to 800 waste gallons) or another little dinky horizontal DI with about 6 oz of resin bobbing around in it and call them "stages".

Good vendors don't play this game. Spectrapure, the Filer Guys, Bulk reef supply, and Buckeye field supply, have been building RO/DI systems for the reef hobby for years. They give you a guaranteed systems with exactly what you need, no extra carbons, no small horizontal DI's no extra taste and odor carbons etc.
A single 0.5 micron carbon block is good for up to 20,000 gallons of normally chlorinated or chloraminated tap water, a 1 micron is good for 9000 gallons. No need for extra carbons and the associated pressure drop they cause. A good vertical 20 oz DI like they use is good for much more treated water than two or 3 or more of the small horizontals since it has a true engineered bottom up flow pattern so all water and resin come into contact with each other unlike horizontals that channel and short circuit.

For a reef quality RO/DI 4 stages is perfect, if you want to add something make it a second DI like the MaxCap where you get something for your money.

 

[joejoe1055]

so would i get less gpd because of the well?

 

[AZDesertRat]

You need to check the pressure switch setting on the well or booster pump. Its probably set in the 30-40 psi range which is bare minimum for a RO or RO/DI to operate, higher is better but its rare to find a domestic system at 50 psi or higher. There is a trade off with a domestic well system, most household fixtures don't need higher pressures to operate so raising the pressure switch might not be wise since you will have higher power consumption due to more frequent cycling and longer operation of the pump to achieve the higher pressure.
In that case a RO booster pump is probably the better choice. Its a one time capital cost and doesn't cost much to operate and will make a RO or RO/DI operate much more efficiently, produce much less waste (meaning the well will not have to cycle as much) and will give you more and better water quality.

A couple good choices to look at for all your RO supplies are www.buckeyefieldsupply.com and www.spectrapure.com , Spectrapure is also having a sale on RO/DI systems and booster pumps right now.
SpectraPure Customer Appreciation SALE! 20% - 50% off

I would avoid Filter Guys personally. Not enough experience and some questionable advice.

 

[RBursek]

To all Here,
The AZDesertRat is very knowledgeable in many areas, he also has a personal bias and prejudice against the owner of TheFilterGuys. He has a feud going with the owner. IMO his quote of
"I would avoid Filter Guys personally. Not enough experience and some questionable advice."
is an inaccurate and an inappropriate statement. If you go to the vendor sites here and other sites you will read nothing but positive accolades about them. AZDesertRat, please leave your personal feelings to yourself, and do not use these forums to vent your personal feelings.
Thank you

 

[AZDesertRat]

When a vendor gets me banned from a forum for speaking the absolute truth its not good business. I will continue to carry on as usual.

I can give specifics but would rather take it outside an open forum. PM me and I can go into much more detail if you would care to discuss it.

 

[RBursek]

After talking to various sources AZDersertRat quote here is true "

When a vendor gets me banned from a forum for speaking the absolute truth its not good business." ​

Read more: some ro/di questions ​

 

[joejoe1055]

glad for the feed back i'll let u yall know of my choice or anymore ?s

 

[Angels 2010]

Check out Buckeye Field Supply. Russ is a great guy to deal with and very good prices... HTH

 

[tampasnooker]

I've also had nothing but good experience with Brian at TBAquatics.

 

[kateater]

Abundant Flow Water Systems Inc. most ro systems carbon and sediment filters can be bought at home depot you will pay a little more but they are readily available online at a discounted rate. you wont find the di resin at home depot.

 

[TANKSALOT]

I have found Air, Water & Ice to be one of the best and most affordable sellers.
CLICK HERE ->
Aquarium Water | Reverse Osmosis | RODI Water | ReefKeeper Water | Products and answers for your water treatment needs.

Use code 84048 and get a 10% discount.

Tanksalot
aka - Steve

 

[jordan3548]

My rodi unit is the 100 GPD AquaFX Barrucuda and my TDS is a constant 0 so I would look into AquaFX as well I am sure alot of people know about them as well and they're priced reasonable

 

[lvsuckerfish]

I love my puretex 100 with pump it will runn you 3bills but well worth it IMO if you need a pump you will have to buy seprate on most systems.

 

[Angels 2010]

so, are you confused on who to with yet? LOL

All great choices, imo...

 

[lvsuckerfish]

so, are you confused on who to with yet? LOL

All great choices, imo...

I agree all good choices but look for water pressue coming to your place then that will tell you if you need a booster pump and that will be more effecient IMO way to go. my water pressue was like 35-40 so i opt'd to get the one with a booster pump. not to deal with the cold water i will be to a 1:1 ratio which is great. I also look at all of them the same as it is the filters that do the work not the unit itself. cheap expensive IMO ll the same once the filters are replace I bought a cheap one and replaced all the connectors to john guest fittings and replaced all filters and add a second di chamber worked great. but it was alot of work to get it up to par with the names out there. this time I just bought a name brand one and couldn't be more happier with it

 

[stedfast82]

+++1 rbursek wish i would of talked to you before i got my ro\di i'm now changing my ebay ro\di and doing some mod's to get it right on the money thank's for all your info!! good thing i saved all that$$$$ . one more thing laying around