What are your thoughts about the ro buddy filter?

Peace River · Feb 12, 2020

#WelcometoR2R!!! Did you have a specific question about the RO Buddy, hoping for general feedback, or looking to buy one? The RO Buddy is a viable starter system. I suggest that you also consider a RODI unit from BRS, SpectraPure, and Aqua FX.

Willy jalapeño · Feb 12, 2020

I am thinking about purchasing one and wanted some good info about it

Bgmrc · Feb 12, 2020

I have one. New to the reef game again. Works great but it can leak if not aet up correctly. And make sure if u get it u follow directions about what to rinse out what first and the the color changing media. My color changing media was going along real slow as I wanted until i added much longer lines and placed it permanently in my setup. Its was less the half color changed and now with the water and drain lines around 10 feet each or so, it went to full brown and needs to be changed with a one time 20gal fill up. It seemed very strange to me. Maybe it is due to have it run for a much longer time all at once to get a 20gal filled with dead live rock to cure. I was only doing smaller 3 to 4 gals or lil less at a time before and not even near half used. If you get the 50gal 4stage like mine u will get 2 to 3 times waist water as compared to clean water. Im deff gettin a pump to help even that out as much as can be. I have good water pressure coming in.

CubsFan · Feb 12, 2020

I use a marine depot ro/di with a smart buddie booster pump. It’s a good set up. If it uses universal filters and doesn’t leak and gives you the output and ratio to waste water you’re looking for, you’re all set. I don’t think the tech on ro/di units has come much further in recent years. It would be like reinventing the wheel. You can Frankenstein the heck out of them too. I have inline input output tds meters and a pressure gauge. It’s a nice luxury and worth investing in imo. A lot of production will be based on the plumbing in your house. I had to get the booster pump to really get the best product from my ro/di.

cromag27 · Feb 12, 2020

no go.

https://octoaquatics.com/rodi-101/

Peace River · Feb 12, 2020

cromag27 said:
no go.

https://octoaquatics.com/rodi-101/

I agree that SpectraPure is one of the better choice and I included it on the list that I suggested, but I'm curious why you describe the RO Buddy as a "no go"? Have you reviewed the product? If so, what did you find?

cromag27 · Feb 12, 2020

Peace River said:
I agree that SpectraPure is one of the better choice and I included it on the list that I suggested, but I'm curious why you describe the RO Buddy as a "no go"? Have you reviewed the product? If so, what did you find?

i’ll admit that i have never used the ro buddy, but you simply can’t beat the quality and longevity of spectrapure rodi units, membranes, filters and di resins.

i know a lot of people in the nano world who use the ro buddy and they’re replacing filters and di resin often. after having used spectrapure for 10+ years i can say no other company comes close. brs isn’t a water purification company. spectrapure was the first company to introduce ro(di) water into our hobby.

if you want to save money in the long run and have the most efficient system, it’s spectrapure. for me, the main selling point would absolutely be long term $$$ savings.

if you have some time read my rodi article i posted a link to. i point out what you really want to look for in replacements.

i think my current membrane has been in use for over five years with over a thousand gallons of water through it.

edit: i don’t get paid by them. but i should!!!

FishLvR · Feb 13, 2020

The RO buddy is finicky, uses proprietary filter sizes, leaks, is inefficient (50 gallons of water resins exhausted, not all resins are created equal).

When I first got into reefing I decided to buy the RO unit first. A lot of people suggested BRS, but their system needed assembly, and I noticed a lot of people adding on to them and having issues with how to add to them. So I already knew I wanted a five stage to prevent needing add on later.

Also, people complained about TDS in the water after filtration and I learned about PSI and how that effects filtration, so I knew I needed a pressure meter.

Then there was talk of flow restrictors and TDS meters, so I knew I would need a flow restrictor cut to the right size and a TDS meter. So I started to piece together my RO unit and found it utterly overwhelming. Frankensteining a system was NOT something I was enjoying. I wanted all the features just already built into the system.

So I googled the "best ro system" and Spectrapure pulled up. They are out of Phoenix, AZ. They are the leaders of RO/DI systems, the creators of reef ro/di and are amazingly knowledgeable and helpful (I called them before buying). So I bought their 90gal a day five stage ro/di, with two built in TDS that show me the TDS at EACH stage of filtration, and built in pressure gauge that allows me to see I have proper flow and also reminds me I still have water going. The restrictor was built in and already cut for my system, and luckily I didn't have to make any changes. It came FULLY assembled with a detailed manual. It cost $399 dollars. Yes its more expensive, but I have had it for 6 years changed the membrane once, the silica buster twice, the Max Cap three times. It is paying for itself in savings. Also, the waste water to ro water is amazing. I have good pressure so that probably helps. Now that I have the best system I can not imagine using anything else. Most people don't hear much about Spectrapure because there is no reason to post about them. They don't fail and are fool proof.

Comparing the RO buddy to Spectrapure is like talking about the Pinto versus a Cadillac. Sure the BRS and other no namers sold by others, I suspect they are all the same manufacturer just re-branded, are like hondas. LOL!