RO/DI replacement cartridges question

[taylor85]

I was recently given a 6 stage RO/DI unit. I checked the quality of water it was producing with a TDS meter and got a reading 0f 52 ppm. Also, it took about 4 hours to fill up a 5 gallon jug. I have searched the net for a manual but been unable to find one. I am guessing that some or all of the filters/cartridges need to be replaced but have no idea where to begin and even where would be the best place to purchase replacements. It is a devoneb aqua 6 stage reverse osmosis system. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

[brewercm]

I'm only guessing here but I'd imagine from most 6 stages that I've ever seen that the sixth is just a charcoal filter that is for taste and can be taken off. Usually you have two pre-filter cartridges, a charcoal style cartridge, the RO membrane and then the DI as the last being the fifth.

You can try this place for replacement cartridges and membranes etc. Maybe even get good input from them of what you really need.

http://www.buckeyefieldsupply.com/ (http://www.buckeyefieldsupply.com/)

[captexas]

What is your water pressure? If there is not enough pressure, it won't be able to push much water through the R/O membrane. Also it could have a flow restrictor on it that needs to be replaced.

[BIGBIRD123]

Thanks for the link Cliff, they are a sponsor here now.

Steve

[BuckeyeHydro]

I was recently given a 6 stage RO/DI unit. I checked the quality of water it was producing with a TDS meter and got a reading 0f 52 ppm. Also, it took about 4 hours to fill up a 5 gallon jug. I have searched the net for a manual but been unable to find one. I am guessing that some or all of the filters/cartridges need to be replaced but have no idea where to begin and even where would be the best place to purchase replacements. It is a devoneb aqua 6 stage reverse osmosis system. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks


Taylor - let's start the troubleshooting with a few questions:

1. What is your tds readings of your 1)tap water, 2) RO water, and 3) DI water. Was the 52 ppm your DI water?

2. What is your water pressure?

3. Is your DI resin housing vertical or horizontal?

4. Does your DI "out" tube go straight to the "in" port on another filter?

Russ

[Mr_Cool]

Just tagging along here, but......

What should the answers to those questions be, Russ?

[BuckeyeHydro]

1. What is your tds readings of your 1)tap water, 2) RO water, and 3) DI water. Was the 52 ppm your DI water?

RO water should be 90 to 98+% less than tap water, DI water ought to be 0 or 1 ppm.

2. What is your water pressure?

With Filmtec membrane: 40 psi min, 50 psi is factory spec, more is better up to 90 psi.
With other brands: about 50 psi min, 60+ psi factory spec, more is better up to 90 psi.

3. Is your DI resin housing vertical or horizontal?

A horizontal DI stage is a fundamental configuration flaw, and is typically an indication of a retro-fitted drinking water system.

4. Does your DI "out" tube go straight to the "in" port on another filter?

Many of the retrofitted drinking water systems on the auction web site, probably in order to capture the uninformed buyer who thinks "more stages is better" tag on a in-line GAC stage AFTER the DI stage. Another fundamental design goof. The water is as clean as the system can make it after it leaves the DI.

Russ

[Mr_Cool]

I'm confused, Russ. Don't your units have a horizontal DI stage? Or, did you mean that a VERTICAL DI stage is flawed?

It seems to me that alomost ALL of the RO/DI units have horizontal DI stages. I've seen add-on DI stages that are vertical, though. Is this what you meant or am I missing something here? I've been looking at RO/DI units for some time now. I want to make sure I have all the facts straight before I buy.

[JimD]

The horizontal cartridge is usually the RO housing.

[Mr_Cool]

Oh! Thanks Jim. Well no wonder they all have it the same way then! Sorry Russ! I KNEW you know what you're talking about! I just thought you got your horizontal and vertical mixed up. (Give me a break, though. I teach Geometry and kids make that mistake all the time.)

Even still, I don't think I've seen too many units with two horizontal stages. (Come to think of it, I guess I did know that the RO filter was the horzontal one. Ed showed me his at the store where he has two membranes running for double the output.)

What would it look like if the DI stage was horizontal?

[caferacermike]

Like every $99 made in China Ebay unit that just sucks the fun out of both your wallet and the hobby.

[Bill S]

Since you were given the unit, any chance the RO membrane dried out? It may need to be replaced.

[taylor85]

Sorry for the delayed response as I had to leave town unexpectedly. I guess I forgot to mention that when I first received the unit, it was filling up a 5 gallon jug in about an hour with a TDS reading of ~10 ppm. The tap water TDS reading is 275 ppm and the current final water output from the unit is 52 ppm. I do not know what the water pressure is or how to measure it, and unfortunately the DI resin is horizontal and it does go into another filter (the last stage). What should I do? Any suggestions would be appreciated and thanks to all who previously responded.

[caferacermike]

Replace the imitation RO membrane with a quality unit like Buckeye sells, Dow Filmtech 75gpd. You only need to replace the membrane, not the housing. Ditch the cheesy little horizontal DI canister and think about buying an add on unit from Buckeye. They have an internal cartridge that you pack tight with DI resin and then place it in the housing. A very simple upgrade that will create genuine, long lasting results.

[BuckeyeHydro]

Taylor - feel free to give us a call and we can walk you through a retro-fit.

Russ

[JimD]

He might be better off just buying a new unit... After replacing the RO and adding a DI cart........

[theedprado]

You could try backflushing it.

[apedroza]

I now have the unit and it actually is a nice looking unit with excellent fittings. I will however take the horizontal DI filter and replace it with a refillable Di cartridge. I will also get rid of the extra (No taste ) carbon filter. So it will actually be a 5 stage when I add the extra housing.