RO-DI selection time!!!!

[khanb31]

YAY its time for a RO/DI!!!! Since im having a horrible time finding one here on RC, I am going to just try and buy one. I was hopefully going to get one from airwaterice.com.....but the guy that I wanted to buy it from went MIA. SO.....What companies are there to choose from?

Ive heard of these so far,

airwaterice
filterguys
melevs reef
h20science
Ebay....

What would everyone suggest? Do all of the standard units use the same type of filters? (not micron size but...overall dimmensions..)

Thanks so much,

Jim

[bsagecko]

ok well i just went through the same thing and i decided to go with thefilterguys because of customer service and a good solid product

[bsagecko]

ebay is not an option.......

you might want to look at BFS to but i didnt really like them because they wouldnt answer my emails with questions

[kau_cinta_ku]

purelyH20 also. I have the optima pro and like it alot.

but you can't go wrong with any of those places on your list except ebay.

most of the units will all use standard 10" housings. the main thing you will want to know is if your water company uses clorimines in their water, if they do you will need an add on to remove them.

also you have spectrapure.

[1BADCFH]

Not sure how well it works, but Home Depot has one that doesn't have any waste water. runs about $360

[khanb31]

Well im looking to spend around 100$ and so far the ones on ebay are really pulling my leg. They give you so much. However I do think the ones from credible sites are nice. I just dont like it that I can find them on ebay for 40 bucks cheaper. oye.... Do the smaller units work just as well as the larger units? Not for as long im sure....but they could still pull out almost 0 ppm correct?

The one thing im worried about is chloramines. will a regular 5 stage RO/DI kit take them out?

[kau_cinta_ku]

the things between ebay and the creditable sites are that the ebay units are more for drinking water rather than for aquarium use like they say. the horizontal DI is very well worth it, you will use all the DI where as the vertical DI like ebay you only use up half of it. you will spend 2 times as much upgrading to a decent unit if you go the ebay route. trust me I started off with one of them. spend a little more for a quality filter.

as for the chlormines if you look at filterguys website they have a unit that comes with the extra filter you need for clorimines a standard 5 stage unit usually don't come with it.

[cbrownfish]

Typhoon III or Typhoon III Extreme from airwaterice. Can't go wrong......great product and great service.

[khanb31]

Alright, well I have decided to stick with the credible sites as the warranty information really just got back into my head. This is the one I am looking at for a few different reasons,

AIR WATER ICE RO/DI (http://www.airwaterice.com/product/1COMPACT/Compact_75_GPD_Reefkeeper_RODI.html)

Why does it say then it will get rid of chloramines.

"Reefkeeping requires the reduction / removal of chemicals, Chloramines, bacteria,virus, salts, minerals , heavy metals. from top off and make up water . You need and want zero tds pure chemical / Chloramines free water."


Why airwaterice? Pros over the others?

Lifetime warranty
auto shut off valve
140$
Incremental micron filters (10 > 5 > 1) Better me thinks.
75 GALLONS PER DAY!!!!

yay

sound like a plan?

[kau_cinta_ku]

it has the chliomine filter in it. but I don't suggest that one due to the way the DI sits, your only gonna use half of the Di with that one.

sorry in my last post I got it wrong, the vertical DI is what you want not the horizontal. very sorry for the confusion.

[seagirl]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12720033#post12720033 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by khanb31
Alright, well I have decided to stick with the credible sites as the warranty information really just got back into my head. This is the one I am looking at for a few different reasons,

AIR WATER ICE RO/DI (http://www.airwaterice.com/product/1COMPACT/Compact_75_GPD_Reefkeeper_RODI.html)

Why does it say then it will get rid of chloramines.

"Reefkeeping requires the reduction / removal of chemicals, Chloramines, bacteria,virus, salts, minerals , heavy metals. from top off and make up water . You need and want zero tds pure chemical / Chloramines free water."


Why airwaterice? Pros over the others?

Lifetime warranty
auto shut off valve
140$
Incremental micron filters (10 > 5 > 1) Better me thinks.
75 GALLONS PER DAY!!!!

yay

sound like a plan?

get this one for $10 more. It a great unit. I have had it for 2 years and it's still making 0 tds water for me. it has the vertical DI chamber which is better.

http://www.airwaterice.com/product/1TYPHOON/Typhoon_5_stage_RODI_Reefkeeper_75_GPD.html

[khanb31]

AHHH....that sounds like a plan....

Thankya so kindly. I guess I didnt look hard enough?

[kdblove_99]

i like the Filter guys Ocean Reef +1

[bsagecko]

your carbon block should go down to .6 of a micron anything higher is not good IMO

also you sediment filter should go down to 1 micron before hitting the carbon.......

make sure you stay with a 75gpd RO membrane because they have the highest rejection rate......

also make sure your DI is vertical and that the DI uses refillable mixed resin cartiges that way you can just replace the resin and not have to pay for a whole cartiage price is like
$30 or more for whole cartiage
$12 from BFS for mixed resin (nuclear grade)

just a thought......also make sure you have a good tds meter
( you dont want to get a piece of crap and then realize it is off by like 1.....which makes a difference)

[bsagecko]

Oh one more thing dont use the color changing resin.......because the dye used can be detected in ppb and eventually this may accumulate in your tank over a couple of years........just ask them to change it.......

[AZDesertRat]

You spend $100 and you will get about $100 worth of substandard filtration. While outward appearance may be the same or similar on e-bay quality units they do not perform the same.
Its what is inside those housing that you need to be concerned with, with almost all RO/DI systems you get what you pay for.

Take a look at most systems sold by Reef central Sponsors and you will se much better fiters throughout. That includes the prefilter, carbon block(s), often the RO membrane itself and the DI filter. remember it takes every piece of the system to work well and last any length of time. A cheap prefilter is going to be about as effective as a screen door and will soon plug the carbon block which in turn will fail and ruin the membrane which will then exhaust the DI resin quickly, its a domino effect. A good prefilter will function to protect the more expensive downstream carbon block which in turn removes the chlorine residual and volatile organic chemicals and protects the RO membrane. A good name brand RO membrane is going to give you 96 to 98% removal of TDS where a cheap e-bay quality knock off may only give you 90% if that. This is important when you figure for every 2% you improve the membrane efficiency you DOUBLE the life of your DI filter. Now couple a cheap membrane with a very small horizontal low capacity 6 or 9 oz capacity horizontal DI filter and you can see it will not last long or perform well. Now look at a good 98% efficient membrane and a true vertical 20 oz capacity DI filter with bottom up flows so all water and resin come into contact with each other and you can imagine the difference in both quality and quantity of treated water.

Good reef quality RO/DI units can be had for about $169 up to maybe $250 and the absolute very best is around $350. Take a look at the 75 GPD Premium from www.buckeyefieldsupply.com and all the features it comes with like a inline pressure gauge, handheld TDS meter, RO bypass valve, Dow Filmtec RO membrane, high quality prefilter and carbon block and even an adjustable flow restrictor if you ask and compare that to a $100 e-bay unit and you will see what you are getting. Big difference!

[cayenne]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12725656#post12725656 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by AZDesertRat

Good reef quality RO/DI units can be had for about $169 up to maybe $250 and the absolute very best is around $350. Take a look at the 75 GPD Premium from www.buckeyefieldsupply.com and all the features it comes with like a inline pressure gauge, handheld TDS meter, RO bypass valve, Dow Filmtec RO membrane, high quality prefilter and carbon block and even an adjustable flow restrictor if you ask and compare that to a $100 e-bay unit and you will see what you are getting. Big difference!

I agree with AZDesertRat, I just installed this exact model this past weekend and couldn't be happier. It is a good product with a repectable company standing behind it.

[khanb31]

wow thanks very much guys. I really appreciate the explainations. I am definitly going to go with the trusted units and not the ebay ones.

I have not seen this site actually. This competes with the one from airwaterice.com....

hmmm....the one from airwaterice though has another stage....

[AZDesertRat]

Don't get wrapped up in the number of stages. This is an old hold over from the days when carbon was not as refined as it is today. Way back when you needed two granular carbon stages as they did not last long. Fro mtheer it went to high micron rated carbon blocks in the 10-20 micron or larger range, again with a relatively short life compared to todays blocks so they used two of them. Today a single 0.5 or 0.6 micron carbon block is all 99% of the people need. If you have chloramines instead of free chlorine as a residual disinfectant you may consider a second carbon stage but research has shown its really not necessary as the 20,000 gallon rating on a good block is still more capacity than most of us will use in a normal 6 month change out cycle.

[beatle]

I'm very happy with my Typhoon from AWI. I've since upgraded it with a pressure gauge, dual TDS meter, and float valve for my reservoir. It's cheaper to buy it all at once, but you don't have to eat the elephant all in one sitting as the base Typhoon makes a lot of good water right out of the box. The meters are nice to see how your filters are holding up. I was ready to replace my DI after a year, but TDS is still zero and TDS out of the membrane is 1-2.

[JGilvey]

Good reef quality RO/DI units can be had for about $169 up to maybe $250 and the absolute very best is around $350. Take a look at the 75 GPD Premium from www.buckeyefieldsupply.com and all the features it comes with like a inline pressure gauge, handheld TDS meter, RO bypass valve, Dow Filmtec RO membrane, high quality prefilter and carbon block and even an adjustable flow restrictor if you ask and compare that to a $100 e-bay unit and you will see what you are getting. Big difference! [/B]

I'm likin' this one with the 75gpd membrane:

http://www.buckeyefieldsupply.com/showproducts.asp?Category=170&Sub=166

For pure reefkeeping purposes, what would spending more than that $191 get me? Anything?

[AZDesertRat]

Longer membrane and DI life, a little higher quality water and lower life cycle cost. Units like the Spectrapure MaxCap or MaxCap UHE, both of which I use myself, use higher quality prefilters, custom hand blended DI resins and individually hand tested and guaranteed 98+% efficient RO membranes. Better filters do a better job of protecting the downstream components, better membranes deliver lower TDS water, usually at higher flow rates due to a proprietary process and better ROwater makes the DI work better and last longer. Custom blended DI resins also last much longer, again guaranteed and are truly capable of 18.2 megaohm resistivity. That may or may not be overkill for some people but for me with tap water TDS over 800 most of the time its well worth the initial cost difference when my DI lasts 5 times longer per cartridge than ever before. My first MaxCap returned the difference in initial cost in a year due to extended DI life alone.

[areze]

I went with an ebay unit.

I never had a TDS meter, but none the less I didnt think I had really great water coming out just because it was so darn cheap. the unit was under 100$ with shipping including filters on a 6stage RO/DI. of course I removed the 6th carbon flavoring cartridge. but whatever.

anyway, Ive had the filters in for about a year... I decided they must be trash by now and ordered more, 50$ for a full replacement set from the same guy, INCLUDING the RO membrane.

I also grabbed a TDS inline meter reading the water coming in and out.

well to my suprise the old filters were still working, well even. 38ppm in, 0ppm coming out.

for the price I cant see why anyone would pay anymore. I mean first off, its just some cheap crap plastic on the unit itself, all the same size, same shape, its the filters that matter... so even if you distrust the filters(though from my recent test, I cant see why I would...) you can replace them down the road with expensive ones.

[areze]

also, before someone says my TDS meter is junk, I tested it every which way, and its not...

it gives accurate readings however I set it up. same reading anyway.

and when I first turn it on, the reading shows 1 or 2ppm as it should since these units need to run for a few minutes to get to max effect.

heres what I got

http://cgi.ebay.com/Zero-0-ppm-Reef-6st-Reverse-Osmosis-RO-DI-0-5xFilters_W0QQitemZ310044693849QQihZ021QQcategoryZ20684QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1742.m153. l1262

if you think the 200$ unit can beat a 110$ unit(with shipping) including a full compliment of replacement filters worth 50$... do what you gotta do. often times you dont get what you pay for though

[Thefilterguys]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12725956#post12725956 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by AZDesertRat
If you have chloramines instead of free chlorine as a residual disinfectant you may consider a second carbon stage but research has shown its really not necessary as the 20,000 gallon rating on a good block is still more capacity than most of us will use in a normal 6 month change out cycle.

OK Rat I'm up for an education please show me where KX Technolgies, the manufacturer of the Chlorine Guzzler Matrikx +1 20,000 gallon CHLORINE filter, or any other manufacturer recommends a single carbon block for chloramine filtration. I am most interested in this research you tout please post it here so we can all see. Chloramine is deadly to fish and before someone has a costly accident I'd like to see some facts, flow rates, and concentration figures.

Jim

[AZDesertRat]

Contact Charles Mitsis at Spectrapure. They have done extensive testing on both carbon and DI resins. Unlike most vendors they actually have a research facility and do exhaustive testing before they bring a product to market. Nothing in their product line is sold without countless hours of both lab and beta field testing.

Of course KX is not going to recommend it, they sell other products too, it would be cutting their own throat.

[8BALL_99]

I have 2 Ebay units.. Both work well.. I've got about 130-150 In TDS and my output is 0...I've had one unit for 3 years the other for 2.. I agree the filters are what matter not the unit for the most part.. Mine has the bypass for flushing the unit, auto shut off ect ect I even got the 3 gallon tank for our drinking water. If you change your prefilters every 6 months then your membrane should last atleast a year more like 2.. If you get a dow 75Gpd then your good to go.

Now all that said.. I do buy my replacement filters from The filter guys now. Because their filters aren't much more but I do feel they last a little longer. But I just dont agree that the Ebay units are Junk.. I'm very happy with both of mine even have 3 years of use.. I've had and do have several tanks BTW.. So I make about 50 gallons of SW a month and top off about 5 gallons a day.. All that is on one unit.. The other we use for drinking water in our kitchen..

Will

[saltee dood]

and just like clockwork, any RO thread degenerates into a verbal war between AZdesertrat and the filterguys.

ever thought about starting a thread detailing yalls thoughts on RO so you can save yourselves the typing in every RO thread?

not being nasty, but you guys going at it is as predictable as the tides.

;)

[8BALL_99]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12731017#post12731017 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by saltee dood
and just like clockwork, any RO thread degenerates into a verbal war between AZdesertrat and the filterguys.

ever thought about starting a thread detailing yalls thoughts on RO so you can save yourselves the typing in every RO thread?

not being nasty, but you guys going at it is as predictable as the tides.

;)

lol well I have to admit when I seen the thread topic I said I wonder how many times desertrat has said spectrapure so far. I'm convinced he gets free Prefilters for each post... JUst kidding :)

[Thefilterguys]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12730772#post12730772 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by AZDesertRat
Of course KX is not going to recommend it, they sell other products too, it would be cutting their own throat.

PLEASE SPARE US!!! The number one filter manufacturer is hiding something and only you know better!!!

Jim

[kdblove_99]

Wow

[biger]

Hey u should also check the RO's at bulk reef supply.

http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/

[jhildebrand]

Also check out member site melevsreef.com. Great site, love my R.O. he sells and the supplied instructions posted...