RO/DI system?

[hershey1]

I am looking into buying a RO/DI system and I found this one on ebay, but I know nothing about them and I wanted to get everyone's opinions.

http://cgi.ebay.com/6st-100GPD-Reverse-Osmosis-RO-DI-2-OUTPUT-Water-Filters_W0QQitemZ110300327573QQihZ001QQcategoryZ20684QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1742.m153.l1262

Thanks,
Shawna
155g bow front reef tank

[MileHighFish]

people on here tend not to like any of the ebay units, but i have had good luck.. imo reef stores sell units very much like that but for three times the money.. you should ask them for a t.d.s. meter to double chk the quality of the water..

[chris82079]

get the typhoon from airwaterice....it works great and cheaper than a lot of other units

[ricde]

Shipping ($40) seems a little high to me. Although the storage tank probably adds a good bit to the price.

[AZDesertRat]

For sheer value and performance nothing beats the 75 GPD Premium from www.buckeyefieldsupply.com . I would not even consider the ebay units as thye will cost a fortune to upgrade to reef quality vs.spending $169 one time and getting everything you need the first time around. Those who recommend ebay units have never had a true reef quality system to compare it to so really don't know the differences. That may offend some but its the simple truth. Set them side by side and there is no comparison, just because they both have housings and a couple tubes going in and out they are not the same or even close.

[james3586]

Don't be worried by this guy and all his water talk. Their are numerous people on this site who have saved money on ebay and else where for that matter. He bashed on my pure-flo II 50gpd best buy I believe at $140 and includes Di add a pressure gauge and not a hand held but an inline tds monitor for both incoming water and outgoing di water.I have had mine for over four years change filters regularly with top rated filters and no problems hear. The ebay models beside some of the obious ones for 60 bucks are a great buy they use the same membrane 75 gpd 98% and good quality filters. There will be a guy who works with water business who will not listen when he reads others post because hes to busy thinking of some way to make you buy another product other than the ones on here with first hand knowledge of the unit because the accually use i for years with out fail.Still this rat will advise you to buy the higher priced one those on ebay and pure-flo suck poor quality. To someone who a satisfied owner giving other reefers my advice.

[DarG]

Personally, I think that The Filter Guys bests the Buckeye deal. For 124 you can pick up the Ocean wave RO unit with 75 GPD Filmtek. It's a 4 stage, 3 pres and the RO unit. Then add on a Dual Full Size DI unit for 64 bucks. Its 188 total vs 169 for Buckeye but you get the two stage DI instead of a single and the extra prefilter on the RO which probably isnt necessary most of the time but is nice to have. To me anyway, its a better deal. They probably even offer a better dea to add a two stage DI to the one basic RO/DI that they sell with a single stage DI.

Personally, I wouldnt buy a unit without knowing what filters are used on the inside. I agree with AZ, I'd rather spend a little more to know what Im getting. Thats not to say that some of the ebay units arent fine. Im sure they are. But its not such a great deal if you have to replace the prefilters right off the bat. And If I dont know where the DI resin is coming from, Im not using it.
Not to mention that you cant beat the support that the Filter Guys provide their customers, in my experience.

Oh and james3586 ... coming on the forum with 14 posts and bashing a member who has helped a load of fellow members with their water filtrations systems and who, I GUARANTEE, knows a hell of a lot more about water treatment /filtration in general that you ever will doesnt show much character on your part. Its fine if you dont agree with him but to make it personal ... real classy and Im sure you'll add so much to the forum
:thumbsup:

[AZDesertRat]

But Dar, the Ocean Wave does not include a TDS meter, pressure gauge, RO bypass valve, flush valve, adjustable flow restrictor or a 1 micron prefilter. How can it compare? Add all those up, its another $69 plus whatever they would get for an adjustable flow restrictor, probably around $15 and the $188 becomes $272. The Buckeye Premium includes all those for $169 and an additional add on DI canister is only another $36 for a total of only $205 with the same dual DI. Oops and I forgot to add the better 1 micron prefilter to the Ocean Wave so there is another few bucks. Again no comparison.

Either way both are much better units than the ebay systems which are really low end drinking water systems at best.

[DarG]

The 1st stage is not 1 micron but the last stage is .6 micron. But you are probably right, for somebody who is starting from scratch. I was considering the fact that I already have a pressure gage and a handheld TDS. I also have and use a solenoid for shut off.
And I dont consider the flush valve or the adjustable flow restrictor necessary. I still 98% + rejection from my membrane and it is well over 2 years old, closing in on 3.

I wasnt thinking from a brand new buyers perspective. But for somebody buying a new unit who doesnt have anything, you are probably right, it is a better deal money wise.

But I see that they do have a unit that comes with a single stage DI (full size) for $160 and also with the 3rd stage prefilter. The pressure guage, flush valve and a handheld TDS adds on about 40 or 50 bucks so the price is not as high as you stated for a comparable system.

I have had such good service from the filter guys though and with that in mind, if I were to buy a unit from scratch, I would still spend the extra and buy from them. When I bought my new unit a few years back to replace a very old system, I emailed several dealers, some that were cheaper than the Filter Guys but they were the most helpful and impressed me the most, by far. For me, they were the easy choice.

[AZDesertRat]

I'm glad you found a vendor you like. The flush valve is worthless in my opinion too but theadjustable flow restrictor can be worth gold. You need to keep the waste ratio right or you either unnecessarily lower pressure to the membrane cutting both GPD and removal efficiency if its too high or you provide insufficient flushing and ruin the membrane if its too low. The non adjustable type just don't fit every situation since they do not know your temperature and pressure which both affect waste flows.

When using a 0.6 micron carbon block you really want a prefilter even smaller than that in front of it, I use the 0.2 micron myself and its what I would recommend to anyone but they cost more. Carbon blocks are made up of billions of tiny pockets or sells and you need to keep those pockets open and free of contaminants or it loses its effectiveness. A prefilter larger than the carbon does not protect it well and good carbon blocks are not cheap either. Buckeye and Spectrapure both sell 0.2 and 0.5 micron prefilters with the 0.2 being the best due to its pleated construction and 10x the surface area. Good filters will make a membrane last 10 years or more even in Phoenix with TDS in the 800-1200 range and CO2 in the water. I would spring the extra few bucks and get the better prefilter and forego the middle carbon block which is not needed as long as you protect the 0.6 one. Its probably a wash really since you can forget the extra housing too or move the extra housing to the end for a second DI and save the money on the add on kit?

[DarG]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13567808#post13567808 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by AZDesertRat
I'm glad you found a vendor you like. The flush valve is worthless in my opinion too but theadjustable flow restrictor can be worth gold. You need to keep the waste ratio right or you either unnecessarily lower pressure to the membrane cutting both GPD and removal efficiency if its too high or you provide insufficient flushing and ruin the membrane if its too low. The non adjustable type just don't fit every situation since they do not know your temperature and pressure which both affect waste flows.

When using a 0.6 micron carbon block you really want a prefilter even smaller than that in front of it, I use the 0.2 micron myself and its what I would recommend to anyone but they cost more. Carbon blocks are made up of billions of tiny pockets or sells and you need to keep those pockets open and free of contaminants or it loses its effectiveness. A prefilter larger than the carbon does not protect it well and good carbon blocks are not cheap either. Buckeye and Spectrapure both sell 0.2 and 0.5 micron prefilters with the 0.2 being the best due to its pleated construction and 10x the surface area. Good filters will make a membrane last 10 years or more even in Phoenix with TDS in the 800-1200 range and CO2 in the water. I would spring the extra few bucks and get the better prefilter and forego the middle carbon block which is not needed as long as you protect the 0.6 one. Its probably a wash really since you can forget the extra housing too or move the extra housing to the end for a second DI and save the money on the add on kit?

Im sure you're right about the carts and micron ratings but my system works great as it is so Ill stay status quo. That rust / orange looking crud covers the first sediment filter after time goes by and the first and second carbon prefilters remain as white as the day they were installed when it comes time to replace my pre filters so I am as happy as I can be with the performance of the system as is. I also dont find a need for an adjustable flow restrictor. Just something else to worry about. As long as my TDS post RO remains at 2 and post DI is zero Im happy and its been that way ever since installing this system closing in on 3 years now.

[james3586]

Darg for the record on an earlier thread rat put down my pure-flo II unit calling it just above ebay quality.It made me and alot of so calles ebay unit buyers who had good experiances mad. I have a right to speak on this forum 1 post or 5000 when i have knowledge about something I know about. rat just goes in and says buy this specrapure or if your broke buy the buckefeild. I dont car if he is a waste water manager those two units dont walk on water and neither does the rat.

[DarG]

James, you can say whatever you want however you want to about anything or anyone. That is your right here ... for as long as the moderators allow it anyway.
AZ is every bit entitled to his opinion and entitled to express it about a given product. The difference between AZ and you is that you are making it personal. AZ is crticizing a product, not you or the individual who purchased it. If you cant recognize the difference then thats fine too. But making it personal and criticizing another member because of what he says about a product that you or others happen to own doesnt say much for ones character and doesnt show any class.

I have disagreed with AZ on more than one occassion myself but I dont find any reason to make it personal because I dont agree with him on a product.

But hey, Im not a moderator so have at it. I do however have a feeling that you will become familiar with one or more of them before too long.

[james3586]

DarG leave me alone I'm not even talking to you. You think you know the whole story here but you don't so butt out mind your own business. I don't have a problem with rat and his opinion. Whats wrong is him saying that other peoples opinions don't count when all they are doing is making a statement on how well their ebay bout unit works. He told me on another thread that my coralllife pure-flo II 50GPD unit was a notch above ebay but still was not a good unit to be recommending to people. I hav'ed owned the unit for over 4 years it cost 140 bucks and it works never a problem. That should be the end of it not some tall tale water waste producer expanding on my thread response not a good unit little better than ebay. That's just wrong to do to someone me trying to give good advice on a product that works!!! The moderators need to look into his answers hes the won making things personal with everybody who he thinks don't agree with him .Hes never used most of the units that people on here have and love or he would be bragging about them too. I know he has'nt owned the pure-flo II cause if he had he would still be using it today. You cant tell somebody their opinion on something is wrong when they are the ones who have bought hooked up and are happy using it when you don't own one but this one here is much much better it has this it does that . he sure is slinging his waste water around I can smell it from here. DarG let your boyfriend fight his own battles hes a big boy Im sure you know.

[DarG]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13577909#post13577909 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by james3586
DarG leave me alone I'm not even talking to you. You think you know the whole story here but you don't so butt out mind your own business. I don't have a problem with rat and his opinion. Whats wrong is him saying that other peoples opinions don't count when all they are doing is making a statement on how well their ebay bout unit works. He told me on another thread that my coralllife pure-flo II 50GPD unit was a notch above ebay but still was not a good unit to be recommending to people. I hav'ed owned the unit for over 4 years it cost 140 bucks and it works never a problem. That should be the end of it not some tall tale water waste producer expanding on my thread response not a good unit little better than ebay. That's just wrong to do to someone me trying to give good advice on a product that works!!! The moderators need to look into his answers hes the won making things personal with everybody who he thinks don't agree with him .Hes never used most of the units that people on here have and love or he would be bragging about them too. I know he has'nt owned the pure-flo II cause if he had he would still be using it today. You cant tell somebody their opinion on something is wrong when they are the ones who have bought hooked up and are happy using it when you don't own one but this one here is much much better it has this it does that . he sure is slinging his waste water around I can smell it from here. DarG let your boyfriend fight his own battles hes a big boy Im sure you know.

If you arent talking to me, who are you talking to?

My Boyfriend? ... so now you are making it personal with me too?

Another child playing on the forum instead of in the sandlot! Just great :rolleye1: