are all ro di systems really wasteful?

[bnhd3]

i have a water general 6stage ro/di system. it seems like it wastes so much water just to make 20 to 30 gallons. by the way it is a 110 gal per day unit.

[chrisstie]

It depends on what you do with the waste water.

I know some folks save the water coming out as it should be perfectly fine for watering plants and what not.. And if you can drink from your tap I'd imagine you coudl also drink what comes out if you really wanted to

[AZDesertRat]

Most RO systems waste ratio is 4 to 1, 4 waste to 1 good. You do not have to waste the water though, it has been through a sediment and carbon filter so is perfectly fine for most purposes, its just about 20 to 25% higher in TDS than tap water. You can water plants or grass. fill the pool, do laundry etc. with it.

[GlobaLPimP]

Some people also drain it to their washing machine. The typical RO/DI unit wastes about 4 or 5 gallons for each filtered gallon. I wouldn't drink the waste water assuming that it has a more concentrated TDS count. It probably wouldn't hurt you but why drink it when you can just make some PURE water:)

[Shagsbeard]

Wash your car with it. Wash your dog with it. Take a bath yourself in it.

I know if I ever win the lottery and get to build my own house from the ground up, I'll have a RO/DI unit installed which will pump "waste" water into my toilets to flush with. It wouldn't be that hard to plumb it that way.