Seachem Pinnacle + RO/DI Unit

[lljdma06]

I'm severly DIY-challenged. I've always only ever used tap for my FW tanks. I know what an RO/DI unit is. I'm not that bad off. So when I saw this at an auction at a Convention, I bid and won the following.

 

 

Product specs here from the Seachem website.

 

http://www.seachem.com/Products/product_pa...innacle+RO.html

 

And instructions.

 

http://www.seachem.com/Library/Instruction..._2009.03.23.pdf

 

Now that I'm very close to setting up my Marine aquarium, I really need to hook up my RO/DI unit. I'm starting this thread to help me through the process and to get some serious hand-holding. Please, I will absolutely not be offended if you treat me like I'm five. That would be great. Use little words so I can understand.

 

First Dumb Question: Did I get a good unit? Retails for $400 in most Marine depots and websites. Got it for $100 at the auction, but I was buying without any research. I don't usually do this, but people seemed very unhappy when they didn't win this.

 

Out of the box it looks like this. Ooooo... Pretty... shiny plastic... and tubes...

 

 

Says you're supposed to have the following out of the box.

 

1 Yellow tubing (input line)

2 Blue tubing (product water line)

3 Black tubing (waste water line)

4 Brass hose adaptor

5 Ball Valve

6 RO Membrane

7 Canister Wrench

 

Do you see all of these items in the following pictures, because some of this looks like it belongs in a space shuttle. I can guess some of them.

 

Pictured here I think is 7 (Canister wrench), 1-3 (Yellow, blue, & black tubing), 4 (brass hose adaptor), and perhaps 5 (Ball valve). I've never seen a ball valve so I have no clue what one looks like.

 

 

In this picture, I think I've got item 6 (RO membrane) but I don't know, again, have never seen one.

 

 

Second Dumb Question: Now, where do I connect this thing? I've got faucents everywhere. And the washing machine has a water hookup too. Does it matter where I hook it up?

 

Third Dumb Question: Packaging says it does 100g a day. My goodness, it's only for a 36g tank. If I do 100g, I've got enough water for the initial fill and 4 50% waterchanges, so I'm not positive I need to even run this thing all the time or produce that much water at once.

 

Fourth Dumb Question: Can you stop and start the unit so you're not dealing with 100g of water a day? Do you have to take precautions to make sure the components are maintained?

 

I also purchased this to measure TDS

 

 

Fifth Dumb Question: Am I missing something to install the RO unit.

 

Sixth Dumb Question: What containers would you recommend for water storage? Was thinking 5g bottled water containers as I can get those easily, but I know I'll have to replace them as they degrade with time.

 

A lot of dumb questions, probably. I don't mind. I figured I'll learn something and anybody that comes across this thread will learn something too. Or have a great laugh...

 

I'm excited about this, by the way, not only for the SW implications, but for the longest time I was limited with what fish and plants I could keep because my tapwater is very hard. I can now experiment with RO/tap mixes to get better results for my Freshwater tanks. I can breed me some fishies, maybe.

 

Thanks for looking and I appreciate all your help.

 

Liz

[disaster999]

First Dumb Question: Did I get a good unit? Retails for $400 in most Marine depots and websites. Got it for $100 at the auction, but I was buying without any research. I don't usually do this, but people seemed very unhappy when they didn't win this.

 

it seems like a pretty good deal to me.

 

Second Dumb Question: Now, where do I connect this thing? I've got faucents everywhere. And the washing machine has a water hookup too. Does it matter where I hook it up?

 

it doesnt matter where you hook this up as long as the water supply have enough pressure to run this. i would put this where you think it would be most convenient to make water, have a place to drain/store the waste water and a place to store your ro/di water.

 

Third Dumb Question: Packaging says it does 100g a day. My goodness, it's only for a 36g tank. If I do 100g, I've got enough water for the initial fill and 4 50% waterchanges, so I'm not positive I need to even run this thing all the time or produce that much water at once.

 

100g a day is how much the membrane is capable of making. you dont need to run 100g through it every time. just make as much water as you need

 

Fourth Dumb Question: Can you stop and start the unit so you're not dealing with 100g of water a day? Do you have to take precautions to make sure the components are maintained?

 

this unit includes an auto shut off valve. all you need to do is to close the valve after you are done making your water and the unit will stop by itself. open the valve again and it will start making water again.

 

Fifth Dumb Question: Am I missing something to install the RO unit.

 

you might need to go to the hardware store to find fittings and such to hook up to your faucet. not really sure

 

Sixth Dumb Question: What containers would you recommend for water storage? Was thinking 5g bottled water containers as I can get those easily, but I know I'll have to replace them as they degrade with time.

 

anything food save with a lid will be fine storing the water. some people use those rubber made brute trash cans to store water so they always have water when needed.

 

A lot of dumb questions, probably. I don't mind. I figured I'll learn something and anybody that comes across this thread will learn something too. Or have a great laugh...

 

I'm excited about this, by the way, not only for the SW implications, but for the longest time I was limited with what fish and plants I could keep because my tapwater is very hard. I can now experiment with RO/tap mixes to get better results for my Freshwater tanks. I can breed me some fishies, maybe.

 

Thanks for looking and I appreciate all your help.

 

Liz

as most teachers would say, theres no stupid questions. i just hope my answers can answer some of your questions. just want to point out to you if you are planning on using this for fresh water planted tank setup, you might need to add more nutrients/supplements since the RO/DI unit strip the water of all trace minerals and stuff from the water.

[lljdma06]

Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you! This helps a lot.

 

Will go to the hardware store and see about any additional supplies. I have a place in mind where I can make and store water easily.

 

Oh, I know about replenished the minerals removed from the water. The nice thing is that I can create new water types by knowing which minerals to add. Opens a whole new door to the hobby for me.

 

Lissette

[ciri]

Hello!

 

I had purchased the Seachem Pinnacle+ unit this year, ~3 months ago. I am very happy with it! But... I am having a hard time locating replacement cartridges! Where do you get yours?

 

Do other brand cartridges fit in this unit? I couldn't locate part numbers/identifiers. The manual is really vague... Example:

 

"DI (De-Ionization) Cartridge – (only on Pinnacle PlusTM models) – replace when DI resin color changes

completely which indicates cartridge is exhausted"

 

Turns color "completely"? What does that even mean? Also I did not take photos of the original color, so I have nothing to compare to!

 

Thanks!

Karolina

[chachew]

Hello!

"DI (De-Ionization) Cartridge – (only on Pinnacle PlusTM models) – replace when DI resin color changes

completely which indicates cartridge is exhausted"

 

Turns color "completely"? What does that even mean? Also I did not take photos of the original color, so I have nothing to compare to!

 

Thanks!

Karolina

 

The DI resin should turn from a blue color to a brown color when exhausted. At least thats what its doing with the BRS resin that i have

[AZDesertRat]

You did OK but a much better reef specific system is only $128. Their claim of $400 is way overinflated, even retail at the LFS it should not be more than $250 at best. Compare your to the $128 unit at the top of the page here: www.spectrapure.com which has a better sediment filter, better carbon block, better specially treated and tested RO membrane and custom blended fresh reef specific DI resin along with a better flow restrictor. You did OK though as many others comparable are in the $169-$199 range.

 

You can get a faucet adapter for $10-$15 or many users like myself purchase a brass garden hose Wye with built in ball valves like you use to hook two hoses to one spigot or hose bib. WalMart or any hardware store has them for $5-$8 and you install it on your washing machine cold water feed so one side feeds the washer and the other the RO/DI and you can isolate the RO/DI with the built in valve when not in use.

 

The 100 GPD means it is capable of making 100 gallons in a full 24 hour period under perfect conditions. You do not need to make the full 100 gallons but run it as long as it takes to make whatever you need, it will average 3-4 gallons per hour at best.

 

Yes, as already mentioned you can start and stop as needed. It is better for the membrane and DI resin if you make larger batches every 10-14 days than to make 1 gallon every day. Membranes like nice long filter runs so they can flush themselves of the accumulated TDS which collects on the membrane.

 

It appears you have everything needed to install it.

 

For storage containers you can use anything from empty salt buckets with lids, 5G drinking water jugs with caps, 5-8 gallon cube type camping water containers like at Wal Mart or an outdoors store to Rubbermaid trash cans. The trash cans have an advantage in that you can install a float valve or solenoid valve and float switches and automate the water making process in the future.

 

My biggest concern is the 100GPD RO membrane, if it is a rebranded 100 GPD Dow Filmtec it is one of the worst you can get at only 90% removal efficiency but again if it is a GE Water membrane it is an industry standard at 96-98% efficiency. In the Spectraure system I suggested it starts with a 96-98% 75 GPD Dow Filmtec RO membrane (completely different than the 100 GPD version which is actually a nano filter not a RO filter) and then they specially treat it to improve its performance and either batch test or individually hand test them for quality control.