ro/di help

[guywalker1219]

I just purchased a used water general 6-Stage RO+DI system, 100GPD, dual output +tank+faucet he said he used it for about three months and had it sitting in storage for 7 he said the filters did not need to be changed I hooked it up and ran 5gal strait out to empty the tank and run the old water out of the system after this I poured a glass of water from the faucet looked ok maybe a little particulate matter or maybe my eyes smelled ok tastes ok then I mixed a little salt water from the outlet for the aquarium water I tested it for phosphates being the reason I bought it in the first place it read 0.6 then tested the water without salt mix same thing I know my test kit is good my aquarium is at 0.2. Is this due to old filter cartridges I ordered new ones online for stages 123&5 and also the replacement resin for the di I did not replace 4 because it says to change evry 2 or 3 years and I really can't spend $60 for that 1 cartridge right now. Anyway I know phosphates this high could not be normal and just wanted some feedback since i know nothing about ro/di filters.

[r20crazy]

if the unit sat DRY for the 7 months you need to replace the ro membrane as well. when the membrane gets dried out it fails. if it didn't sit dry the membrane SHOULD be fine, depending on how much water was produced with it and replacing the cartrages should fix it. if you end up having to replace the membrane as well, it woulda been cheaper to start with a new unit. hope that helps

[disaster999]

DUDE...put some punctuation marks in there! its like im about to run outta breath reading your post.

[guywalker1219]

if the unit sat DRY for the 7 months you need to replace the ro membrane as well. when the membrane gets dried out it fails. if it didn't sit dry the membrane SHOULD be fine, depending on how much water was produced with it and replacing the cartrages should fix it. if you end up having to replace the membrane as well, it woulda been cheaper to start with a new unit. hope that helps

Hey I tested the ro water out of the faucet and it was 0 then tested the ro/di water and still 0.6 I notice the resin in the di has black swirls in it could the di resin be the problem

[r20crazy]

pic? sounds like the DI resin may be spent or contaminated. are the other 'clear' filter cartrages white in color (especially the sediment filter) if so they are most likey still good. (p.s I have the same unit). if the resin happens to be the 'color' changing type thats telling you something. let me pull up what color means what...

 

most resins that change color go from green or blue (good) to brown (bad). if its the stock resin from filters direct it goes green to brown. I would ASSUME if its black its WAY gone

[guywalker1219]

pic? sounds like the DI resin may be spent or contaminated. are the other 'clear' filter cartrages white in color (especially the sediment filter) if so they are most likey still good. (p.s I have the same unit). if the resin happens to be the 'color' changing type thats telling you something. let me pull up what color means what...

 

most resins that change color go from green or blue (good) to brown (bad). if its the stock resin from filters direct it goes green to brown. I would ASSUME if its black its WAY gone

its green with black I think there may be some sort of growth on the di resin it was stored full of water I'll just use the ro water until the new filters come thanks for the help. One more question how do you flush the system theres no documentation for this on there web site.

[r20crazy]

my unit does not have the 'flushing' parts. let me see if I can find it for you...

 

from the site...

 

"Membrane Flush: the system automatically flushes the membrane when it is making water."

 

there is an OPTIONAL manual flush 'kit', but you have to purchase it.

 

if I can help you with this any more PM me, as I'll lose this thread by sunup.

[BKtomodachi]

your post reminds me of "stream of consciousness" writing, lol.

[HecticDialectics]

It sounds to me like your system needs a complete overhaul.

 

One thing to check is the rejection rate of the membrane. Take your TDS meter (you need one of these if ya dont have one) and check the TDS of the water out of the tap. Then check the TDS of the water from the tube that leaves the RO chamber (before it goes through the DI)

 

(Tap water TDS) - (post RO TDS) = X

 

X / (Tap water TDS) = rejection percentage... you want this number to be at least near 95-96%.

 

i.e.

 

200 tap water TDS - 4 post RO TDS = 196

 

196 / 200 = 98% rejection rate

 

 

If it's not near 96+%, then you need a new RO membrane.

 

 

 

At the very least, you're going to have to completely change out the prefilter, the carbon cartridges, and the DI resin. Check out www.bulkreefsupply.com for some decent prices on this stuff.

[figuerres]

its green with black I think there may be some sort of growth on the di resin it was stored full of water I'll just use the ro water until the new filters come thanks for the help. One more question how do you flush the system theres no documentation for this on there web site.

 

Growth ?? not good, an RO/DI system should not have any kind of "growth" this is lab equipment we are using.

 

the manual that came with my system reomended cleaning with bleach at least once a year to keep from any kind of

bacteria or alge growing in any of the filter cans.

 

get a whole set of new filters and possibly a new membrane and clean the old blumbing with some bleach water.

 

then get some liquid silicone to use on the o-rings and water tight fittings.

 

then run the whole system for at least 1 days worth of notmal output to clean out any traces of bleach and chemicals

from the new resin etc...

 

then keep it wet and run at least a few gallons of output every week to keep it from stagnating in the future.

[guywalker1219]

Growth ?? not good, an RO/DI system should not have any kind of "growth" this is lab equipment we are using.

 

the manual that came with my system reomended cleaning with bleach at least once a year to keep from any kind of

bacteria or alge growing in any of the filter cans.

 

get a whole set of new filters and possibly a new membrane and clean the old blumbing with some bleach water.

 

then get some liquid silicone to use on the o-rings and water tight fittings.

 

then run the whole system for at least 1 days worth of notmal output to clean out any traces of bleach and chemicals

from the new resin etc...

 

then keep it wet and run at least a few gallons of output every week to keep it from stagnating in the future.

Update. I changed the filters and di resin today and checked the new water everything came out perfect. Total cost of everything was around $100 so I guess I still did pretty good on the deal.

Thanks everybody its nice to know theres a place to get advice/answers in this hobby.

[rotarymagic]

Glad to hear it worked out for ya! At least you didn't spend $100 to still have the same problems, that would have been REALLY bad.

[AZDesertRat]

You need a TDS meter to test RO and RO/DI water.

I hope you disinfected the system while you had the filters out? This is a necessary part of RO maintenance often overlooked but critical. After 7 months of sitting dormant I'll bet the bacteria count was off the charts inside the unit.