RO/DI units, any cheap ones out there?

[metalac]

Hey guys,

I've started adding kalkwasser today and I figured I'd need a RO/DI system if I'm going to do this regularly. Now my question is how many stages do I need? I have an ALL-house filters, one gets rid of 5 micron stuff and another one is a carbon filter that gets rid of 2 micron stuff and chlorine taste/smell. I change this every 3 and 6 months respectively as the manufacturer suggests even though I probably don't need to since I live alone and don't use nearly as much water as a regular household would.

So what should I do for my RO/DI??? I'm looking for something under $100 is there anything like that out there?

 

[Kerchakone]

Why not just go to a water store? It's like $0.25 per gallon for purified/distilled/ro water isn't it?

 

[mr_X]

ebay..there are plenty.

here's the one i bought-
http://cgi.ebay.com/New-Reef-6st-100GPD ... dZViewItem

 

[Anonymous]

Not to dis the power of e-bay but buckeye field supply has good prices also.

http://buckeyefieldsupply.com/showprodu ... 67&Sub=166

 

[metalac]

ebay..there are plenty.

here's the one i bought-
http://cgi.ebay.com/New-Reef-6st-100GPD ... dZViewItem

Where does this one hook up to? can I just hook it up to the faucet? And how often do you replace filters?

 

[Ef3s]

http://www.aquariumwaterfilters.com

I bought the barracuda ($239 or somethin...) They have one or two around 100 I beleieve....

 

[mr_X]

you can hook it to whatever you like. they ask you when you purchase it, what you are hooking it to, and they send you the correct fitting for it. you replace filters the same as you would any other R.O.
it would entirely depend on how much you use it.

 

[Buckeye Field Supply]

Don't buy based upon the "number of stages." There are plenty of systems out there with lots of stages that are inferior to other systems with fewer stages.

How many gallons do you have total in your tank/sump/refug?

Russ

 

[metalac]

Don't buy based upon the "number of stages." There are plenty of systems out there with lots of stages that are inferior to other systems with fewer stages.

How many gallons do you have total in your tank/sump/refug?

Russ

i got 75 gallons more or less. Sump is 20 gallons, but it's never full only maybe halfway, and the tank is 55 gallons.

 

[SnowManSnow]

<-- bought mine from www.buckeyefieldsupply.com and it still works great.

better prices than most places and great CS.

b

 

[metalac]

ebay..there are plenty.

here's the one i bought-
http://cgi.ebay.com/New-Reef-6st-100GPD ... dZViewItem

I got me one of these, it should be arriving shortly. Thanks.

 

[mr_X]

Don't buy based upon the "number of stages." There are plenty of systems out there with lots of stages that are inferior to other systems with fewer stages.

Russ

i bought mine based on price, and gallons per day.

 

[Anonymous]

airwaterice.com
I've heard good things about this place. I'm still not sure as to which system i.e size to buy :?:

 

[SnowManSnow]

75gpd is a good unit ... imo... for most any size tank unless its over 200g. Makes good for water changes and so forth..

 

[Buckeye Field Supply]

Price and gallons per day is only part of the story. Think about configuration of the stages, quality of parts and filters and media, and customer service as well.

Russ

 

[Buckeye Field Supply]

airwaterice.com
I've heard good things about this place. I'm still not sure as to which system i.e size to buy :?:

How many gallons total in your tank/refug/sump?

Russ

 

[Anonymous]

I have a 50 gph unit, but I get about a little over a gallon per hour. The instructions said that it takes 10 straight days worth to finally get up to the declared rate, or is my problem because I'm using the faucet?

 

[Buckeye Field Supply]

I have a 50 gph unit, but I get about a little over a gallon per hour. The instructions said that it takes 10 straight days worth to finally get up to the declared rate, or is my problem because I'm using the faucet?

The most common causes for lower than expected production include:
low water pressure
low water temperature
clogged prefilters

Sounds like you have a new system, so assuming that clogging isn't an issue, low water pressure is the next thing that comes to mind.

What is your water pressure?

We have a calculator on our website that allows you to input pressure and temperature and see how those variables affect output.

Russ

 

[Mthompson]

Russ -

What is the easiest way to measure the psi of the water feed? And would it be better to run hot water for the feed? If so, then how hot can a RO/DI system tolerate?

Thanks, Miles

 

[Buckeye Field Supply]

Either put an add-on DI kit on your RO or RODI system (which will also serve to tell you when your prefilters are clogged), or you can pick up a pressure gauge from your local hardware store to check the pressure in your plumbing.

Russ