Calcium hypochlorite?

Aqua fire/medic · Mar 19, 2013

Ok so here is the situation....... My house is on well water with a softener system. I have a company who comes out to service it once a month. They have been adding a "bio stick" and citric acid to the aerator during the maintenance. I asked the service guy what was in the bio stick and basically he told me it was chlorine, he showed me the box it comes in and it said calcium hypochlorite. So here is my question, I am in the market for an ro/di system and want to know will this calcium hypochlorite affect it in anyway? Will I be able to use the ro/di water? Should I ask them to stop using this prior to me making ro/di water? Hoping to get some water guru's in here

thank you everyone.

AlexAquaFX · Mar 20, 2013

Calcium hypochlorite is a chlorine compound, that is considered a safer alternative to sodium hypochlorite, and has greater available chlorine than liquid bleaching making it popular for swimming pools and drinking water. It disinfects and keeps algae under control. Pretty much its just chlorine that your carbon filter on a standard RO/DI will take care of. Chlorine does destroy the sheets that make up an RO Membrane though, so I do caution to stay on top of your carbon filter replacements! One thing I might ask the service company is if the "Bio-Stick" contains any anti scaling agents, because the calcium portion does cause water hardness that will clog your filters reducing their life.

mcarroll · Mar 20, 2013

+1 to the above.

Just to add: Ca hypochlorite is better known as powdered laundry bleach. Same stuff. It's the same idea as liquid bleach, just in a dry delivery form. Better shelf life, handling should be easier....but it can still cause chemical burns if left on the skin too long.

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Aqua fire/medic · Mar 20, 2013

Alright awesome! Thank you for the replies. I'm assuming the citric acid is nothing to worry about also correct?

AlexAquaFX · Mar 20, 2013

Glad to help! Yep, Citric acid is nothing to worry about either. Thats a anti scaling agent, so looks like you're in good shape!

AZDesertRat · Mar 20, 2013

Make sure you purchase a RO/DI with no larger than a 1.0 micron extruded carbon block which should be rated for around 12,000 gallons of water presented at 1 mg/Lchlorine residual, normal tap water.
Yours will be a litle different in that your chlorine wil be in short spurts and at probably a little higher residual but it should even out. A low level chlorine test kit is pretty inexpensive and a good tool to have when troubleshooting a RO/DI system.
Do you knowwhat the pressure switch setting is on your domestic water system? Its pretty normal to see 35-40 psi or a little higher which is about the bare minimum a RO membrane will function at efficiently. You may want to investigate a RO booster pump if the pressures are low. Just an FYI.

Aqua fire/medic · Mar 23, 2013

Thanks for all the help. I'm getting 45psi into the house right now. I will probably be getting a booster pump.

Aqua fire/medic · Mar 24, 2013

I know 45psi isn't optimal, but do you guys think it will get me thru a couple of months till I get a booster?

mcarroll · Mar 25, 2013

I won't say a booster wouldn't help as I think 60 psi or so is considered ideal from the membrane's perspective, but I think about 40 psi is what most reefers on municipal water systems see...and it works at least OK. (This is my scenario too.)

Whether you do a booster or not, they key to dialing in your system's performance correctly is the same: Waste water should be about four times the amount of purified water.

-Matt

AZDesertRat · Mar 25, 2013

40 psi will work although the rejection rate or removal efficiency will not be as high as if you had higher pressure. Dow graphs and charts show 40 as about the bare minimum and membranes can easily operate at 150 psi or higher, its the fittings and housings that are the limiting factor not the membrane.