Ro/di

Reefing8EZ · Jan 31, 2013

Hi,
I finally stopped buying coral long enough to afford a few system upgrades and brand spankin' new Spectrapure RO/DI system.
Did I make the right choice? Good unit? Any reviews from r2r members on this product would be great and very helpful.
It was pretty pricey I hope the extra dough I threw down was worth it? Thanks in advance!! :xd:

BBoley24 · Jan 31, 2013

I had an AWI 5 stage before. I ended up selling it with a previous tank and using a cheap "Water General" ebay RODI unit. I still have 0tds and it was half the price of the AWI.

I used the AWI unit for about 5 years and the water general for about 2.

Both used the same filmtec membrane, carbon filters and DI from BFS. Both have water pressure gauges.

Can someone shed some light on why someone would get the expensive unit over the cheap one?

Reefing8EZ · Jan 31, 2013

Thanks for the reply Bboley.
Did i just spend extra $$ for no reason? Darn!

ReeferBob · Jan 31, 2013

I've got a 4 stage Coralife system like $150. TDS is also 0. There really is a point of diminished returns.

BBoley24 · Jan 31, 2013

I don't know man. I am no expert but I can tell you that it's just as efficient as the AWI unit. It's obviously cheaper quality, but it's mounted on a wall. It's not going to break.

Reefing8EZ · Jan 31, 2013

Dang! I guess I just blew extra $$, shoulda just got the BRS system and saved myself alot!
Oh well, just got email confirmation its already being shipped. As long as it does the job i guess.. :squigglemouth:

BBoley24 · Jan 31, 2013

I could be wrong and im waiting to be ripped into by someone that dropped 300 plus on a system that is going to justify the costs but it has yet to happen. I hope newer members can get to this post then because I bought mine used.

From my experience 10+ years, RODI systems seem to just be shells that carry guts. The shell to me should be the cheap part and the guts should be the highly maintained expensive part.

If you haven't already gotten an inline TDS meter go ahead and get one. They are cheap and will make your life sooooo much easier!

Reefing8EZ · Jan 31, 2013

BBoley24 said:
I could be wrong and im waiting to be ripped into by someone that dropped 300 plus on a system that is going to justify the costs but it has yet to happen. I hope newer members can get to this post then because I bought mine used.

From my experience 10+ years, RODI systems seem to just be shells that carry guts. The shell to me should be the cheap part and the guts should be the highly maintained expensive part.

If you haven't already gotten an inline TDS meter go ahead and get one. They are cheap and will make your life sooooo much easier!

It comes with an inline TDS meter. I thought I was making a good decision at the time but now am doubting myself due to the lack of response to this thread.
Another noob mistake by me.. Lol! Not the first and probably not the last. Haha!

nitrox36 · Feb 1, 2013

Mine is a BRS 6 stage wasnt that bad, but runs great highly recommended

ReeferBob · Feb 1, 2013

BTW: Also get an auto shutoff switch. You can either get one now, or wait until you have a flood or two, or three, or four......

Lionfish Lair · Feb 1, 2013

If you spent more money on similar features, that's one thing. But if yours was more expensive because of added features such as an inline TDS meter and auto shutoff, I think it was worth it. I wouldn't run one without the TDS meter and I wouldn't want to run one without the shut off. I also paid more for high output, because when I want 5 gallons of water, I want it in 20 minutes..... not 10 hours.

What other features did you add?

AZDesertRat · Feb 1, 2013

Spectrapure is the best in the business bar none. Their 27 years of research and development pays off every time. Just because RO/DI units look the same does not make it so, there are major differences between systems and vendors. No other vendor specially treats and either batch tests or individually hand tests every RO membrane. No other vendor uses only absolute rated sediment filters which they have tested in house for years before offering for sale. No ther vendor specially custom blends every ounce of their DI resins and offers reef specific blends such as SilicaBuster and MaxCap based on thousands of hours of bench and real world testing results. Only one other major vendor besides Spectrapure offers the much better capillary tube flow restrictors as standard equipment. The list goes on and on but it all adds up to longer component life, reduced cost of operation and ownership and better water quality for you the end user. There really is a difference.

Pass on the dual inline TDS meter and get a much better, more accurate and more versatile handheld TDS meter such as the HM Digital TDS-3, TDS-4TM or COM-100. They can be used portable unlike the inlines which are dedicated to two places, usually post RO and post DI so you cannot test your tap water, ATO water, purchased bottled water, the LFS water etc.

Reefing8EZ · Feb 1, 2013

AZDesertRat said:
Spectrapure is the best in the business bar none. Their 27 years of research and development pays off every time. Just because RO/DI units look the same does not make it so, there are major differences between systems and vendors. No other vendor specially treats and either batch tests or individually hand tests every RO membrane. No other vendor uses only absolute rated sediment filters which they have tested in house for years before offering for sale. No ther vendor specially custom blends every ounce of their DI resins and offers reef specific blends such as SilicaBuster and MaxCap based on thousands of hours of bench and real world testing results. Only one other major vendor besides Spectrapure offers the much better capillary tube flow restrictors as standard equipment. The list goes on and on but it all adds up to longer component life, reduced cost of operation and ownership and better water quality for you the end user. There really is a difference.

Pass on the dual inline TDS meter and get a much better, more accurate and more versatile handheld TDS meter such as the HM Digital TDS-3, TDS-4TM or COM-100. They can be used portable unlike the inlines which are dedicated to two places, usually post RO and post DI so you cannot test your tap water, ATO water, purchased bottled water, the LFS water etc.

Wow! Thanks for the info AZDesertRat! That makes me feel much better about my purchase. The unit did come with auto shut off and dual inline tds meters but I also own a handheld as well. I purchased the new Maxcap!

AZDesertRat · Feb 1, 2013

You will love the MaxCap. I have owned 3 over the last 10 years, a 90GPD, a dual membrane 180 GPD and now the UHE 1:1 ultra low waste version which I have had for 5 years now. My old Watts Premier and AWI Typhoon III units weren't even close to these.

Reefing8EZ · Feb 1, 2013

Awesome! Im getting the Maxcap dual membrane 180Gpd, but manual flush and 2:1 wastewater.
It was between this and the BRS 150Gpd water saver plus.

AZDesertRat · Feb 1, 2013

Before purchasing the 2:1 system you need to know your water hardness and TDS levels. The low waste is a good option if you have soft or softened water and fairly low tap TDS. If your water is harder than normal and/or your TDs is higher than normal you may want to stick with 3:1 or the normal 4;1 waste ratio to keep the membrane well flushed. The manual flush really doesn't do this by itself.
If your water is like ours in Phoenix at like 20 grains of hardness and 500-1200 TDS they are not really an option as the membrane will quickly fail. If you have a water softener make sure you install the RO/DI on the softened water, it will greatly extend the life of your membrane as it acts as pretreatment.

Reefing8EZ · Feb 1, 2013

Ugh.. What is considered fairly low tap tds?
And how do I test tap water hardness?
I dont even know what it means to flush the membrane. Got lots to learn!

AZDesertRat · Feb 1, 2013

The national average TDS is approaching 250. Some places are as low as 50-100 while the southwest is usually much higher than that.
Spectrapure says soft water is more important than low TDS but both have a big effect on membrane performance and lifespan.
You can get a carbonate hardness test kit at any hardware store or anyplace that sells water softeners such as Sears. You should also be able to get general readings from your water utility, many times the annual test results are posted online.

Reefing8EZ · Feb 1, 2013

Hmmm.. If my water is hard and tds is high then the system wont work?
Should I return it and get a more simple system from BRS? What would you recommend?
I need more help than i thought. Thanks for the replies AZ!

AZDesertRat · Feb 1, 2013

No this system will work excellent, you won't find anything that works as well anywhere else guaranteed. The only change you might need to make based on your tap water quality is a different $5 flow restrictor. I believe the new ones come with two restrictors standard, one for 3:1 waste ratio and one for 2:1 ratio. If your water is extremely hard and/or high TDS you can maybe get by with the 3:1 or spend $5 and get a replacement 4:1 restrictor from Spectrapure. I wouldn't even consider a different system.