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I am 16 and would like to buy a R/O unit that puts out around 20g per day, and since i am 16 i don't have a alot of money. Does anybody know where to get a cheap but reliable R/O unit?
there was a link to a canadian? ebay shop that one of the other members posted some time back , possibly run a search and it will come up in the archives
I strongly recommend Randal Bogathy. Randal is a hobbyist who sells RO units at good prices. He also sells the filter cartridges and ph/tds meters. I purchased a unit from him last year and it is very high quality. He gives great service and was readily available by telephone when I had some questions. His email address is Rbogath@aol.com.
I bought mine from AquaSafe. I must admit that for the price, you'll hardly find anything better. They only sell through EBay.
5 aquarists also bought the same unit and everyone is highly satisfied. We bought the 100gpd unit. There is still a question about the 6th stage (activated carbon) that is set after the RO/DI membrane. Since the water is supposed to be totally clean after the RO/DI, there is no means for putting it there. It is suggested to just pull it for aquarium usage.
a person on simplydiscus.com named *moon* told me they were made with inferior parts and that i should not waste my money. Good thing i didn't buy it, because being out $100 is alot for a 16 year old
An R/O unit is a big investment for me as well. But based just on general life experience, I find that you get what you pay for. So things that I want to last, I don't look for the cheapest. You need to factor in quality as well, looking for an adaquate level of quality for the best deal
You should compare prices of different manufacturers. Be sure to notice the difference in cost between 2 stage and 3 stage units, as you'll probably want a 3 stage for the better water.
Myself, I think I've decided on the spectapure 3 stage, 40 gpd unit. My reasoning was that although 25 gpd would work fine for me today, I might want to try raising Discus or something in the future. Besides, R/O water makes excellent drinking water so it will definitely used often enough.
While you save for your unit, you might get a 5 gal bucket or carboy to purchase R/O water from a LFS.
The thing I found is that the rating is based on a pressure of 70 or 80psi, with my own well water the pump only supplies 50psi max, so the output is reduced. If you are on a well, make sure that you have enough pressure for the rating that you want. Oversize is better than undersize.
I also recommend getting the selonoid shutoff valve, it'll save more water than anything else. I don't know how many times I overfilled my barrel before I got one. Now i don't even have to think about it, the barrel is full and shuts off on it's own.