managing an r/o

[fishgeek]

i just purchased a new membrane for my r/o filter after approx 2 yrs of running it intermittently
old membrane was tured on and off and left unused for periods of upto 2-3 weeks

i was hoping to get this new membrane to last longer by lookig after it properly although it is already producing much more water than i need in just the first 3 days

any suggestions for how to run it intermittently
reduce production without just increasing waste water

is it possible to just block both the exit pipe's (waste and r/o) and leave the unit sealed full of water

how do the intermittent units work

any advice greatly appreciated

 

[a.d.wood]

Hi there,

I'm using a 100gpd unit from ROman. It feeds into a 350 litre drum, which has a pump to lift water into a 150 litre drum filled with irish moss peat that then feeds by gravity back into the 350 litre drum. I fitted the auto shut off kit supplied by ROman (mini toilet cistern ball **** and float) which also has a pressure switch fitted between the exit from the pre filters and the entry to the RO membrane.

Theoretically this should shut off both the waste and RO production (and not leave the membrane under constant water pressure), unfortunately I'm still experiencing problems with either the pre filter pod seals blowing under pressure or waste water still being generated (but I will get to the bottom of this!!.....)

Regards

Andrew

 

[fishgeek]

so if i turn the mains supply off and seal the waste and r/o output pipes i have acheived the same thing?

just need 2 small corks or 2 simple taps
do you know why the membrane needs to be protected from the mains pressure
i would have though that it would equalise accross the membrane anyway , well water pressure would though i guess it has more to do with osmotic pressure

 

[a.d.wood]

Hi there,

Until I suss out the auto shut off, all I am doing is switching off the water supply into the unit. Not sure if it would even be necessary to seal the pipes if the use is reasonably frequent. I suppose the only advantage though is that there would be no risk then of the membrane drying out if the unit is not used for extended periods of time.

I think you are on the right lines with the osmotic potential being the reason not to leave the membrane under pressure.

Regards

Andrew

 

[Peter Lovett1]

Okay now for my very simple Answer if you want to make sure you RO membrane the short answer is yes. However i would leave to get untill water production has stoped and then turn off the RO production pipe. There is no real reason to block the waste pipe as the flow ristictor will keep the water in there.