RO/DI System Worth It?

[nyknicks4412]

Originally Posted by slief

$300??? You must have a different one that I do then. Mine is the UHE 1:1 (1 gallon of waste for every 1 gallon of RODI) unit that was much more (3x) than $300.. I wish mine only costs $300! I do understand your frustration though.



This is the unit I have but I also live in drought stricken So. Cal.

http://spectrapure.com/MaxCap[emoji7...D-RO-DI-System

Curious why you went 1:1...is water that expensive in California?

[slief]

Originally Posted by nyknicks4412

Curious why you went 1:1...is water that expensive in California?

Yes.. It's expensive and there are now penalties for using too much water. We are actually being forced to water ration and my tank is one of those areas that I wouldn't want to make sacrafices in terms of water quality. Instead, we don't rush when we pee.. We have a saying here.. "If it's brown, flush it down. If it's yellow, let it mellow."

Furthermore, given that we are in a long time perpetual drought and the fact that I use nearly 300 gallons of RODI water a month between top off and water changes, it was a conscious decision to be reasonably mindful of my water usage. I bought this unit before we were being penalized for excessive water usage but I've tried to do my part in being water concious. That 300 gallons works out to 600 gallons of tap water a month. If I had a typical 4:1 unit, that would be 1500 gallons per month or 18,000 gallons a year of which 85% would be going down the drain in the form of waste water. That is a lot of water by most people's standards.

While this unit may be much more expensive, it's long since paid for itself in water savings alone over the course of the 6 years that I've had it. Plus, because of the system design and the cartridge quality, the cartridges go a long long way compared to cheap units such as those from other companies mentioned in this thread so there is that savings as well. The quality of the cartridges coupled with the booster pump and auto flush result in much great cartridge life. For my use and my volumes, it was money well spent.

[CStrickland]

There are some really good threads in the "responsible reefkeeping" subforum about creative uses for the wastewater too. People who want to, or must, conserve have found ways to use a lot of the waste for other stuff like laundry and toilets etc.

[Rob Pnuke]

Originally Posted by Greybeard

Try Air Water Ice. http://theh2oguru.com/ Good guys, good service, good products.

I second this place. Fast shipping and great customer service.

[jbm421]

Originally Posted by slief

$300??? You must have a different one that I do then. Mine is the UHE 1:1 (1 gallon of waste for every 1 gallon of RODI) unit that was much more (3x) than $300.. I wish mine only costs $300! I do understand your frustration though.

This is the unit I have but I also live in drought stricken So. Cal.
http://spectrapure.com/MaxCap®-1-1-U...D-RO-DI-System

Yeah I don't have the booster pump etc. I have the 2:1 Maxcap unit. Figured I didn't need the automatic flush as I can do that myself and have a extra membrane so can add that to the system as well to make it 180 gpd
http://spectrapure.com/MaxCap®-Manua...lter_name=rodi

[Snellj]

Defo get one. I must have a really bad back when needing to get the water. 1000g. You almost need an industrial ro/di unit for that amount. Lol

[nyknicks4412]

Originally Posted by slief

Yes.. It's expensive and there are now penalties for using too much water. We are actually being forced to water ration and my tank is one of those areas that I wouldn't want to make sacrafices in terms of water quality. Instead, we don't rush when we pee.. We have a saying here.. "If it's brown, flush it down. If it's yellow, let it mellow."



Furthermore, given that we are in a long time perpetual drought and the fact that I use nearly 300 gallons of RODI water a month between top off and water changes, it was a conscious decision to be reasonably mindful of my water usage. I bought this unit before we were being penalized for excessive water usage but I've tried to do my part in being water concious. That 300 gallons works out to 600 gallons of tap water a month. If I had a typical 4:1 unit, that would be 1500 gallons per month or 18,000 gallons a year of which 85% would be going down the drain in the form of waste water. That is a lot of water by most people's standards.



While this unit may be much more expensive, it's long since paid for itself in water savings alone over the course of the 6 years that I've had it. Plus, because of the system design and the cartridge quality, the cartridges go a long long way compared to cheap units such as those from other companies mentioned in this thread so there is that savings as well. The quality of the cartridges coupled with the booster pump and auto flush result in much great cartridge life. For my use and my volumes, it was money well spent.

Wow I guess I'm sheltered on the east coast where water isn't as big a deal! Mountains are doing well out there this year from El Niño so hopefully it'll help fill up some of those reservoirs.

[Buckeye Hydro]

Originally Posted by slief

The one thing about their products unlike others such as BRS is that Spectrapure designs and manufacturers their own cartridges.

Not to be disagreeable, but with the exception of some DI cartridges, no, they don't.