BRS Tested Some Carbon Blocks: I'm Testing Them, You Should Too.

[tkeracer619]

Nice!

[tkeracer619]

Bump... we've passed the two year mark for the installation of the Chlorplus 20BB to combat chloramines.

I got a Hanna ULR Total Chlorine Checker today and am pretty surprised. I have no idea how much water I have made up to this point but I am estimating close to 8,000 gallons of RODI.

The breakthrough measured out at 29ppb or .029ppm. Plain awesome!

[scuzy]

I ordered a chloraplus 20bb and a second big blue to allow for double contact before the membranes.

My system now 1micron 20" sediment -> chloramine monster -> chloraplus 20bb -> chloraplus 10bb -> chloraplus 10bb -> 0.6 micron matrix --> booster -> 100gpd membrane in series --> Di this should be goods for a long time.


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[jason2459]

That's really good.

But damn it you're going to make me curious enough to not replace mine at the year mark and keep testing. I've got the 2.5" x 20" Chloraguard Carbon Blocks from buckeye hydro.

[125mph]

So something been bothering me. I have the 6 stage BRS water saver system with the double ro membrane. Also run a chloramine monster before and booster pump gets me 75-85psi.

I have a TDS meter before and after the sediment filter. Before reads 375 (tap water) and after reads 425. Any ideas why?

Second thing is I have a 3 way TDS meter before di1, after di1 and after di2. My first di is running out at a rate of about 200 gallons. Going into Di1 is 8-9 TDS which is about 98%. Should my di really get burned this fast?


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[tkeracer619]

If you swap the tds meter probes does it still read the same? That's pretty strange. I'd suspect a funky probe but there may be something else going on.

[scuzy]

If you are getting more TDs is the membrane waste and good connected correctly. Seems like you flushing the membrane.


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[125mph]

Originally Posted by scuzy

If you are getting more TDs is the membrane waste and good connected correctly. Seems like you flushing the membrane.


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Well the higher TDS is from the sediment filter. It's not the TDS meter cause I swap out the pins and still same.


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[scuzy]

Originally Posted by 125mph

Well the higher TDS is from the sediment filter. It's not the TDS meter cause I swap out the pins and still same.


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Is the sediment new?


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[tkeracer619]

Bump. We're almost to the 3 year mark... Breakthrough is .041ppm. I've probably surpassed over 12,000 gallons of RODI produced with this same Chlorplus 20BB cartridge.

[HBtank]

Thanks for the reminder to refresh my blocks and ended up updating my knowledge on the current chloramine filters (SoCal; been dealing with it forever)! Will be better about actually monitoring breakthrough.

[Buckeye Hydro]

http://www.buckeyehydro.com/chloragu...-carbon-block/

and if you want to push chloraminated water through faster yet:
http://www.buckeyehydro.com/backwash...removal-tanks/

Russ

[Zalick]

Originally Posted by tkeracer619

Bump. We're almost to the 3 year mark... Breakthrough is .041ppm. I've probably surpassed over 12,000 gallons of RODI produced with this same Chlorplus 20BB cartridge.

Thanks for doing this test and keeping up with the thread. I'm going to install the 20" BB w/ ChlorPlus 20BB.

Is there any benefit to running regular carbon after? I have the MaxCap 180 2:1. Should I just run the 1 micron ChlorPlus in the first two housing for extra protection?

[tkeracer619]

Originally Posted by Zalick

Thanks for doing this test and keeping up with the thread. I'm going to install the 20" BB w/ ChlorPlus 20BB.

Is there any benefit to running regular carbon after? I have the MaxCap 180 2:1. Should I just run the 1 micron ChlorPlus in the first two housing for extra protection?

You're welcome! I run two chlorplus 10 and a .5 micron carbon block from spectrapure. I'd probably would just use the .5 micron but I have the room and already had them. I doubt they do a whole lot after the chlorplus 20bb. They too are 3 years old.

Originally Posted by HBtank

Thanks for the reminder to refresh my blocks and ended up updating my knowledge on the current chloramine filters (SoCal; been dealing with it forever)! Will be better about actually monitoring breakthrough.

You're welcome!

[tkeracer619]

Originally Posted by Buckeye Hydro

http://www.buckeyehydro.com/chloragu...-carbon-block/

and if you want to push chloraminated water through faster yet:
http://www.buckeyehydro.com/backwash...removal-tanks/

Russ

Hey Russ, thanks for chiming in. I'm actually interested in going to one of the backwashing filters and a softener. Just need to finish some other projects first. I don't like showering or drinking it.

[Zalick]

Originally Posted by tkeracer619

You're welcome! I run two chlorplus 10 and a .5 micron carbon block from spectrapure. I'd probably would just use the .5 micron but I have the room and already had them. I doubt they do a whole lot after the chlorplus 20bb. They too are 3 years old.

That's awesome! Reading this thread was eye opening. I have a whole box of .5 ChlorPlus....might as well use em. I constantly worry that I'm loading up my tank with chloramine, even though I test before and after.

[Buckeye Hydro]

Originally Posted by tkeracer619

Hey Russ, thanks for chiming in. I'm actually interested in going to one of the backwashing filters and a softener. Just need to finish some other projects first. I don't like showering or drinking it.

Been spec'ing/selling/installing lots of softeners and GAC/CGAC tanks as of late - many of them as pretreatment to large/commercial RO's. Our latest project will have five 500 gallon storage tanks, a softener, a carbon tank, and a 2500 gpd RO, with a control system that will send water only to the specific tank(s) that happen to be low on water.

Russ

[HBtank]

So, something I was pondering:

In the past I have always relied on bulk color changing resin and simply moving my 6th stage mixed-bed DI to the 5th stage (and putting new mixed-bed DI in the 6th) when the color completely changed in the 5th. This almost always occurred before an in-line meter actually read above 0 TDS after the 5th stage, but knowing these meters are not perfect I assume it is 0-1 ppm. This worked well, gave me confidence I was using most of the DI while maintaining a fail-safe 6th stage.

I see other DI options out there, some of which are intended to be used in sequence (so not swapping like I do above; i.e. MaxCaps and Silica Busters etc.), and also not color changing.

How do people monitor secondary DI stages meant to be in sequence like this for replacement?

[tkeracer619]

I have taps between the DI stages and measure total ammonia after my maxcap cart. I use TDS on the second stage. Once resin gets to capacity it starts to release so once that hits 1 I change it. This can happened even if the first stage is at 0. Typically when I start up the system I notice this since a good cart will still be zero but one near exhaustion may read 2 or 3 but once flow starts it drops back down to zero. At that point I know I don't have a lot more time on that cart.

I do get a lot more out of my 2nd di stage just like they advertise when running a maxcap compared to just swapping 2nd into 1st. It seems expensive at first but at least in my situation it costs less long term. I thought about buying the resins in bulk but the strong cation resin in hydroxide form is expensive enough that even buying a cubic foot you would only save a few bucks per cart and then you would be stuck using old resin by the end of it. Makes a lot more sense to just buy fresh resin in usable quantities and not have to deal with the hassle for just a few bucks more.

[HBtank]

Hmm, got it.

I guess I just have little faith for in-line tds and would worry about that 0-1ppm of previously bound constituents being released from the final stage until it registers on the meter. And even then, not everything reads as TDS.

I like the idea of sequential filters that maximize efficiency, but the simplicity of rotating identical DI stages to combat breakthrough was also nice.

Almost feels like with specific order DI stages I would want a third simple mixed bed DI stage as as a fail safe.

[Buckeye Hydro]

Originally Posted by HBtank

So, something I was pondering:

In the past I have always relied on bulk color changing resin and simply moving my 6th stage mixed-bed DI to the 5th stage (and putting new mixed-bed DI in the 6th) when the color completely changed in the 5th. This almost always occurred before an in-line meter actually read above 0 TDS after the 5th stage, but knowing these meters are not perfect I assume it is 0-1 ppm.

Something's not right here. If you have a TDS meter probe after the 5th it should register above 1 long before you get a color change in the complete height of the cartridge. I'd be less than confident in the TDS meter reading if that's not the case.

Russ

[HBtank]

Originally Posted by Buckeye Hydro

Something's not right here. If you have a TDS meter probe after the 5th it should register above 1 long before you get a color change in the complete height of the cartridge. I'd be less than confident in the TDS meter reading if that's not the case.

Russ

At 2 ppm TDS going in, which is where my RO output stabilizes at?

I have a HM Digital COM-100, I will break it out and some verification after that 5th stage (will be doing some other testing anyway for chlorine etc..). Probably a good time to add some ports so I can do so more routinely etc..

[Buckeye Hydro]

Doesn't matter if its 2 ppm or 20 ppm going in - you'll get TDS rising in the effluent through long before the entire cartridge changes color.

[HBtank]

Originally Posted by Buckeye Hydro

Doesn't matter if its 2 ppm or 20 ppm going in - you'll get TDS rising in the effluent through long before the entire cartridge changes color.

Thanks! My system has been like this since day one, but I have never used my hand held to check/verify middle stages. I will do so since I am right at the point I typically swap.

But pointing out the potential issue with my in-line meter (which I suspect I will confirm) only reinforces my concern with using any meter as a way to perform maintenance on a final stage of DI. I work on full scale GW remediation systems, and it has been beaten into me to always measure breakthrough in the second to last stage and have the final stage always be "new" to ensure complete removal on the discharge (and rotating filters to keep efficiency)... so it is hard for me to break that habit.

If I used your "Ammonia and Silica Trap DI Resin Cartridges" in sequence, how do recommend monitoring the final stage for breakthrough that doesn't rely on me having perfect equipment (and still accepting 0-1 ppm will pass) and watching it like a hawk?

[Buckeye Hydro]

Regardless of the type of di carts used, inline TDS meters are typically up to the task - much more so than the color indicator.

Also - you'd want a mixed bed after a cation and anion cart.

Russ