Ro production nightmare

Iron Giant · Jul 5, 2018

@spruce & @doug atkinson So got home today and realised my ro had being on flush all the day and possibly yesterday, Water pressure has dropped again and production is down to a trickle

Only got around 100ltrs produced and tds is up to 004ppm only got a 100ltrs of pure and got a full days work tomorrow

Uploading pics just now incase something is connected up wrong despite it always being fine and did membrane changes and pre filters in recent weeks

County Durham Lad

Waste is way faster than pure

1530809974566

County Durham Lad

phillip · Jul 5, 2018

I'm in Gateshead have plenty pure if you want you can pop through and fill up. Would not want nothing it happened to me before now how much of a **** it is.

Iron Giant · Jul 5, 2018

phillip said:
I'm in Gateshead have plenty pure if you want you can pop through and fill up. Would not want nothing it happened to me before now how much of a **** it is.

Thanks mate really appreciate the offer, Just checked the waste output and its reading 104ppm ? and my tap tds is 79ppm . I will message you now for details if ok

doug atkinson · Jul 5, 2018

All looks okay and waste is always higher than what's going in.

Disconnect the blue hoses from the T-Fittings and see if one of the membranes is not performing

Part Timer · Jul 5, 2018

With a TDS of 79 can't you just use DI till you're back up and running

Iron Giant · Jul 5, 2018

doug atkinson said:
All looks okay and waste is always higher than what's going in.

Disconnect the blue hoses from the T-Fittings and see if one of the membranes is not performing

Thanks Doug I will check in the morning as not long got back in the house, But it was only 8 weeks or when I replaced them so I assume they should be ok, might be the drop in water pressure

Part Timer said:
With a TDS of 79 can't you just use DI till you're back up and running

Yes I am going to as @THL4KEL is just down the road from me and has offered to help me out so should be good into early next week

Part Timer · Jul 5, 2018

Iron Giant said:
Thanks Doug I will check in the morning as not long got back in the house, But it was only 8 weeks or when I replaced them so I assume they should be ok, might be the drop in water pressure

Yes I am going to as @THL4KEL is just down the road from me and has offered to help me out so should be good into early next week

Got a bag of resin if you run low

Iron Giant · Jul 5, 2018

phillip said:
I'm in Gateshead have plenty pure if you want you can pop through and fill up. Would not want nothing it happened to me before now how much of a **** it is.

@phillip totally top guy, Very very much appreciated mate, 350ltr tank nice and full along with 2 containers to so I can complete all my work tomorrow without losing out.

Part Timer said:
Got a bag of resin if you run low

Thanks @Part Timer I should be good thanks to the decent lads including you on here who have offered to help me out a the drop of a hat.

Iron Giant · Jul 5, 2018

doug atkinson said:
All looks okay and waste is always higher than what's going in.

Disconnect the blue hoses from the T-Fittings and see if one of the membranes is not performing

Disconnected hoses and took tds readings, flow is as expected from pre filters but once-over the water passes through the 1st membrane it's down to barely a trickle and continues through each membrane

County Durham Lad

spruce · Jul 5, 2018

Water pressure in down because of demand. There are a lot of water authorities who say they can't purify water fast enough to met demand so are giving users the impression that they have introduced a hose pipe ban hoping to stop people watering their gardens. You will probably be better off producing water overnight @Iron Giant

We had a bit in the paper asking people to be thoughful and considerate of others and not water their grass but to let it go brown. It will revive with the first rain. However, the situation in Manchester area is that the dams are still 75% full, but they are threatening a hose pipe ban. All these new houses are being built but no one seems to consider if the infrastructure is able to cope. These utility companies appear to be making big profits but aren't reinvesting back into the system.

We have 800 new houses with planning approval and about 180 being built. This means that morning rush hour could well have another 1500 to 2000 cars heading toward Middlesbrough in the morning on single carriage roads. No improvement to the existing road system is planned. Bet the same applies to the water supply situation.

Iron Giant · Jul 6, 2018

spruce said:
Water pressure in down because of demand. There are a lot of water authorities who say they can't purify water fast enough to met demand so are giving users the impression that they have introduced a hose pipe ban hoping to stop people watering their gardens. You will probably be better off producing water overnight @Iron Giant

We had a bit in the paper asking people to be thoughful and considerate of others and not water their grass but to let it go brown. It will revive with the first rain. However, the situation in Manchester area is that the dams are still 75% full, but they are threatening a hose pipe ban. All these new houses are being built but no one seems to consider if the infrastructure is able to cope. These utility companies appear to be making big profits but aren't reinvesting back into the system.

We have 800 new houses with planning approval and about 180 being built. This means that morning rush hour could well have another 1500 to 2000 cars heading toward Middlesbrough in the morning on single carriage roads. No improvement to the existing road system is planned. Bet the same applies to the water supply situation.

The flow rate I am getting currently for pure would be lucky to produce 100 ltrs within 8 hrs, So I am thinking my option is either a booster pump or DI as i have a vessel in the garage which is I think is a 15ltr spectrum i bought from @doug atkinson around 4-5 years ago and just run it on as low pressure as possible to ensure to get the best out of it to see me through short term. But the short term could go on for weeks and I need 300ltrs + a day

But if I go down the booster pump route next week for example as it's Friday, Then as I am clueless how do set it up is the pump connected from the pre-filter outlet tubing which now goes into the first membrane, Would that be placed into the pump inlet then tubing from the outlet of the pump into the first membrane thus boosting water pressure through the membranes in order to produce sufficiently. Thanks

Iron Giant · Jul 6, 2018

@spruce they have built 100's of houses in the next town from me and there is 100's to be built as yet and we are all the same line i assume with it coming from kielder and all the way down into Yorkshire I think it is.

As for watering the the lawn gulity as charged ? I have spent years getting rid of weeds from a weed ridden lawn and trying to get a decent quality lawn I ain't letting it die back so water it most nights

spruce · Jul 6, 2018

Iron Giant said:
The flow rate I am getting currently for pure would be lucky to produce 100 ltrs within 8 hrs, So I am thinking my option is either a booster pump or DI as i have a vessel in the garage which is I think is a 15ltr spectrum i bought from @doug atkinson around 4-5 years ago and just run it on as low pressure as possible to ensure to get the best out of it to see me through short term. But the short term could go on for weeks and I need 300ltrs + a day

But if I go down the booster pump route next week for example as it's Friday, Then as I am clueless how do set it up is the pump connected from the pre-filter outlet tubing which now goes into the first membrane, Would that be placed into the pump inlet then tubing from the outlet of the pump into the first membrane thus boosting water pressure through the membranes in order to produce sufficiently. Thanks

Pure Freedom have the recommended booster pump that would work with your r/o.

https://purefreedom.co.uk/product/24v-aquatec-reverse-osmosis-booster-pump/

https://purefreedom.co.uk/product/transformer-for-our-24v-aquatec-reverse-osmosis-booster-pump/

It 'plugs' into the line between the prefilters and your first membrane. It uses John Guest push in connectors which I presume are 1/4" matching the standard r/o tubing that the r/o uses.

I would order a length of tubing just to make sure that you have enough to place your booster pump where its most convenient for you.

Iron Giant · Jul 6, 2018

spruce said:
Pure Freedom have the recommended booster pump that would work with your r/o.

https://purefreedom.co.uk/product/24v-aquatec-reverse-osmosis-booster-pump/

https://purefreedom.co.uk/product/transformer-for-our-24v-aquatec-reverse-osmosis-booster-pump/

It 'plugs' into the line between the prefilters and your first membrane. It uses John Guest push in connectors which I presume are 1/4" matching the standard r/o tubing that the r/o uses.

I would order a length of tubing just to make sure that you have enough to place your booster pump where its most convenient for you.

Thanks @spruce just been looking at that one it's more expensive with the transformer @ £127.98 delivered than the window cleaning warehouse but with their delivery issues highlighted in another post i am more inclined to order from PF, I think were i mount the pump will be determined by how long the transformer cable is ideally I would just mount on the side of the shed onto a piece of board right next to my ro.

spruce · Jul 6, 2018

Iron Giant said:
Thanks @spruce just been looking at that one it's more expensive with the transformer @ £127.98 delivered than the window cleaning warehouse but with their delivery issues highlighted in another post i am more inclined to order from PF, I think were i mount the pump will be determined by how long the transformer cable is ideally I would just mount on the side of the shed onto a piece of board right next to my ro.

Sorry @Iron Giant.

This is cheaper.

https://purefreedom.co.uk/product/24v-aquatec-reverse-osmosis-booster-pump-power-supply/

Iron Giant · Jul 6, 2018

spruce said:
Sorry @Iron Giant.

This is cheaper.

https://purefreedom.co.uk/product/24v-aquatec-reverse-osmosis-booster-pump-power-supply/

I found it, just can't find JG tubing but i should be could was just going to order 1m

spruce · Jul 6, 2018

Iron Giant said:
I found it, just can't find JG tubing but i should be could was just going to order 1m

I couldn't find 1/4" tubing listed either ?

They must have it somewhere as they supply small r/o systems. Maybe they aren't listed as they class it as a consumable. So you might have to phone them to order it.

Iron Giant · Jul 6, 2018

spruce said:
I couldn't find 1/4" tubing listed either ?

They must have it somewhere as they supply small r/o systems

I will just phone them this morning and ask for 1m to be added to my order, thanks for taking the time out to help me again.

spruce · Jul 6, 2018

One of the things that is niggling at me is the suddeness of the slow production @Iron Giant.

If I draw on my trouble shooting experience from many years ago and put my trouble shooting hat on, I would link the down turn in production rate with the flushing period rather than lower water pressure.

One of the questions we had to ask is what changed immediately before the problem arose. Water pressure issues may be coincidental but I'm leaning toward membrane issues caused by over flushing.

Maybe I would take a tour to a plumbers outlet/screwfix and buy a water pressure gauge and check what your actual water pressure is.

Iron Giant · Jul 6, 2018

spruce said:
One of the things that is niggling at me is the suddeness of the slow production [mention=3115]Iron Giant[/mention].

If I draw on my trouble shooting experience from many years ago and put my trouble shooting hat on, I would link the down turn in production rate with the flushing period rather than lower water pressure.

One of the questions we had to ask is what changed immediately before the problem arose. Water pressure issues may be coincidental but I'm leaning toward membrane issues caused by over flushing.
Maybe I would take a tour to a plumbers outlet/screwfix and buy a water pressure gauge and check what your actual water pressure is.

Just put the order in for booster pump as well [emoji53], So potentially I have trashed my membranes with excessive flushing

County Durham Lad

spruce · Jul 6, 2018

Iron Giant said:
Just put the order in for booster pump as well

, So potentially I have trashed my membranes with excessive flushing

County Durham Lad

It just seems that the start of the problem and flushing just prior to that are too coincidental for it not to ring a bell in my head. If you check your water pressure and its down then that could be the problem. But I honestly don't know what damage over flushing can do to a membrane if anything.

Your water pressure should return to normal over night, so if your r/o is still producing poorly then it must be membrane related. Are you still getting the right waste water to pure ratio? In other words, is there an issue with your flush tap with too much waste water being sent to the drain?

Maybe @doug atkinsonwould have a better idea on this.

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