1year out of a 4040 ro membrane help

[Aquajetexteriorcleaning]

Twice a year, probably should change it 3 times a yr. when it comes to the end of its life the water pressure drops and it takes longer to fill up.

 

[camcap]

Do you know what your water pressure is

 

[Aquajetexteriorcleaning]

No I'll have a look tomorrow when I fill up. I have a gauge on my pre filter.

 

[Aquajetexteriorcleaning]

Just over 3bar

 

[doug atkinson]

What micron does it say on the label. Looking at the spec it does 37,000 litres which is water ran through not how much pure produced. So based on your calculation needs to be changed every month.

If not changed and Chlorine manages to get through then this will damage your membrane.

To check to see if it is working test every week with Chlorine strips.

Once a filter is finished you should see a pressure drop but if the micron is too high you will not see this as the water molecule will just pass through the filter.

If your membrane has a white film when you take it out then this is calcium which has clogged up the membrane.

You then need to calculate the cost of a softener compared to a new membrane as sometimes a new membrane is more cost effective.

 

[camcap]

Just over 3bar

I struggle to get 2 bar I think it's the low pressure that's shorting the life, looks like it's a booster pump needed

 

[jason1965]

I have a 1mm hole in my waste control gate valve which I drilled myself. It still needs to be open to get the right ratio. If the waste gate valve is fully closed I get a trickle of waste water. If I left it like that then I doubt my membrane would last long. With the r/o running you need 3 waste to 1 water or a little lower. At your tds I would say probably 2 to 1 = 2 liters of waste water to 1 liter of pure.
If you are relying on the hole in the waste gate valve then this could be your problem.

I believe (not gospel) that Pure Freedom drill a 1mm hole in the waste gate valve as a precaution.

What carbon block filter are you using?[/quote

sorry to be a pain, when producing water, should the flush waste tap be fully closed or fully open, or should it be in between i have a system 4040 membrane, two pre filters water softener di resin and it takes 7 hours to produce 400 liters of pure water, the system is only 15 months old, it was working great but now takes ages to fill, i am wondering if i have the tap to open or to closed.

 

[spruce]

@jason1965.

When producing water the waste valve should not be closed. It should be as far open when you membrane is performing at its best. In other words, the pure its producing is at it lowest tds reading. Many of us have found that it will be when the r/o is producing pure and waste at a similar or the same ratio. So with mine, my r/o produces about 2 lpm of pure with a waste of about 2 lpm at the same time.

It could be that your membrane performs better with a slightly higher waste to pure ratio, eg 2 waste to 1 pure.

So even although I have drilled a 1mm hole in the waste gate valve I still have to open the gate valve to let a little more water through it.

I have an in line tds meter with 2 sensors. The first reads the water from the r/o into the di vessel and the second reads the water from the di into the storage tank.

After I flush the membrane by opening the waste gate valve fully, its easy to adjust the gate valve so I get my lowest tds reading on the first sensor (water after r/o before di.) I have also marked the handle of the gate valve so I know a rough starting point before I start to tweek it.

The waste gate valve should never be fully closed as you could damage your membrane.

-

 

[jason1965]

What do you mean you drilled a hole in the waste gate valve, what does this do, you do mean the red tap on the left end of the RO.

 

[spruce]

I didn't buy a 4040 kit - I assembled mine from parts I purchased from all over. This way I got a system that I wanted and not what a supplier thought was best for me.

The gate valve I bought as a waste control is what is commonly used by suppliers.

BRASS GATE VALVE FEMALE x FEMALE 1/2" 3/4" 1.1/4" 1.1/2" 2"

PureFreedom drill a 1mm hole in the gate or valve plate that stops the water flow. The idea is that even if you completely switch the valve off accidentally, water will always pass to waste and prevent damage to the membrane. I thought it a good idea and did the same.