Reverse osmosis, experience, opinions...

[sk_pete]

Due to vivarium setup I need distilled water, buying canisters is tiresome. And not very economic.
So I'm looking for cheap aquarium r-o or even a basic drinking setup with extra kitchen faucet.
Super hard water here....
Also household plants not very happy.
Would you go for r-o system? Or should I pick bigger system meant also for human consumption?
Personal experiences, opinions?
Thx

 

[LazyDog]

Your best bet is to submit a sample for testing and see what that company recommends. The size and type of equipment would vary based on the water results. Do the testing at 2 different places and compared the results and advice.

 

[sk_pete]

According to test stripes, chlorine very low. Kh,Dh high. Nitrates very low. Chalk deposit everywhere.
A mineral water without fizz.

 

[pezzy84]

I installed an undersink RO system (tankless due to size constraints). Does require power and some minor plumbing modifications. I had it installed during a kitchen renovation so the additional outlet install was nothing major in the grand scheme of things.

Waterdrop RO undersink

It honestly has been great and I doubt I will see a filter change for quite some time. It does waste water at a 1:1 ratio so be warned about that if you have a septic system or you want to conserve water. Coffee does not taste great with RO water and learned that drip coffee does require some minerals for taste - RO water coffee just tastes flat. Water alone tastes nice. Great for windshield washer concentrate dilution and guessing coolant mixing.

 

[walterjay]

You can buy an RO setup for about $150.00 At that price I would try it. My brother in law uses one for his aquarium. BTW there is not a huge difference in performance with more expensive ones.

 

[Al]

We are fortunate. In my area we have a dispenser place for 35 cents/gallon.

 

[55hambone]

Wouldn't reverse osmosis be sisomso?

 

[Rand]

We are fortunate. In my area we have a dispenser place for 35 cents/gallon.

my RO cost is under 5cents /gallon.
City water but it smells like clorox and sometimes off color during late summer.

PPM around 350 summer 250 winter.
after RO around 25-40ppm

if you totally drain the 3gallon tank and refill its lower about 8-20ppm it will creep up abit topping off the pressure tank over weeks.

I have APEC system cost about $150 90 gallon/day rating which mostly depends on the water temp.. colder water takes longer.

The 4 gallon tank holds about 3 gallon of water and refills in under an hour even in winter.

I love the taste.. vs city water or even basic filtered water.

Probably average about 1000gal/year use between drinking and cooking.

It has the hydraulic pump that locks the wastewater to 1:1

I'm a coffee nut as many here know I roast my own coffee beans... so I dont understand why enthusiasts who spend so much on it use city or well water which is 99% of the coffee. Also you wont get scale buildup in your coffee maker with RO water

 

[sk_pete]

Really interesting so far.
Gallon distilled water cost me 2€

 

[dlundblad]

I always thought RO and distilled water weren’t the same thing.

I would use either hard or spring water on indoor plants. RO would be soft.

 

[kschachn]

I always thought RO and distilled water weren’t the same thing.

I would use either hard or spring water on indoor plants. RO would be soft.

They’re not but the end result is essentially identical.

For plants either RO or distilled will mimic rain water.

 

[zray1]

You can buy R-O systems that have a final step of running the R-O water thru a charcoal filter which gives the water a typical good taste

Z

 

[Rand]

You can buy R-O systems that have a final step of running the R-O water thru a charcoal filter which gives the water a typical good taste

Z

Almost all have this.. you can also get 6th stage which is remineralizing filter.

My 5 stage goes Sediment>carbon>carbon>RO Membrane>tank>carbon>faucet.

 

[sk_pete]

carbon last seems good point

One more question, does it consume water when not in use (faucet off, tank full) ? i meant the waste water production.
i think going tankless, i dont need big amount at once. How long to fill cup of water ?

 

[sk_pete]

got it installed now, reply to my question--it should stop when tank full
set came with 4way valve and "300" restrictor. this is what i could not see in pictures.
22ppm out, 250 in. 330dump.
distilled water 6ppm
will see in about week.