I give in. I am buying RO unit I have questions.

[fijiwigi]

http://www.melevsreef.com/ro_di.html
here are my questions
1. Is this a good unit the price seems right?

2. I want to mount it by my washing machine and use the same drain pipe my washing machice does. It comes with a washing machine type hookup but is there a way to connect it and my washing machine at the same time or even better is there a way to connect it to my hot and cold faucets to get the right temperature? Does anyone have a unit set up similar to this that has any input?

3. It takes forever to produce water with any ro/unit I want to know how you that have these units prepare and store your ro/di water until ready to use. Do you dispense the water into 5 gallon jugs and set aside? and then pour 1 jug into a garbage can mix it up with salt and then pour it into a seperate garbage can with a power head until ready to use. Specifically step by step how is your water stored and prepared and then dispensed?

 

[melosu58]

I dispence mine in in 5 gallon jugs. If you are going to keep by the washing machine why dont you use the "waste" water to fill up your washing machine and use that to wash clothes. Then if you have to then run down the drain pipe. You will be very glad you got an RO/DI unit in the long run.

 

[fijiwigi]

The amount of water my washing machine uses is a lot how would I plumb the waste water to run my washing machine??

 

[melosu58]

Just put the waste water line in the washing machine.

 

[pinkie]

I think it is a bit more complicated than that to have your washing machine run off your waste water line. With the rate of flow alone, it may take your washing machine around a hour just to fill up with water, and that doesn't include the rinse cycle etc. You also would have to stand there and manually shut off the water line at the correct time to prevent overlow, unless you tried to plumb the waste line in through the cold water intake in the back of your machine (which I wouldn't recommend doing since you would have to create some sort of an adapter to attach to the water input in the machine).

The best use I could see is, get a faucet attachment to pull water from the COLD water supply on your washing machine to feed into your RO/DI unit, then use the attachment to tap into the water drain from your laundry system. That way you can utilize your existing plumbing in and out.

Some people store the waste water in a container and then use it to water plants etc.

To plumb water to the RO/DI unit, I personally used the self taping valve to attach to some copper tubing, I have not tried the ones that attach to faucets or the laundry unit.

For the price, that seems good, but you may want to look at thefilterguys.biz. They have great prices, great systems, and were extremely helpful. I got the Ocean +1 system with a booster pump and an additional addon stage, and love it.

For storage, I have the line attatched to an auto shuttoff valve in a 45 gallon garbage can. That way I can store enough water for a large water change. When it is time to mix the salt, I put the salt in a 5 gallon bucket, then pour RO water into it to mix, then add it to my system.

 

[godzilla]

It doesnt need to be that complicated. Just run the waste water line into the open lid of the washer. Once you are done filling your bucket, your washer will have a good amount of water in it. add clothes, turn on, and the washer will fill the rest of the way with water in the normal fashion.

I dont think anyone is expecting you to plumb the waste water line to the back of the washer, just use the excess water inside. It wont replace your standard plumbing, you just wont be wasting the water anymore.

 

[fijiwigi]

[For storage, I have the line attatched to an auto shuttoff valve in a 45 gallon garbage can. That way I can store enough water for a large water change. When it is time to mix the salt, I put the salt in a 5 gallon bucket, then pour RO water into it to mix, then add it to my system.[/quote]

I have never seen an auto shuttoff valve before where did you buy it how much are they and how do they work???

So in the 45 gallon garbage can I am assuming you have a heater in it and a powerhead in it? Then you put salt in the 5gallon bucket and fill about 4gallons full of water. Then do you use a powerhead to mix the water or do you just stir it up with your hands?(doesn't the salt take time to dissolve?) Then when adding it to your system do you use a power head to add it to the tank?

 

[cmor1701d]

For mixing in a 5 galln bucket you can't beat using a Nalgene® Stirrer
It might be expensive but it's worth it.

You should also always add salt to water and not add water to salt.

Auto shutoff's can be DIY or you buy something like this float switch or the JBJ ATO

 

[Kurt_Nelson]

...Then you put salt in the 5gallon bucket and fill about 4gallons full of water. Then do you use a powerhead to mix the water or do you just stir it up with your hands?(doesn't the salt take time to dissolve?) Then when adding it to your system do you use a power head to add it to the tank?

Just a quick note - you don't want to add just mixed salt water to your tank. You want to give it a day or so to settle down. "Just mixed" saltwater parameters are usually high right after mixing and I've found that salinity/pH measurements can be quite different right after mixing versus 24 hours after mixing. You're going to want to have a place to store/heat/aereate the salt water.

Personally, I just mix up the salt mix in a 5 gallon bucket of water with a big long handled plastic spoon and vigorously stir for about 15 seconds. Then I dump the bucket of salt water into my holding tub that has a heater and powerhead in it.

When you add it to your system, you can get it there anyway you want! Powerhead, drinking glass, shot glass, teaspoon... Or you could just dump the bucket into the tank!

 

[pinkie]

I have never seen an auto shuttoff valve before where did you buy it how much are they and how do they work???

So in the 45 gallon garbage can I am assuming you have a heater in it and a powerhead in it? Then you put salt in the 5gallon bucket and fill about 4gallons full of water. Then do you use a powerhead to mix the water or do you just stir it up with your hands?(doesn't the salt take time to dissolve?) Then when adding it to your system do you use a power head to add it to the tank?

I use the one listed as "$15.00 - PVC Mini Adjustable Float Valve With 1/4" OD Tubing Inlet" which can be purchased here

They are completely mechanical, just push the end of the tube into the end of the float. When the water level gets high enough, the float covers the end of the tube and shuts off the water flow.

There are a few ways you can add it to the tank. I personally use a food grade plastic garbage can so I can use the water as drinking water as well. Therefore I don't have anything in the water like a heater or powerhead. I just get about 5-6 5 gallon buckets, add the correct amount of water and salt, stir it by hand, pour them in the tank. I keep my house pretty close to the temperature I keep my tanks, so at worst the temperature in the tanks changes by a degree, none of the fish ever care. With my nano reef I am much more careful however, and do bring the bucket to the correct temperature with a heater before adding the water to the tank.[/url]

 

[melosu58]

It doesnt need to be that complicated. Just run the waste water line into the open lid of the washer. Once you are done filling your bucket, your washer will have a good amount of water in it. add clothes, turn on, and the washer will fill the rest of the way with water in the normal fashion.

It`s as simple as that. That`s all we were talking about. Thanks for clearing that up Godzilla.