View Full Version : Can you post a pic of your aquasafe unit set up?
digital-audiophile
02-26-2008, 04:39 PM
So i've been procrastinating.. not unusualy for me :p And I've been offered som help setting this beast up but I figure I can get it done myself without having to trouble anyone :p
What I could use is a picture of one set up.. it came mostly assembled but there is a big plastic canister and some media that I cannot seem to figure out. I really want to get this done this weekend as I just started zeo and I think using conditioned tap water will somewhat defeat the purpose :p
Der_Iron_Chef
02-26-2008, 04:59 PM
Hey Greg-
I posted an almost identical question a few months ago! Check out the thread....there's a picture at the bottom:
http://canreef.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=36672&highlight=aquasafe
Brent F
02-26-2008, 05:12 PM
How do you get those quick connects apart without destroying them?
I can't figure out how to change a cartridge without having to buy all new quick connects.
just push the little circle end in (the part that juts out a bit onto the line). then pull out the line. - does that make sense ? -
Brent F
02-26-2008, 06:15 PM
Makes sense but I can't seem to get it to work. The claws on the inner piece don't come out of the line. I figure I must be missing something because every one I have tried to take apart breaks.
Makes sense but I can't seem to get it to work. The claws on the inner piece don't come out of the line. I figure I must be missing something because every one I have tried to take apart breaks.Remove pressure from the lines before you start, then use your thumbnail to push the outer ring inward, while also pushing the tubing in. Then pull the tubing out while holding the outer ring in.
Again, much harder to do on pressurized lines.
Brent F
02-26-2008, 06:30 PM
I'll make sure I get rid of the pressure before trying it next time.
Thanks
digital-audiophile
02-26-2008, 06:34 PM
That picture I think has me even more confused :p
Drew - if your offer of help still stands I may call in the favour when you have time in the next week or two?
What type of unit is it, I just installed a 100 gpd, ro/di unit from aqua safe, but it included the three demin cylinders w/o the pressure cannister, maybe I can help. But the one big mistake I did make was not using a plastic to plastic thread dope, leaks from all threaded joints so had to redo, just a heads up.
digital-audiophile
02-26-2008, 07:29 PM
I have the same unit. I bought it over two years ago and never got around to installing it :p
The instructions I find are even more confusing. I think I get the basic idea of what I need to do, I think I'm just afraid of the actual act of piercing water lines and flooding everything.
Der_Iron_Chef
02-26-2008, 07:39 PM
Greg, I'd definitely still be willing to lend whatever help I can. Having only set up ONE, I'm no expert, but hey....two heads are better than one? Or is it fools seldom differ? Huh....;)
I set mine up near my washing machine, which has worked splendidly. I was also very worried about piercing water lines, especially since I rent...hah. But I got a "Y" adaptor for my cold water line and attached a brass gate valve fitting. Boo-yah! I can take pics tonight if you want.
digital-audiophile
02-26-2008, 07:41 PM
That would be awesome if you could :)
tang daddy
02-26-2008, 08:13 PM
D-a it's actually really simple the piercing part goes to your drain if your drain pipe is plastic you won't have any problems if it's copper then don't tap it. As for the supply you will need to find out what size it is then go to home depot they have everything there.
Seriak
02-26-2008, 08:24 PM
I feel ya. That's why when I got mine I added the faucet tap connector and did't bother with plumbing it directly. Otherwise pretty straight forward and great quality. Now if I could stop flooding my basement everything would be great.
Delphinus
02-26-2008, 08:56 PM
Now if I could stop flooding my basement everything would be great.
Boy if I could have had a nickle for everytime I've said that! :lol:
Greg and Drew - my offer to come over too, still stands. I've rebuilt my RO/DI like 6 times now. I realize the timing of this offer is suboptimal following the flooded basement comment, but they're *totally unrelated* I swear. Somewhat unrelated. Ok, totally related but it's not the only reason I've ever flooded a basement!!! If nothing else I can come over and we can drink some beer and offer comments from the peanut gallery while watching Greg set up his RO/DI. :mrgreen:
Der_Iron_Chef
02-26-2008, 09:16 PM
If nothing else I can come over and we can drink some beer and offer comments from the peanut gallery while watching Greg set up his RO/DI. :mrgreen:
LOL! Hey, I'm game. Greg, are you providing the beer? I prefer Rickard's White and Sleeman Honey Brown. :D
Oh, and refer to Catherine's munchies thread for my favourite snacks.
LOL. Just kidding. Maybe.
this is fr Aqua-safe:
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h316/das75/ro-1.jpg
digital-audiophile
02-26-2008, 11:34 PM
LOL! Hey, I'm game. Greg, are you providing the beer? I prefer Rickard's White and Sleeman Honey Brown. :D
Oh, and refer to Catherine's munchies thread for my favourite snacks.
LOL. Just kidding. Maybe.
Sure, let me know what day works for you guys and I'll have the beer cold and the munchies crunchy :)
Seriak
02-27-2008, 02:37 PM
Oh and when I asked Aquasafe the exact same questions about removing the tubes. They offered the following. I t helped me so maybe it will help you.
To release the tubing push the ring on the connector that is holding the tubing in toward the connector and pull the tubing out/down( see step 2.4 second sentence) . I have repasted the instructions, all the picture should appear.
sharuq1
02-27-2008, 08:04 PM
Not trying to hijack but I am having the same problems.
Wouldn't the ro/di unit filter out the copper from the copper lines? Most older houses have copper lines. I am concerned as I have the same unit and all I Have is copper lines.
What do you mean by plastic to plastic on the connectors? I can't seem to get my connections to stop leaking. :sad: help
Anyone know what to do with or how to use the pressure meter? I asked aquasafe and they told me to store it in my toolbox, ie. that it is useless, but their advertising says it is something you need and other stuff I have read implies the same. Just....there is nowhere to put the thing...
sharuq1
02-27-2008, 08:05 PM
What is the point of the "reservoir tank"? I don't see how the water even gets out of there....:question:
Seriak
02-27-2008, 08:15 PM
The connectors are a real basic design. You just push the tube into the connector all the way and bam you are done. I know I tried to use tubing from a different RO unit with them and I got leaks so I had Aqua Safe send me some of their tubing and everything was fine.
As for the resevoir
If you have the faucet closed then the water will build up in the resevoir until a certain pressure is reached at which point no more water will be flowing through the system. The point of the resevoir is to provide a faster flow of water from when you initially go to use your water. Without it you would get the standard drip drip flow rate when you went to fill a container or aquarium.
Responded on the other thread... the pressure meter isn't useless! It is a great diagnostic/troubleshooting tool. If you ever have a problem with your unit, the pressure meter may be the only way to find out where the problem is (pressure differential between stages). Use plumbers putty/dope on all your threaded connections (and use more than you think you need). Don't use teflon tape, it doesn't work very well at all on plastic connections. The John Guest (push-fit) connections are leaking, then it is likely that either the lines are deformed at entry (from cutting), or you're not pushing them in far enough. Once the line is fully inserted, you also need to pull it back a bit to lock and seal it properly. These connectors shouldn't be leaking if you're using them correctly.
What is the point of the "reservoir tank"? I don't see how the water even gets out of there....:question:
The water is sent into a rubber bladder inside the cannister that pressurizes against the trapped air in the cannister. Push water in under pressure, and it expands against the trapped air. Open a valve, and the air pushes back and provides a few gallons of water on demand.
The reservoir is to get you a few gallons more less right away and not having to wait to fill a glass or pot etc at the low rate from the unit itself.
Reservoir is filled when the faucet line is turned off and "reservoir" discharged through the last filter when the faucet is opened and under pressure from the bladder inside the tank. If you decide not to use the last filter just get a JG tee from HD or somewhere.
The pressure gauge is really only needed once at set up to get an idea of the pressure of supply and maybe troubleshooting if have problems later. I have mine tee'd between supply and ro/di unit.
Copper, really don't think you have to worry about how much the house lines will add between the flushing from everyday use and the scale that will coat the inside.
Der_Iron_Chef
02-27-2008, 11:50 PM
The black 1/4" hose is waste water from the RO/DI unit. I think I had to purchase three separate pieces to make this work, actually: the "y" adapter, the valve, and then the piece that connects the 1/4" hosing to the valve. I don't EXACTLY remember :redface: ....
http://xca.xanga.com/a35c45fbc4c32175683506/b133795805.jpg
From a different angle:
http://x63.xanga.com/61bc51fa58c33175683530/b133795821.jpg
This is my unit as it looks right now. Because I'm cheap, I didn't fill the DI canister full of new resin, and so I just tip it...lol. Whatever--I consistently get a TDS of 0 when all is said and done :biggrin: Note that, in this picture, the "waste water" tubing is yellow, but in the above photos, it's black. I just have them connected together because I didn't have one single piece of 1/4" tubing long enough at the time, and didn't want to make ANOTHER trip to Rona! Same thing applies to the tubing that feeds the unit. In the first two pics, it's clear, and in the above pic, it's white. Again, I used two pieces. I hope this doesn't make things even more complicated.
http://x36.xanga.com/eebc476659632175683550/b133795837.jpg
digital-audiophile
02-28-2008, 12:43 AM
Sweet! So that last cannister that is ontop is not required to be hooked up then eh?
Der_Iron_Chef
02-28-2008, 12:52 AM
Correct. That's used if you're making drinking water, I believe....but water coming out of it will have a higher TDS than water that comes directly out of the DI canister.
Brent F
02-28-2008, 12:56 AM
Correct. That's used if you're making drinking water, I believe....but water coming out of it will have a higher TDS than water that comes directly out of the DI canister.
That's right, the top canister is remove the smell from water we get in the spring and is intended for drinking water. I have mine running through that canister since my unit is built in under the sink in the kitchen and is also used for drinking water. The TDS are still 0 - 1.
digital-audiophile
02-28-2008, 01:02 AM
hmm I think I just might have this figured out. I think I will put it under the basement batchroom sink becuase I might be able to get some tee adapters and then I can just run the drain into the furnace room.
sharuq1
02-28-2008, 03:41 PM
Can someone show a picture of how they put the tds meter on?
Is this plumbers dope stuff permanent? If so, will it still be possible to change the filters?
digital-audiophile
03-10-2008, 05:46 PM
So I have no idea what I was fretting for. Getting this thing up and running really was super easy!
I skipped the whole piercing aspect of the installation and just got a tee adapter for under the sink. I just have the drain and the production line running through the wall into the utility room.
The thing is slow as heck though.. I expected a lot quicker output for it. Took almost two hours to make 5 gallons of water :O
Delphinus
03-10-2008, 06:02 PM
:p Told you it would be easy! :mrgreen:
Throughput you mention is about 60 gpd, so about 60% of rating if you're using a 100gpd membrane. That's actually not far off the mark. We don't get 100% of the rating through these things anyhow, but it is a function of a couple of variables. The most obvious is the household pressure. If you have a pressure regulator on your house (seems to me a lot of newer houses have this), it will dial down the capacity of the RO/DI. When I moved into my new house I noticed my RO/DI production capability went down dramatically, I found that my old house was running about 96psi, my new house around 80psi on the inlet side but only about 60psi after my pressure regulator.
I first tried opening up my regulator all the way, then found out that the reason for my house to have the regulator is that the showers have valves that are "on or off" (ie, no pressure control, just temperature control), and showers at 96psi hurt :lol:
So I dialed it back down to 60psi, and just tapped my RO/DI to before the regulator. Now that my area has grown the city has increased supply pressure back up to 96psi so I get about 80gpd out of my 100gpd unit.
Before summer comes I'm going to bypass my outside tap lines as well. 60psi isn't enough pressure to run two impulse sprinklers (the ones that go tsh-tsh-tsh-tsh-tsh!tsh!tsh!tsh!-tsh-tsh-tsh). :neutral: I can get by with one but as soon as turn on two they just sit there and stop tsh-tsh'ing.
Another factor to consider is temperature, and our water comes in pretty cold. There's not much you can do about this one though. Tapping hot water into the RO/DI supply is a bad idea because although it increases water production, it causes early membrane failure. So a lot more expensive in the long run.
But you can look into things like pressure booster pumps and permeate pumps to aid in increased production if you find "you need a little more". :)
Anyhow welcome to RO/DI :)
That's 60+ gallons per day from a 100GPD unit? Not too bad, but how high is your household water pressure? <edit>So, taking three phone calls and a meeting between starting and posting a message allows Delphinius to compose and post a much more complete answer.
digital-audiophile
03-10-2008, 06:21 PM
I think what I need to do now is get a float valave and figure out how to use that thing (it should only take me a year or so once I buy it to gte it going at my work rate :p) What I want to do is either use one of my rubbermaid garbage pails or get a good rain barrel at UFA that I can run the RO/DI into so I can have a full barrel at all times for top off and water changes. Having to sit through Brigette Jones diary last night while making water was painfull (I know .... I know... but it's what Glenda wanted to watch) LOL!
Delphinus
03-10-2008, 06:33 PM
I run the 50g rain barrel for my RO/DI. I use Rubbermaids for water changes, but two drawbacks: 1) Even though they're called "30g Rubbermaid garbage cans" you can only get about 24g useful water level in them and 2) the plastic they use is not as robust. (It's also not "food grade" but I have no idea what that is supposed to mean.) I have 2 that I use for water changes and one of them has a tiny little hole in it, so when I do water changes I end up with a tiny little puddle forming under it. I've tried about 6 different things to plug the hole, silicone, plumbers goop or whatever it's called, weldon-16, etc. etc. and nothing seems to stick to the plastic for long. So I suggest the rain barrel approach, it's a sturdier plastic.
fkshiu
03-10-2008, 06:42 PM
I run the 50g rain barrel for my RO/DI. I use Rubbermaids for water changes, but two drawbacks: 1) Even though they're called "30g Rubbermaid garbage cans" you can only get about 24g useful water level in them and 2) the plastic they use is not as robust. (It's also not "food grade" but I have no idea what that is supposed to mean.) I have 2 that I use for water changes and one of them has a tiny little hole in it, so when I do water changes I end up with a tiny little puddle forming under it. I've tried about 6 different things to plug the hole, silicone, plumbers goop or whatever it's called, weldon-16, etc. etc. and nothing seems to stick to the plastic for long. So I suggest the rain barrel approach, it's a sturdier plastic.
Go for the Rubbermaid Brute garbage cans. Much sturdier than the standard Rubbermaids and they actually do hold the advertised volume. They also come in varying sizes from around 20 gals up to 50 gals.
I'm probably at ~20gpd at 60psi.
Flow rate post question (http://216.187.96.54/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=38956)
Slightly off topic: does anyone know where to get quick-connect fittings in Edmonton? Home Depot carries a very limited range, and not the one(s) I need.
digital-audiophile
03-11-2008, 12:06 AM
I found that the home depot here actually had the best quick connect selection, suprisingly, Rona which I prefer had very little :(
ElGuappo
03-11-2008, 12:14 AM
[QUOTE=Delphinus;308606]:p
Before summer comes I'm going to bypass my outside tap lines as well. 60psi isn't enough pressure to run two impulse sprinklers (the ones that go tsh-tsh-tsh-tsh-tsh!tsh!tsh!tsh!-tsh-tsh-tsh). :neutral: I can get by with one but as soon as turn on two they just sit there and stop tsh-tsh'ing.QUOTE] sorry quote didnt work right for me.this seems more like a volume issue than a pressure issue. your a probably triing to run 2, 3/4 inch hoses off 1, 1/2 copper to the hose bib. more pressure will not help very much.
sorry to be the barrer of bad news but if you want to correct this properly you will have to run a larger pipe from your water service to the hose bib. 40 psi is more than enought to run 2 sprinklers as long as you have enough volume.
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