RO water, where do you get yours?

[Drfu]

Originally Posted by Coralgurl

Op, I know you asked where people get their water from hoping for a cheaper alternative to maybe the store you are buying from, plus having possible phosphate issues.

I used to go weekly to pick up 5x5 gl jugs from Water Solutions. I found this to be a huge PITA over a period of time, especially alternate weeks in doing water changes, not just looking for top off water. In emergency situations, I have purchased 5L jugs from Sobeys.

I have an Vertex RO unit I picked up for I believe -$120-$150 a couple of years ago. The cost savings since owning have been substantial, I have water on demand, no gas costs, no finding the time to go and no lugging jugs of water in the winter on slippery sidewalks etc. My filters need changing now and honestly, the cost of running out every few months to pick them up is nothing to what I was spending in the past.

Watch the forums for a used one, they do come up, especially with full system shut downs. They are worth every penny and as essential as any other piece of equipment you may have for your tank, IMHO.

Someone suggested filling jugs for you, I'd offer, but honestly its enough of a pain to fill enough for top offs for the week for my own system, let alone regularly supply someone else. (I still carry 5gl jugs from the basement upstairs... ;-)

The price on water per week has not been my issue as much as the fact it has phosphorus in the water. I dont find it a pita but the phosphate that both of my tanks ate a big concern.

I guess the only answer is to get a rodi, sounds like aquasafe seems like a good place to get one from unless someone else has another alternative in mind. Do i not need a unit that is ro/di vs just an ro unit?

I have been looking on Kijiji for a used one, most are not a good deal vs a new one when you take in to consideration that all of them need filter replacements, could be missing parts, over all condition, etc.

I do have some questions on these units from an install standpoint as this part scares me a bit! I need to install it in my heated garage, as i dont have the room in my kitchen. its always 20 in there so no worry of freezing, i have a garden hose tap that i want to use as my water source and still keep my hose hooked up for cleaning up of my garage. My questions are as follows:

1) is this type of install possible, if so are these units hard to unstall or do i need a pro?

2) i do not have a drain so can i use a large 8 gallon bucket for waste water with these units if i keep an eye on it when its running for an overflow? Is this type of conversion easy to do?

3) i seen a post that someone also used a bucket for their water reservoir, is this also easy to set up that way vs a tank?

4) since ita not being installed under a kitchen sink, can a valve/hose for fill up be installed vs the faucet they come with? Is this again another easy diy?

Sorry for the long winded post w/ lots of questions but i believe all of you are right in getting a unit, i have thought about it Before and even looked for a used one but the install part made me drop the idea, now with all of your input I'm back on that bandwagon again, thanks in advance on answering these questions!