interesting thread......its funny how many times this can be explained it pops up again and again.
let me see if i can break it down.
okay a drinking water r.o.unit normally consists of the following:
it is a 5 stage filtration / purification system......i say "filtration / purification" beacause filtration is termed as removing sediment and absorbing chemicals and purification is termed as removing everything including all minerals.
pre-filtration:
stage 1: 5 or 10 micron sediment filtration
stage 2: granular activated carbon
stage 3: 1 micron sediment or 10 micron carbon block or kdf/gac cartridge
explanation:
stage 1 is used to mechanically remove suspended solids
stage 2 is used to effectivly remove chlorine, chemicals, organics etc
stage 3 depending on which filter is used.......(1 micron- to remove ultra fine suspended particles aswell as carbon fines from previous stages thus delivering super clear water to the membrane protecting it)
(10" carbon block- succesfully removing all chlorine while traping suspended solids thus protecting membrane from sediment aswell as definatly ensuring chlorine etc does not reach the membrane) and finaly (kdf/gac- a blend of 300g kdf which is infact copper and zinc melted together to produce a patented formula -"kdf" stands for kinetic degradation fluxion and stands for a substance that will remove heavy metals aswell as stop the growth of bacteria" this blended with gac ensures a super strong protection for the membrane as bacteria growth too destroys membranes "hence our patented flush system on the waterboy reverse osmosis systems which have now been cheaply copied by brands trying to catch up
purification stage:
the membrane......
on a drinking water system , cheaper membranes are used that do work but unfortunatly last only about 1 year to 18 months before being absolutly shot.
the membrane removes most minerals and sends the purified water to a storage container while the waste line exports the minerals
the storage tank:
usually 9 litres in size, it looks like a gas bottle but infact it is a steel housing lined with a rubber bladder / balloon inside.......this bladder leaches stuff back into the water while in storage aswell as effects the taste of the water.
when the tap is opened on the sink the water gets delivered from the tank to the final stage .....the polishing filter (glorified compressed carbon filter) which only improves the taste of the water before comming out the tap........however the t.d.s is usually up to around 5 to 10 ppm which are usually phosphate bassed.
advanced systems now have mineral injection cartridges which now buffer ph while sending calcium and magnesium back to the water aswell.
marine reverse osmosis systems
generally 3, 4 and 5 stage systems
stage 1
5 micron sediment filter......does as explained above
stage 2
silver sintered carbon block cartridge........our little secret
silver sintered carbon absorbs chlorine and organics, while trapping sediment AND STOPPING BACTERIA GROWTH reaching the membrane.
stage 3 -
purification
filmtech 50gpd membrane - worlds best membrane....known to last 3 years ......and in alan's case with super protection that includes every pre-filtration stage under the sun.....his filmtech membrane lasted a good
5 -6 years.
these membranes can deliver water with a t.d.s from 0 to 10 into your system with minimal if no po4
no storage tank
advanced units such as the
waterboy reefmaster plus
the have stage 4
a mixed bed de-ionising resin stage which should not be used for drinking as amines can grow in the resin
this mixed bed resin consisting of a special formula balanced with anion and cation resin takes the r.o.water delivered from the filmtech membrane and drops the t.d.s all the way down
to 0 - 1......ensuring the purest water possible for marine aquariums
these units also incude our patent flush mechanism which helps flush deposits on the mebrane out to the waste via high pressure
super advanced waterboy systems have a 5 stage setup
stage 5
tunze calcium carbonate filled chamber that slowly dissolves unde the low ph ro/di water after the resin chamber.
the ph is thus buffered while calcium is absorbed and delivered to the tank at the same time .....the t.d.s generally rises to about 10 to 18 ppm but that is now 10- 18 ppm of calcium.............just what your corals were looking for
hope this helps........any further questions.....feel free to pm me under the waterboy or marco
and remember if you looking for a r.o.....by the original waterboy unit from accredited dealers.....not imitations that have popped up at cetain stores in the cape and jhb
if you looking for an agent in your area....contact us
we have heard of numerous reports of water companies buying our units and trying to rip them off........they may look the same......but you will soon learn....they certainly not
may your t.d.s always be 0
cool