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Portable RO unit for an apartment???

  • Thread starter pappydew
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pappydew

I hate bugs. Carnivorous plants get me.
Portable RO unit for an apartment??

Curious if anyone has used any of the "portable" RO units out there marketed for RVs/Campers and such with their CPs. I generally only go through about 2-3 gallons of water a week so wondering if it would A) even be economical and B) if these are efficient enough for CP growing. Since I am renting, I can't mess with an under-the-counter unit.
 
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I don't know the exact units you are referring to but mine is able to be hooked up via faucet with an adapter or under the sink. I live in a condo and can't do the undersink either. I have it hooked up to a "quickchange" adapter so I can either wash dishes in the sink or just switch the knob and it will send the water over to the R/O filter. If I ever wanna take the R/O filter off I just unscrew the quick-change attachment from the faucet and screw the faucet aerator back on and nobody is the wiser. LOL

My R/O is 75 gallons per day (fills a 5 gallon pail in 2.5 hours) and 3 stage filtration: sediment, charcoal and R/O membrane.
 
Yeah those look OK. I would get the first one and just supply my own bucket or sterlite bin for water collection.

Mine is Captive Purity brand from Marine Depot so sold for a reef tank enthusiasts so mine was about double those prices back in 2004 or so.

Before you buy any look around and see how much the replacement cartridges are for the units. Mine are so high I may as well buy a whole new R/O unit each time. I need to invest in a whole new setup someday with cheaper replacement bits.
 
That was going to be my next question for anyone using a smaller RO unit. Definitely will have to factor in replacement cartridges.
 
My question is whether or not it is worth the money for only 2-3 gallons a week. I had been going to a fairly large aquarium store and buying RO water at 50 cents a gallon. It was a half hour drive each way and I had to supply my on bottles. But when I was only using a small amount of water it was worth it to go once a month.
 
I had a unit like that before, and my plant where nice, but when i started to use demineralized water (0ppm) buyed from a drugstore at 5$ for 4 gal, its pretty expensive, i saw the difference. For my plants, its day and night. After only a week, all my plants was greener.
 
  • #10
My question is whether or not it is worth the money for only 2-3 gallons a week. I had been going to a fairly large aquarium store and buying RO water at 50 cents a gallon. It was a half hour drive each way and I had to supply my on bottles. But when I was only using a small amount of water it was worth it to go once a month.

That was also my concern. I don't use that much water per week, but I probably would keep some of my trays more filled if I had better access to water.

The LFS has RO for .49/gallon so I may end up investing in a large container and going there instead.

I live in an apartment and I use this
http://www.purewaterclub.com/catalo...d=270&osCsid=4d542f3b51fb59ab69ba9be3cfbc00ee

It filters 350ppm down to about 3. Totally worth it :)

Thanks, if I go with an RO unit in the future I will probably buy from this site.
 
  • #11
FWIW,

RO membranes are designed for regular use,

If they are allowed to dry out it damages them. Also, infrequent use can lead to bacteria growth in the membrane which also damages them.
When you replace your membrane, if it smells foul or makes a crackling noise when squeezed it has experienced bacteria growth.

Membrane life will be longer with regular moderate use.... don't use your RO to just fill a 55g drum once a month, at least use it every few days.

I get about 4-5yrs out of membranes with moderate daily use (personal consumption, ice maker, humidifier, plant racks)
 
  • #12
My question is whether or not it is worth the money for only 2-3 gallons a week. I had been going to a fairly large aquarium store and buying RO water at 50 cents a gallon. It was a half hour drive each way and I had to supply my on bottles. But when I was only using a small amount of water it was worth it to go once a month.

Judy, be sure you test...

A few months ago, Liz lost 90% of her collection when the aquarium store sold her mislabeled RO/DI water...
She had bought from them for years.... but this time, someone put salt water mix in the wrong bottles.
(I think she exchanged milk jugs)
By the time the plants showed damage, flushing didn't help.

She was unable to get any satisfaction from the store after the fact... and it wasn't worth the cost to take them to court.
 
  • #13
Thanks for the info Butch. I would be worried then since I would only be using it for plants and maybe topping off my FW tank, not sure it would be used enough to even justify the upfront cost right now.

Might invest in a TDS meter instead...always been interested in getting one, and would be nice to make sure the LFS water is staying where it needs to be.
 
  • #14
Judy, be sure you test...

A few months ago, Liz lost 90% of her collection when the aquarium store sold her mislabeled RO/DI water...
She had bought from them for years.... but this time, someone put salt water mix in the wrong bottles.
(I think she exchanged milk jugs)
By the time the plants showed damage, flushing didn't help.

She was unable to get any satisfaction from the store after the fact... and it wasn't worth the cost to take them to court.

Well I had always gone into the back with the guy to watch the filling , also took my TDS meter with me. now I have the advantage of two large rain barrels and supplement with store bought distilled as needed.
 
  • #15
20-30 bucks for a TDS meter is a no brainer. i have had mine over 8 years and only changed batteries once. love it :D
 
  • #16
I agree. You must have a really nice model. I paid around 15 from amazon. I use it all the time.
 
  • #17
Just bought an HM EZ meter on Amazon for less than 20 bucks. :D
 
  • #18
yeah, fully waterproof and has stood the test of time. my ph meter was about 60-80. i had a cheapo one but it didnt last. they are both lifesavers to have in my collection :)
 
  • #19
I'm in a condo also, and can't tap the water line. I've been using this system for years. http://www.airwaterice.com/product/1MMDI/Mighty-Mite-50GPD-with-DI-Added.html Tap varies betwen 600 to 800 tds, comes out of this filter at 0. So it works well. Not a ton of output so it's good for small collections.

Only thing is due to the high tds of the tap, I have to replace my DI filter every three to four months, the csrbon and sediment filters about every fourteen months. The RO membrane lasts for yrs though. Ours gets a lot of use as we use it for drinking water and humidifiers as well.

Be careful using the water from stores. I once had one place I used jump from ten tds to over four hundred one week later. Use that tds meter each time.
 
  • #20
Great info everyone! This has really helped me.

Good Growing,
Kenny
 
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