Water Softner Equipment problems

[MichaelGlenn]

Just purchased an existing location where the equipment has been neglected for a while.. trying to get everything up to par!

Looking like i'm going to need to spend some money on my spot-free equipment. I have a water softener, carbon filter, then RO which fill a 1000 gallon tank. I had the Culligan water guys come out to check out everything and i'm definitely not producing spot-free water… very high TDS.. like 119. The RO equip is quite old... PRO Water Systems, and i'm being told a need a new unit… about $8,000.

I'm going to do some shopping around for a RO unit online… any idea of how many gallons per day I would need a unit to produce for a 7 bay self serve and 1 automatic bay? Also do I really need to be holding a 1000 gallons?

Thanks,
Michael View attachment 464 View attachment 465

 

[Rudy]

You can fix up what you have for a lot less than $8k. From the picture, it looks like you have a single 4" by 40" membrane. An RO system is just a motor, pump, membrane and valves. There's nothing special about it.

I have a two membrane system. I just replaced my membranes (Wood Brothers Water) for about $225 each. I replaced the carbon and gravel in the filter....and it ran about $600 with shipping for the materials for everything. It was 5 years since I last replaced things.

If your pump and motor are "putting out"...I'd say clean things up, replace the carbon and membrane....and you'd be good to go. FWIW, I found a spare pump and motor on eBay for $175 that matches my system. No way this all adds up to $8k.

 

[MichaelGlenn]

Well I was hoping for some better news... thanks! I realize these guys just want to sell me the latest and greatest, but i'm all for making the best of what I have. I will contact Wood Brothers about the membrane... would they have replacement parts for anything else that might be needed on my machine?

Any ideas on the 1000 gallons.. do I really need to keep this much in the tank or does this seem excessive?

 

[MEP001]

Depending on how busy your wash is, you may need a 3600 gallon per day unit or the large tank. Your current single-membrane system is capable of making 1800 gallons per day. The only reason to change anything would be if you need the space in the room that the tank is taking up.

When you replace the membrane, you should replace the charcoal too. If the tank doesn't hold at least 1 cubic foot, it may be too small. The usual cause of high TDS readings from the RO is from the membrane ruined by chlorine in the water, so either the charcoal is old or the filter is undersized.

The company you had in to look at the system is either lazy or trying to take advantage of you. You might want to get a TDS meter and test it yourself. Does the RO spot on a vehicle?

 

[Rudy]

If you've already got the tank....it will NOT cost you any thing additional. The tank is there because your RO unit cannot keep up with the peak demand. Therefore, as you wash cars, the RO starts up....the tank starts depleting (because the RO can't keep up)....and then the tank refills when car washing demand slackens.

I have a 1500 gallon tank for my 3/2. In the winter when it's very busy, we'll use up to 80% of the tank by 8-9pm when demand slackens. It refills overnight. Only once, the RO kicked off for some reason....and we came in the next morning to an almost empty tank....GASP!

Your pump looks like a Procon...I can't really see. They can be expensive...but can be rebuilt for less than $200 by EDCO in California. An electric motor is just an electric motor. Just get the same HP and Volts....

 

[mac]

Well you learned a good lesson. Do Not, ever, call Culligan for anything. They are overpriced, have proprietary equipment, and only want to sell or lease you stuff.

 

[MichaelGlenn]

So this all explains the need for the large capacity tank... my RO just may not keep up with demand..

My first to-do is getting in touch with Wood Brothers about the membrane. Assuming I get a replacement from them, how would I go about testing my pump, motor and valve?

Thanks for all the help, this is clearly new territory. Looking forward to learning it all.

Michael

 

[MEP001]

So this all explains the need for the large capacity tank... my RO just may not keep up with demand..

They never keep up with demand on their own - yours is capable of producing about 1 1/2 GPM, and your auto probably uses 10 GPM. Depending on the pressure you run it to the self-serve bays, it can use up to 2 GPM per bay. So you always have to use a pretty good size tank.

My first to-do is getting in touch with Wood Brothers about the membrane. Assuming I get a replacement from them, how would I go about testing my pump, motor and valve?

I'd suggest getting everything running properly before you replace the membrane. Replace that gauge, clean the flow meters (There's a plastic cap on top, you just unscrew it, wind up a paper towel into a point and push and twist it into the meter). The gauge will be reading system pressure which should not exceed 200 PSI, so get one that reads up to 400 or 600. Once you verify that everything works properly and you can get it adjusted, then replace the membrane and charcoal.

 

[Rudy]

Like MEP said. If the motor runs...consider it okay. What pump do you have? You can use the flowmeters to determine if the pump is even close to putting out the rated flow. For instance, my Procon is rated for 480 gph...gallons per hour. That's 8 gallons per minute. My flowmeters show just over 3.5 for the product, and 3.7 for the reject....so that's a little over 7 pgh....definately in the ballpark.

Check your carbon filter. Wood Bros. can help you if you give them the details of your setup. I had an old Fleck (2500????) as a backwash head. They sold me the gravel, carbon.....and also a spare distribution tube (which was only $5 or so). I'd recommend a spare distribution tube since they can get brittle....and you'd be scrambling to get a replacement while you are trying to get back into operation.

We can guide you through the carbon replacement. It's not hard....just a little work to get the tank upside down and to dump the old carbon and gravel. Once empty, you insert the distribution tube, tape the top so that gravel and carbon don't get inside....and then refill it....gravel first, then carbon. FWIW, I used a spare traffic cone to use as a funnel...and had the thing refilled in 5 minutes.

Don't be afraid to ask. That's how this forum has saved me mucho $$$$ and time.