How to Choose a Whole House Reverse Osmosis System
Physicians recommendation for pure drinking water is having less than 50 ppm (particles per million). Average tap water in the USA contains 350 ppm! It is almost 7 times higher than the recommendation. It is very harmful to your health and in many areas, it may be as high as 500 ppm. A whole house reverse osmosis system can reduce it to as low as 20 ppm.
Everything You Need to Know about The Whole House Reverse Osmosis System:
Reverse Osmosis is a process to separate liquids with different concentrations by applying pressure and passing it through a semi-permeable membrane. The membrane separates the water with high concentrations of impurities from lower concentration. It removes metals, bacteria, chemicals and any contaminate greater than the size of a water molecule. Reverse Osmosis is one of the vastly used technique to filter water in the household and also in the industries, irrigation, and military. Reverse osmosis is one of the surest ways to purify clean water out there.
Read our article on the best reverse osmosis system to select the best RO filter for your household.
How to Choose a Reverse Osmosis System for Home use?
In order to identify the right market option, you may want to go through the following considerations when examining RO filtration products:
- Decide on the right system type: there are two main categories to choose among – countertop systems and under sink systems. Countertop RO systems are free-standing, compact and easy to install. They may be the ideal option for people who rent and who don’t have the chance to do serious home alterations/improvements. The second variety is usually installed underneath sinks and they are very practical. Such systems can filter a lot more water but the installation is somewhat more challenging.
- Stages of filtration: the second important consideration focuses on the number of filtration stages. A whole house reverse osmosis system can feature anywhere between three and five stages. People who live in areas where the water is characterized by a high level of sedimentation will need a system that has five stages. Four filtration stages will be just fine for just about everyone else.
- Water capacity: the amount of water that the system can process is the next characteristic to examine. The capacity of the system is measured in gallons per day (GPD). The production will usually be anywhere between 50 and 75 percent of the annotated GPD. This number should be seen more as the speed at which the system filters water. A higher rating is indicative of a faster water filtration process.
- How much water waste occurs: while many RO systems are designed to be effective, there will be some water wastage. Reverse osmosis products need water for the purpose of cleaning the semipermeable membrane. Depending on the specifics of the system, more water may be needed for cleaning purposes than the water that’s filtered. Every system should come with a water efficiency rating that will suggest just how economical the respective one is.
- Carbon filter type: apart from examining the capacity of the filtration membrane, you should also check what type of carbon filter the system is equipped with. Block carbon filters are considered to be among the best out there because they do not leak any carbon powder into the filtered water.
- Cost: finally, examine the cost of the system. Don’t look for the cheapest option out there – chances are that it’s not going to be particularly cost-efficient. Instead, attempt to identify an optimal price to quality ratio.
Whole House Reverse Osmosis System: Maintenance Tips
A final thing to examine in relation to RO systems is the ease of maintenance. Some of the processes that owners will need to get involved in include change of filters and cleaning of the membranes.
The recommended schedule for filter changes is as follows:
- Carbon filters are to be changed every 12 months
- A sediment filter (if present) is to be changed every 12 months
- A reverse osmosis membrane is to be changed every 24 months
Take a look at the system’s instructions – the manufacturer should provide information about how often changes should be made.
Regardless of the filter type that needs to be changed, turn off the water supply before getting started and keep the new cartridge in the original package until you’re ready to put it in the system. Unscrew the filter housing, rinse it with water, wipe clean of any sediment, remove the new filter from its wrap and install.
The manufacturer should provide a diagram or detailed instructions if the system comes with a more complicated filter removal and installation processes.
How to Clean an RO Membrane at Home?
As far as the cleaning of the reverse osmosis membrane goes, you will once again have to turn off the water supply before getting started. Open the system and drain all water from the tank. The membrane could have become clogged over time. This is why different solutions are used for the purpose of removing buildup. Typically, an acid cleaning is done, followed by an alkaline flush and sanitization.
Membrane cleaning has to take place whenever the water output goes down (by at least 15 percent). This is how you will know that the membrane has probably become clogged.
The maintenance of a whole house reverse osmosis system is relatively simple and most people will master the process after a few tries. A final thing to keep in mind is that even if you don’t know how to complete the sanitization, there are companies offering such professional services.
They give you an excellent opportunity when it comes to expert maintenance of the RO system and prolonging its lifespan. If you’re not confident in your ability to handle the task, such services would be a viable option for you.
How to Install Reverse Osmosis System?
Installing a whole house reverse osmosis system is very easy. Just watch the video below to know about the installation process-
Conclusion:
That is all about the whole house reverse osmosis system, it’s installation & cleaning system and maintenance tips. We hope that this article will help you when you are going to buy your RO water purifier.
Do you find the information helpful? Do you have any questions regarding this? Ask us through the comment section.
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