reverse osmosis system repair

[Dave Fritz]

I'm having a hard time finding a plumber that will work on a RO system. Is it just here or is there a reason they stay away from them?

[Paul F Franklin]

Your best bet is probably a dealer that sells and installs the brand system you have.

[Bill Dufour]

Here where? At least give us a country hint.

[Dave Fritz]

Montfort, Wisconsin USA It seems they're sold on line and are a consumer installed item. Even big box stores sell them but don't have installation available around here. I've asked the heating and plumbing guy I've spent a lot of money with furnace, water softener, air conditioner etc. and he said he doesn't work on them. The guy that does well work and put in our new well pump and a new pressure tank for the house worked on it once but won't return my phone calls now to work on it. Is it just here or are RO units mostly consumer installed and maintained items? Our water is dangerously high in nitrates due to heavy agriculture run off and we don't want to drink it without treating it.

[Stan Calow]

So its already installed and not working? Plumbers around here don't usually repair the internal workings of an appliance like that, only the installation.

[William Chain]

How big is the unit? Under the sink? If so, they're pretty simple. It is 3,4, 5, or 6 stages of filters and/or membranes. More or less just in a sequence. Replacement cycle of the components depends largely on your use. Aside from replacing the filter/membrane cartridges, what do you need done?

[Jim Matthews]

If it's a whole house system, disposing of the exhausted media is difficult.

If it's an undersink unit, consider using the commercial PUR system with user replacement filter cartridges.

FYI - Plumbers are booking work that generates a minimum of one day's billing.

[George Bokros]

I have a Kenitico unit as does my neighbor. We are both on our second system. They were installed by a dealer and there is nothing field serviceable. If changing the pre and post filters, I change mine every year, and the membrane do not cure the issue you have to replace the unit.

[Dave Fritz]

It's a Watts WP5-50 and it's in the basement for easy access. We have maintained it ourselves. This time however after changing filters and sanitizing the system the pressure tank seems to have lost pressure as no water comes out the faucet. I know how to do it but am 76 and in need of a shoulder replacement so it's hard for me to do. I guess I'm frustrated because after spending all this money with these guys the least they could do is come and take a look, I certainly will pay them. I may actually need a new tank if it won't hold pressure when empty. We'll probably be looking for a new HVAC/plumber.

[Brian Elfert]

Watts RO systems are about a $200 system from what I can find online. A plumber knows that his service call is most likely going to cost as much as the unit so plumbers probably have a hard time getting customers to pay for their time. The cheap RO systems tend to have a lot of cheap plastic parts and the plumber probably doesn't want to end up breaking it.

Getting a bit off topic here, but I looked at the cheap RO systems when I moved into my house. They all have bad reviews mostly about the units leaking and needing replacement after a few years. I decided to spend the big bucks on the Kinetico K5 RO system. It cost me about $1,800 installed, but the only cons I could find were the price. Nobody had anything else bad to say about it.

[Jim Matthews]

A plumber knows that his service call is most likely going to cost as much as the unit so plumbers probably have a hard time getting customers to pay for their time.

Perzacktly said.

My plumber regularly writes off stopped checks from clients of a certain age who balk at a bill that is the same price as the signed estimate.

[Dave Fritz]

Thanks for that information Brian. I hadn't thought of that.

[Jim Becker]

Yes, I think Brian is spot-on. Even the most "inexpensive" plumber rates (not that such a thing exists...these folks work hard in their trade and get paid accordingly) are quickly going to exceed the cost of just buying a new, similar replacement unit.

[Mark Carlson]

The tanks on these RO systems will need periodic pressurization. There should be a schrader valve on the front that you attach a bicycle pump to fill up the internal bladder. My 4 gal tank requires around 7psi when empty of water. Your manual should describe how to empty the tank and add air. You can also get a new 4 gal tank for around $35 dollars on amazon if you think the bladder is shot.

[Peter Kelly]

I wouldn't waste time with those small RO systems, easy enough to deal with your situation using a softener with specialised nitrate removal resin. A whole-house setup shouldn't cost much more than $600 - $700 plus installation.

https://www.aquascience.net/48-000-grain-capacity-water-softener-system-with-10-x-54-tank-fleck-5600-sxt-digital-control-valve
https://www.aquascience.net/a520-nitrate-resin

Obviously, get a full-spectrum test with an independent lab prior to purchasing anything.

[Stan Calow]

The thing about whole house treatment systems, is that 95% of the water you have expensively treated, goes down the toilet, the drain, on your lawn, into the washer and dishwasher.

[Jim Becker]

That's true, Stan. But many things that get treated for have impact on the building infrastructure, too. For example, I had to install an acid neutralizer because the water was destroying the copper pipes. While I've replaced most of the copper that's physically accessible to me (fortunately the older stuff) with PEX, that's not possible in a large portion of our home, including the major addition that was constructed in 2008. The township forced us to use copper for that project and not only is it hidden in the walls, it's also embedded in spray foam in many places, too. Treatment often affects the efficiency of soaps/detergents, too, so despite the water going down the drain, the bodies and dishes and clothes get cleaned properly. Everything has its tradeoffs.

[Peter Kelly]

Those cheapie RO systems usually waste off 3 gallons for every 1 gallon of potable water they produce. Not real efficient either.

Echoing Jim's comments, I'd certainly rather treat well water as it enters the house rather than have it circulate through pipes and appliances. Saves a lot of pain later on.

[Brian Elfert]

Those cheapie RO systems usually waste off 3 gallons for every 1 gallon of potable water they produce. Not real efficient either.


I wonder how much water is wasted by the water bottling plants that treat all of their water via RO? I assume the waste water is sent to a sewage plant like all other wastewater.

[Stan Calow]

Those cheapie RO systems usually waste off 3 gallons for every 1 gallon of potable water they produce. Not real efficient either.

Echoing Jim's comments, I'd certainly rather treat well water as it enters the house rather than have it circulate through pipes and appliances. Saves a lot of pain later on.

Yes, but. I think how and where you treat it should depend on what the problem is that you're trying to solve. Very much a regional and local thing.

[Peter Kelly]

I wonder how much water is wasted by the water bottling plants that treat all of their water via RO? I assume the waste water is sent to a sewage plant like all other wastewater.As I understand it, the large-sized (expensive) pressure vessel RO systems tend to be set up in locations where seawater desalination is the only option e.g.: Dubai. Zero wastewater but crazily energy intensive. Most municipal and commercial treatment systems are less complex.

[Brian Elfert]

As I understand it, the large-sized (expensive) pressure vessel RO systems tend to be set up in locations where seawater desalination is the only option e.g.: Dubai. Zero wastewater but crazily energy intensive. Most municipal and commercial treatment systems are less complex.

I am talking about buying a case of bottled water at the store. That water is generally purified by RO. I wonder how much water is wasted in a large RO system like that?

[Peter Kelly]

It'd depend on the quality of the raw source water. Large pressure vessel type RO systems are usually 80% efficient when treating municipal sewage which is drinkable when the process is finished. I'd imagine that'd be a significantly higher number if the input water is from an aquifer. Bottled water companies aren't real interested in dumping too much product.

[Stan Calow]

There are a lot of small and medium-sized municipal drinking water facilities that also use RO treatment because they have hard-to-remove contaminants in the raw water. Yes the reject water gets dumped into the sewers or holding ponds for discharge to rivers.