Problem with RO unit from purewaterclub

I purchased an RO unit from purewaterclub.com and used it over the weekend. I connected everything according to the instructions on their website and let it run for an hour and just drain back into the sink. I then tested the water with a new TDS meter and the reading was 37. I let it run for another hour and tested again. The TDS reading was 150 something. I let it run for five hours total and the last reading I took was 267. I dumped the water and disconnected the unit. I've read many positive posts about this company so I felt comfortable ordering from them. Has anyone had problems with their unit? They don't have telephone support so I e-mailed yesterday morning and haven't heard back yet. The unit also leaks in two places (small drips, but still annoying). Aarrrrrgh :grumble::grumble::grumble:

You can tighten fittings to stop the leaks. As for the readings are you sure your TDS meter is reading properly? If so diffidently something is not set up correctly or something is wrong with the unit.

I tried tightening the fittings and also adding teflon plumbers tape. This helped diminish the leak but didn't stop it completely. The TDS meter is new. I ended up going to the LFS for RO water and tested it with the same meter. The reading was 003 so I'm confident it's giving an accurate reading. Hopefully their customer service will respond soon!

:(Good luck.:(

are you shure you have the lines hooked up correctly?

Is your water running too fast through the unit? If it's running too fast, it won't be filtered very well.

Not sure what you mean by "too fast"....didn't appear to be something that I could control. The instructions say to turn the water on at full capacity. It's the portable unit that hooks to your faucet.

And I still haven't heard back from anyone at purewaterclub. grumble, grumble, grumble

Other people that have contacted their customer service have had good things to say about them -- so I'd hang in there for a couple days. Unfortunately it's that time of year when a lot of people take time off of work, so their response time may be slower than normal :(

sure your not testing the waste water and not the filtered water? and did you need to calibrate your tds meter when you got it?

I hope you get resolved soon. I know how these things are FRUSTRATING!

Try testing some bottled DI water from the grocery store and compare, that'll at least let you know if it's your meter or not.

It's not the meter. I tested RO water from my LFS and it was good. I did hear back from purewaterclub but they sent me instructions for a different unit. I'll try contacting them again today.

were you testing the right water? because you have a waste water tube and then you got the filtered water tube.

I had somewhat of a similar problem when I got my seachem unit. The bottom washer was not seated correctly on the bottom of one of my canisters and the water was going around the membrane instead of through it. You may want to check that. Good Luck

Do you know what your water pressure is? If its too low or high the unit may not filter right.

I received a reply from purewaterclub today and he sent me yet another diagram. It still isn't the correct one for the unit I purchased. I have the dual output, portable, 5 stage unit. I'm going to try to adapt the instructions he sent me today after I get home from work. Hopefully this will work. Anyone else have this unit? I don't understand why they don't ship instructions with the unit or at least have them on their website.

XxKnuckleheadxX said:

were you testing the right water? because you have a waste water tube and then you got the filtered water tube.

Click to expand...

I would also question if your testing the water coming out of the correct output. I don't know if you have different colored lines to identify the waste output from the good output but the good water should be coming out of the unit significantly slower than the water coming out of the wastewater side. And the water coming out on the waste side is going to have a way higher TDS. I would guess one of the other purewater users would be able to chime in about specific install instructions for their units.

This unit does have two lines but it was my understanding that both of them supplied filtered water (hence the name "dual output"). One of them is labeled "For Reef" and the other connects back to the faucet for drinking. Thanks everyone for responding with ideas. I'm sure there is a way to set it up correctly, I just need the right diagram. Maybe tonight.....

I looked at their website. The only unit I see with dual output has a very clear diagram for installation. Scroll to the bottom of the page and you will see the diagram.

0PPM Portable 50GPD 2 OUTPUT Reverse Osmosis RO+DI #PO-5B-2W50
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Is that the one you bought?

I would go back over the plumbing one line at a time and make sure everything is hooked up correctly. Even if you THINK you have it hooked up correctly - disconnect it. Start over. Read the diagram on the website. It's a VERY clear picture.

BTW their website SUCKS because none of the pages can be copy/pasted for the correct links. :grumble:

If you're getting TDS readings that high - there's only 2 things that could be wrong:
1 - The RO membrane is factory defective (unlikely)
2 - You hooked it up wrong (more likely)

Follow the lines. It goes into the first sediment cartridge -
then into a carbon filter
then into the RO membrane
there are now 2 outlet lines--------- one is waste water that goes down the drain - and the other goes into the DI resin cartridge
from there, you have one line out for reef water and the TEE sends the remaining water through a final cartridge
the last one is drinking water

Here is the picture: