LLigetfa
DIYer, not in the trades
What happens to a membrane over time? Does it clog and get tighter, letting less through or does it wear and get looser, letting more stuff through?
Mine starts with a 5 micron followed by a 1 micron. The 5 micron gets the dirtiest and the 1 micron gets a small bit of iron staining. The 3rd stage is a carbon filter and it looks like carbon leaks through to the RO membrane as the RO chamber had black staining after the carbon element. After the RO, there is one last carbon element.
In the past, I would change the lowest numbered elements more often than the higher numbered ones, so the 1st stage 5 micron got changed the most often, the 2nd stage 1 micron less often and the 3rd stage carbon element even less often. The 4th and 5th were never changed before now. Anyway, the wife complained about the taste so I did a complete cleaning and replaced all 5 stages including the RO membrane.
Is there value in the 3rd stage carbon element? Does it improve taste or eventually add taste? I am on well water so there is no chlorine to remove. Would it warrant more frequent replacement or should I replace the 5th stage carbon more often?
My water has lots of iron and manganese so it smells and tastes horrible. After aeration, the iron filter, and the softener, it tastes/smells better but still not what I consider good. When I was using potassium it had an undesirable taste and smell. When I switched to Morton® System Saver® II salt, it got better but still had a slight odour in the shower. Now that I switched to Morton® Rust Remover Pellets, I don't notice the smell any longer.
I've made other changes as well. I reduced the house pressure so that the micronizer aerates through most of the pressure range. I increased the iron filter backwash from twice a week to three times. I also increased the softener regen from twice to three times but also reduced the amount of salt per regen.
Mine starts with a 5 micron followed by a 1 micron. The 5 micron gets the dirtiest and the 1 micron gets a small bit of iron staining. The 3rd stage is a carbon filter and it looks like carbon leaks through to the RO membrane as the RO chamber had black staining after the carbon element. After the RO, there is one last carbon element.
In the past, I would change the lowest numbered elements more often than the higher numbered ones, so the 1st stage 5 micron got changed the most often, the 2nd stage 1 micron less often and the 3rd stage carbon element even less often. The 4th and 5th were never changed before now. Anyway, the wife complained about the taste so I did a complete cleaning and replaced all 5 stages including the RO membrane.
Is there value in the 3rd stage carbon element? Does it improve taste or eventually add taste? I am on well water so there is no chlorine to remove. Would it warrant more frequent replacement or should I replace the 5th stage carbon more often?
My water has lots of iron and manganese so it smells and tastes horrible. After aeration, the iron filter, and the softener, it tastes/smells better but still not what I consider good. When I was using potassium it had an undesirable taste and smell. When I switched to Morton® System Saver® II salt, it got better but still had a slight odour in the shower. Now that I switched to Morton® Rust Remover Pellets, I don't notice the smell any longer.
I've made other changes as well. I reduced the house pressure so that the micronizer aerates through most of the pressure range. I increased the iron filter backwash from twice a week to three times. I also increased the softener regen from twice to three times but also reduced the amount of salt per regen.