Crystal Pure Water Home page

Home water filter, reverse osmosis filter, shower filter, whole house water filter PureWaterExpress.com (we speak English and Japanese) P.O. Box 47, Harvard, MA 01451, founded in 1984, same location since 888-928-3794 within US,   978-456-8372 from outside US Japanese website www.jousui-souchi.com

Dr. Iwasa & wife Alice About us

Customer Support
Last edited 1/1/12

Page Index

Undersink RO models Installing a new unit Maintenance schedule Periodic sterilization

Countertop and portable RO Installing a new unit Maintenance schedule Periodic sterilization

RO system diagnosis Unit working properly? Not making water at all Not making enough water

Point of entry filters Installing a new unit

Backwash POE models Installing a new unit

Reverse flow acid neutralizer Installing a new unit

Whole house RO filter Installing a new unit

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Installing a new undersink RO system - straightforward

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Set of tools: 3/8" variable speed drill Drill bits: 1/8" diameter, 3/16", 1/4", 5/16", 3/8" and 7/16" Cutting oil 1/2" max diameter tapered reamer 1" diameter carborandum grinder ball with 1/4" shaft Screwdrivers, one regular, one phillips head, medium size 1/2" open end wrench 9/16" open end wrench Tape measure Drop light or flashlight

Five stage RO unit

Look closely at the reverse osmosis (RO) system consisting of the main processing unit, long reach faucet and pure water tank. Tidy up under the sink and evaluate the space. Notice how the flex hose of a spray unit, if your sink has one, needs room for free travel. Imagine where the three parts are going to be placed. Decide if you are going to do it yourself or to call in help. Planning is most important.

2. Installation of the long reach faucet: Look at your sink from above and below, with the faucet in hand. Carefully mark the intended faucet location, making sure it is far enough away from the regular faucet(s) so they don't clash. Before you drill a hole, look up from below to see if you can tighten the lock nut. You have to be able to apply a wrench unimpeded. Drill an 1/8" hole for positional accuracy, then slowly enlarge the hole size in steps, ending up with the final diameter of 7/16". It is best if you use cutting fluid for this job. Smooth out the burr in the hole using a reamer or a carbide ball. Mount the pure water faucet. With someone holding it from above, tighten the nut from below. Click for a diagram for installation detail. Note: If you have a porcelain sink, click for special instructions for drilling a hole in it. For further questions, call us.

7/16" diameter hole for pure water faucet

3. Installation of the waste water drain: The drain coupler (black plastic) mounts on the 1-1/2" diameter sink drain pipe at any place above the p-trap, on the vertical or horizontal section. The black 1/4" plastic tubing from RO is connected to the drain coupler. Play with the placement and angle before you drill any permanent drainage hole. When the logistics are right, drill a 1/4" hole in the drain pipe. Line up the hole and the coupler with a nail or drill bit and tighten the 1/4" bolts of the drain coupler.

Waste water drain coupler

4. Installation of the pure water processing unit: Hang the main processing unit under the sink on a vertical wall, utilizing the two keyed mounting holes in the back of the bracket (two screws are provided). The right side wall is the best, since the pre-filter canister is closest to you and is easy to service. There should be clearance below the canisters, so that you can place a pan to catch water when the cartridges are being replaced. Drill two 1/8" diameter shallow holes, 6-13/16" apart. Screw in the mounting screws, not all the way, but with 1/4" clearance of the head from the wall. Hang the main processing unit. The unit can be mounted vertically on the back wall, the left wall, or in a pinch, horizontally.

Pure water processing unit

5. Installation of cold water supply connector:

Shut off the cold water supply to the sink, either below the sink if there is a shut-off valve, or at the water main somewhere else. Absolutely and positively identify that you are working with the cold water supply line.

A pair connection harness with ball valve

Tee and multi-turn shutoff valve

Saddle valve cold water intake

Professional plumber is likely to tap into the cold water supply as shown in the left or center picture. These hardware components are readily available, we stock them, too. A quick alternative, often used by a handy home owner, is via a saddle valve as shown on the right. Again, before finalizing connections, do a lot of thinking to make sure the connectors, valves and the orange 1/4" plastic tubing do not hamper the flexible spray hose movement, or inconvenience the space under the sink. You have to be able to reach the valves easily.

6. Place the pure water reservoir: Find a good spot for the pure water reservoir tank. Use the stand provided. If not enough room undersink, the tank can be some distance away, including the basement. Insure the valve atop the tank is in the open position as shown (the knob lined up with tubing). 7. Putting it altogether: Important: Do not shorten any of the two 1/4" plastic tubing (orange, black) and two 3/8" tubing (yellow, blue) coming out of the main processing unit. Instead, bundle them in such a way that the main processing unit can be pulled out as far as the total length of the plastic tubing would allow. This is for your convenience when you replace the filter cartridges in the future. Neatly coil and tie the tubing.

3.2 gallon pure water reservoir tank

A) Connect the blue 3/8" plastic tubing to the long reach fauce B) Connect the black 1/4" plastic tubing to the waste water drain coupler C) Connect the 3/8" yellow tubing to the tank D) Connect the orange 1/4" tubing to the saddle valve or equivalent cold water take-off point Open the shut off valve and restore cold water pressure in the copper tubing. Turn the saddle valve clockwise and go in all the way, by which you puncture a small hole in the copper tubing. Then turn counter-clockwise, and come all the way back. This pulls the conic metal needle away from the copper tubing. At this point, you will hear a hissing sound of water coming into the pre-filter unit. 8. Inspection and startup: Make sure that there are no leaks anywhere. If there are, find out where from and fix. Leave the long reach pure water faucet open. Pure water will start to drip out after a few hours. Let it drip for another couple of hours. This reduces air pockets. Then shut the faucet. The pure water tank will fill up, ready for your drinking and cooking pleasure. If you see white stuff in the water, it is microscopic air bubbles released from various filters. They disappear in a few days. Please call 888-928-3794 for questions or comments.     Top   Maintenance schedule - derived from 20 years'experience, we remind you anyway Maintenance schedule that works - to order parts, dial 888-928-3794 in US, 978-456-8372 from and outside US  Part no.  Product Replacement interval   Cost   190-001   10" canister sediment pre-filter   6 months $4.30 120-030   10" canister carbon block pre-filter   12 months $18 180-005   25 GPD RO membrane   2-5 years $80 390-005   Capillary waste flow control   2-5 years $10 120-006   10" inline GAC (granular activated carbon) post filter   2 years $15 480-002   10" canister GAC post filter   12 months $13 Shipping from CA is additional ($6-12 in US, extra for AK and HI), CA sales tax applies to residents To change a vertical canister cartridge, shut off source water, put a pan under the canister housing (also knows as sump), and open with a plastic wrench. Wash the sump with soap, rinse and put it back with a new cartridge. Hand tighten. You may use the plastic wrench, but don't over-tighten. If you are changing all the cartridges, you might sterilize the system (see next)     Top   Periodically strilizing an RO system, or when replacing all cartridges - minimum of once a year in warm climate, once in two years in colder climate 1) Shut off source water and empty the pure water reservoir tank. Heft it, shake it and make sure it's really empty. Measure bladder tank back pressure. Restore it to 6-8 psi. You can use a bicycle pump and a 10-30 psi full scale pressure gauge. 2) Pull out used canister filter cartridges and RO membrane. Leave in the used T-33 inline carbon filter and capillary flow controller in the system. 3) Wash the housing with warm soap water and rinse. Put a full tablespoon Clorox in each canister and the membrane housing (you have to tilt the system to do the membrane housing). Put the system back together, just hand tighten. 4) Let in cold water. Open pure water faucet from time to time to purge air bubbles and let the tank fill up. Make sure it's completely full. Leave it for at least 30 minutes. 5) Open the pure water faucet and let water run for several minutes to get rid of Clorox from the system. Shut off the source water, and let the bladder tank empty. Disassemble the system. 6) Wear a pair of sanitary (no germs on them) rubber gloves, and install new canister filters and RO membrane. Put in a new T-33 and capillary flow controller. Put the system back. 7) Let in source water and operate RO normally. Make certain that water drips out of the capillary flow controller at a steady rate (waste water which gets dumped into the drain via black tubing). In a few hours pure water should start to drip from the faucet. Let it drip for a few more hours, then close the faucet. You are done. Please call 888-928-3794 for questions or comments.     Top   Installing a new countertop or portable RO unit - diverter valve type First order of business is to see if the diverter valve (DV) fits your kitchen faucet. If it does not, take the unit to a hardware store, show the DV, describe your faucet style, and buy an appropriate fitting with the right male threads. The DV has a standard female thread at the top inside rim and an aerator at the bottom as shown. Attach the diverter valve onto your kitchen faucet. Lay the 3/8" white drain line into kitchen sink and remove the red cap (reject water will drain through this line). Make sure there are no sharp bends or kinks. Inspect the overflow post inside the pure water tank and remove a red cap cover if one is there. Turn on COLD water faucet on kitchen sink. Gently pull out diverter valve knob while cold water is running. System will begin to process purified water and fill tank reservoir. Wastewater will flow through white drain line and into kitchen sink. After reservoir is full, turn off the cold water faucet. The diverter valve knob will automatically return to its original position. DO NOT PUSH IN THE KNOB while there is water pressure.   Will dislodge a rubber O-ring, the diverter valve cannot be repaired, and you will have to buy a new one. Turn off water, the knob will pull in naturally by its own spring. You might discard the first two (2) full reservoirs of water before using. Extremely sensitive people may smell plastic. Cleaning & Sanitizing: Clean reservoir from time to time using baking soda and a soft cloth, rinse thoroughly. Sanitize reservoir by using ½ teaspoon of liquid bleach in a full reservoir of water. Let stand for (1) hour, empty reservoir, and rinse thoroughly. USE COLD WATER ONLY.  Never allow hot water in, which will permanently damage the reverse osmosis membrane. The unit has automatic control of pure-to-waste water ratio and protects the membrane from fouling.        Top   Installing a new countertop or portable RO unit - butterfly valve type First order of business is to see if the butterfly valve fits your kitchen faucet. The valve has a standard snap ring at the top and a butterfly valve at the bottom as shown. If it does not, take the unit to a hardware store, show the valve, describe your faucet style, and buy an appropriate aerator. Once the valve is securely attached to your kitchen faucet, turn on COLD water. Open the butterfly and let water drain at a vigorous rate for a few seconds, then throttle it down to a steady trickle. Measure the flow rate of the trickle and make sure it is between twice to 3 times the GPD rating of the membrane. Flow rate measurement goes like this. Collect the drain into a measuring cup for six minutes. Multiply the ounces collected by ten, and you get ounces per hour. Multiply that by 24 and divide the total ounces by 128, and you get gallons per day. If the membrane rating is 25 GPD, the total waste gallons per day should be between 50 and 75 GPD. Get a visual feel for the flow and reproduce it every time. You might discard the first two (2) full reservoirs of water before using. Extremely sensitive people may smell plastic. Cleaning & Sanitizing: Clean reservoir from time to time using baking soda and a soft cloth, rinse thoroughly. Sanitize reservoir by using ½ teaspoon of liquid bleach in a full reservoir of water. Let stand for (1) hour, empty reservoir, and rinse thoroughly. USE COLD WATER ONLY.  Never allow hot water in, which will permanently damage the reverse osmosis membrane. The unit has automatic control of pure-to-waste water ratio and protects the membrane from fouling.        Top   Replacing countertop or portable filters - sediment average every 6 months, pre-carbon 12 months Maintenance schedule that works - derived from 20 years of experience  Part  Product Replacement   Cost   122-001-JG   10" inline sediment pre   6 months $14 122-010-JG   10" inline GAC pre   12 months $15 180-005   25 GPD RO membrane   2-5 years $80 390-005   Capillary flow control   2-5 years $10 122-005-JG (Model 460)   10" inline GAC post   12 months $14 122-006-JG (Model 465)   6" inline GAC post   12 months $15 Shipping from CA is additional ($6-12 in US, extra for AK and HI) CA sales tax applies to CA residents To change cartridges, disconnect the diverter valve, and pry open the bottom (460 model) or the back (465). Replace cartridges using a black plastic JG tool, a pair of tweezers or your fingernail. JG details are shown here, call 888-928-3794 for parts     Top   Periodically sterilizing countertop pure water tank - average every six months Cleaning & Sanitizing: Clean reservoir from time to time using baking soda and a soft cloth, rinse thoroughly Sanitize reservoir by using ½ teaspoon of liquid bleach in a full reservoir of water Let stand for (1) hour, empty reservoir, and rinse thoroughly.     Top   RO unit working properly? - when to replace cartridge(s)? Best to periodically check RO unit with a TDS meter Product detail $34.95 includes shipping in US Order online An RO system consists of three functional blocks: pre-filter(s), RO membrane, and post carbon filter(s) If pure water production rate (GPD) stays the same, the chances are your RO membrane is working properly If GPD decreases or stops entirely, read sections below Very rarely, auto fill/shutoff goes bad, call 888-928-3794     Top   No Pure Water Production - most likely plugged prefilter(s) Measure waste water flow rate and convert it to gallons per day (GPD) For undersink models, it's the black 1/4" tubing going into the sink drain For countertops and portables, the waste water simply drains into the open sink The waste water should be draining at a rate four (4) to five (5) times the membrane GPD rating If waste water flow is less that that, pre-filter cartridge(s) should be replaced first If it's still not up to par, the capillary flow controller may be plugged, replace Still not up to par, check your house water pressure, you need minimum 45 psi     Top   Not Enough Pure Water Production - most likely membrane is plugged You have done the above, the waste water is flowing correctly, and still not enough RO water Time to change the membrane, capillary and post carbon cartridge(s) An RO membrane typically lasts between 12 to 48 months, depends on what it has been asked to remove Call 888-928-3794 to order replacement parts or to ask any questions     Top   Clean Safe Point of Entry System - the way to go for chlorinated city water Deluxe model installation - bypass valves for maintenance or repairs Deluxe backwash model with or without UV sterilizer Sediment, backwash carbon, UV or no UV filters Three bypass valves are for maintenance and repairs Transparent bowl sediment trapper filter 1-1/2" male pipe thread for inlet/outlet 1/2" female pipe thread in red drain ball valve Hang on a wall, three-point support, in, out, just below drain valve Add a quick disconnect coupler, just below drain valve Allows easy disassembly of the plastic filter body and screen Use the red purge valve to periodically rid the accumulated dirt Disassemble and wash the bowl and mesh screen as needed Backwash GAC filter assembly steps Fleck backwash valve, 1" male pipe thread for inlet/outlet, 1/2" female pipe thread for drain Top of the riser (1" diameter open tubing in the center of the tank) should be temporarily capped Use the funnel and drop the gravel which will cover the lower screen at the base of the riser GAC media atop gravel while making sure at least 10-12 inch free space in the tank Put a little grease on the large O-ring on the Fleck valve, and the small ones that fit the riser top Take out the temporary plug from the riser top and screw on the Fleck valve, hand tighten Fleck valve and the black plastic yoke are held together with stainless C-clips and screws UV filter Wear thin surgical gloves to handle UV lamp and quartz sleeve, no fingerprints! Remove the UV control box from above, assemble the UV lamp into the 4-pin socket Connect electricity, finger-press the interlock switch below, see the UV lamp gets lit Remove the blue sump (canister) by twisting it off counterclockwise and lowering it Grease all the O-rings, prepare the white plastic retainer for the quartz sleeve Gently push the quartz sleeve into the retainer while rotating Integrate the quartz sleeve and the retainer in the UV unit, no finger prints Gently lower the lamp, and screw down the control box with four screws 1-1/2" female pipe thread coupling for inlet/outlet Call 888-928-3794 to ask questions or order parts           Top   Standard or economy model installation - bypass valves for maintenance or repairs Filter bracket hangs on a wall UVBB units with 1-1/2" female pipe thread (FPT) for inlet/outlet UV20 units with 3/4" female pipe thread (FPT) for inlet/outlet Pair 100 psi full scale dial gauges will indicate blocked cartridge(s) UV filter assembly steps given above, call 888-928-3794 for questions or to order parts     Top   Backwash Point of Entry Units - how these units function If not there already, very important to precede backwash with a sediment stage Backwash unit includes multi-media, carbon, Pyrolox, Birm and softener (conditioner) Fleck (sometimes Autotrol) control valve on top, a tank and gravel plus media inside Down flow through the media during normal operation, comes up through the riser Up flow during backwash and rinse cycles, cleaning and fluffing up the media Media height should leave 10"-12" free space in the tank So that media can dance freely during backwash and rinse     Top   Reverse flow acid neutralizer - simplicity, low cost, plus it works! We have found this simple arrangement works every time Clearly the way to go if you don't have excess iron, manganese or sulfur If you do, we recommend a mix of calcite to Corosex (magnesia) in 5-10 to one ratio You direct incoming water down the center tube (riser), let it bubble up through calcite Water consumes just the right amount of sacrificial media until it is close to neutral Dome hole for easy media insertion, leave at least 10"-12" free space at top Natural tank lets visual check of the media height by a dark shadow If the tank is opaque, use a stick through the dome hole to check the media height     Top   Whole house RO setup Not that complicated or difficult to install 4 functional blocks for whole house RO 1) Pre-RO water preparation, sediment filter and softener shown 2) Whole house RO unit, click for small GPD unit, click for large GPD unit 3) Pure water storage tank, repressurization pump 4) Post RO water conditioning Source water composition determines need for pre- and post treatments Hence source water analysis is recommended Household size, peak flow/volume, detemine equipment sizes We offer free estimates for rugged, economical, low maintenance setup, perfect for your family We have been doing this since 1984             Top   Dr. Iwasa & wife Alice About us Click for all products & prices Click for how to order Other pages: Whole house filter - Shower filter - Commercial/industrial - Customer support - FAQ - Nutrition & health - Disclaimer - Directory - Links PureWaterExpress.com Return home PureWaterExpress.com, owned by Prosperity Management, Inc. E-mail: sales@purewaterexpress.com   Web site: www.purewaterexpress.com Tel: 888-928-3794 within US, 978-456-8372 from outside US, in English or Japanese Fax: 978-456-6975, P.O. Box 47, Harvard, MA 01451, same location since inception in 1984 Website in Japanese www.jousui-souchi.com Copyright 1999: Prosperity Management, Inc., Las Vegas, Nevada