Is the CR Spotless really that much better?

As I'm looking to build my own wash mat, I started looking for filters etc, to filter the water.

What's so bad about a Reverse Osmosis and Water Softener? Is the Deionizing filtration system really THAT much better than a combo RO/Softener filtration system? The CR spotless is pretty expensive to keep up if used regularly..

Thoughts? EDUCATE ME!!

 

As far as I understand, RO doesn't remove all minerals. However, if you feed softened RO water into a CR Spotless the resins should last a good long time.

 

I would do this if I wasn't mobile. But since I am.. carrying around all that stuff is pretty difficult.

 

See post "Water Filtration" it may help - Water (Purification) Filters - Detailing Bliss Forum

 

RO does in fact remove minerals however the major drawback is the amount of RO reject you get from it. You waste a lot of water in RO systems so they are not really efficient. RO's use high pressure to (imagine squeezing the minerals out) to demineralize. Great for super large quantities of water that need to be demineralized, just not real efficient with the reject.

 

Here is an excerpt from a post I did a long time ago on here:

As far as Reverse Osmosis units go they do the same thing that the spotless systems do. RO's are ususally used when you have a large volume of water that has to be demineralized. An RO basically "squeezes" the impurities out of the water by sending it through the RO unit at a very high pressure. I don't think you have to be concerned with changing media with an RO unit but the down side is you have a lot of "RO reject" water for every gallon of "Pure water" you recover.

Hope this helps.

 

:thumb: thanks guys.

Unfortunately.. after some more reading.. still seems it's best to keep the CR Spotless. Maybe I should connect a softener BEFORE the CR like someone mentioned above so it lasts a little longer? Or am I at the point of diminishing returns..?

 

Not sure how beneficial it would be as a water softener and demineralizer are two entirely different things. Not sure if the money you would spend on the filter medium that you have before the CR would end up costing as much as replacing resins anyway.

 

That's what I was thinking..

Also just check, and my county/city water has a TDS of 310. Blah that's pretty bad

 

Wow! With an incoming TDS of 310 the CR will use up the resins really fast. It might be cheaper and easier to buy distilled water by the gallon ($1) and do your final rinse with a watering can, sheeting the water over the car. You should be able to do the whole car with 1 or 2 gallons.

 

What may help is a 'sediment filter' before the CS unit, a water softner my be an expensive way of 'filtering the pre-CS unit water.

Input TDS Level Expected Yield
50 PPM 1600 gallons
100 PPM 800 gallons
200 PPM 400 gallons
400 PPM 200 gallons


For those of you who are wondering how hard the water in your area is, here's a general map you can use - What Is My Water Hardness? - United States Water Hardness Map, What is my water hardness?

 

So you're saying if I can get the incoming water to the CR-S to below 100ppm then I can expect 800 gallons of water as opposed to the 200-ish i'm getting now?

And I'm looking at sediment filters now.. pretty ccheap :thumb:

Looking at ones like these, right:

http://www.google.com/products/cata...CEEQrQQwAw&cid=4009481854071396924&sa=title#p

 

thats my setup for the last 2 years, to be honest I see no difference in the life of the CR filter
life, I am sure there is "some difference" but I have yet to see it.

the unit I have connected "before the CR" is the unit sold by auto geek
Deluxe Clean Water Filter Kit, 2 step water filter system, water filter for car washing, inline hose filter

 

I have seen that done before, you could get 5 gallon distilled water jugs. Dont knwo where but I know there are water services that do drop of distilled water jugs in 5 gallons.

 

Damn, wish my water wasn't so hard.

 

Don't know if this might help-

Hard Water

If you are using tap water that contains high levels of minerals such as calcium hydroxide or silicates, some of the polymers will bond to these minerals and take them out of solution therefore more product might be necessary to compensate for this effect. By adding Optimum No Rinse (ONR) to a regular car wash soap will improves the results when using tap water (0.5 oz / gallon) always add it to the water to remove the minerals before adding your soap. This will maximize the benefits of using No Rinse in this manner.

Water Supply Classifications (Water Quality Research Council)
• Soft Water- 0 to 1 grains per gallon
• Slightly Hard Water- 1 to 3.5 grains per gallon
• Moderately Hard Water- 3.5 to 7 grains per gallon
• Hard Water - 7 to 10.5 grains per gallon
• Very Hard Water - over 10.5 grains per gallon