RO machine questions

[Bgreenheadband]

I borrowed an RO machine from a friend to try and deal with a ph swing problem I have. I realized my water comes out of the tap at about 8.0-8.3 ph, and then after a few minutes of running is at about 5.5-5.9. Im not sure if it shifts again (1 fill either 20 or 50-60 gal reservoirs)

I was wondering what the ph/ ppms(i only have a truncheon, and it flashes 100 ppm on my well water....so i guess its anywhere between 5-99) of the RO water should be?

Should I run my well water until it gets to 5.5 area first before hooking it to the RO machine, or will the RO get it to where it has to be even if it is 8 or 5 or whatever?

Does the temperature of the water matter when running it through an RO

I assume those filters need to be changed? I also assume the rate of change depends on the make/model, but is there an approximate amount of time (mine does 100 gal per day)? i DOUBT the kid i borrowed it from did it any time recently, and it has just sat in his basement unused for almost a year

ANy thing else i should know about using RO water? I was told to add cal mag to compensate for things lost.

(sorry if there are stupid questions, i tried looking for a pdf of the RO machine i borrowed, but couldnt find it)

thanks

 

[joe fresh]

after ro ppm should be 0 or near 0, and ph should be around 7...mine comes out at 6.8 and 7ppm.....so once you hook it up you should check you outcomming water and see what it reads


if its out this range then my guess is since it was a used system u might need to change the filters and membranes...my 2c

water temps only mater about the output of the machine, colder temps will make the water run slower(taking longer to fill res), and warmer temps will let the water run faster(quick to fill res)

cal/mg needs to be supplemented when using RO, ive actually noticed a great need since using RO water for all micro nutes, but big on the cal/mg



BTW---the reason the water ph is different when it first comes out and then changes, id most likely because you have pipes that are corroding......hence the water that sits in the pipes gets raised, while your well water sits at 5.5.....thats why the first gew minutes of water running is emtying the water out the pipes

 

[Bgreenheadband]

also.......is it a waste if I mixed RO water with my well water ( I obviously wouldn't do this often, but the RO comes out so slow, if I was in a crunch, or just had to top off or something?)

 

[Dirty Harry]

Unless your RO setup is rated for "Aquarium" use, expect more than zero PPM. My five stage takes my 600+ PPM tap to around 12 PPM.
Mixing your RO with well in equal amounts means your roughly cutting your well PPM in half.