Mods: Whole RV Reverse Osmosis Water

Spending a large portion of our time in the desert south west, we’ve come to the conclusion that 2 stage filtration and a water softener simply isn’t sufficient.  Plus, with the hardness of the water in this area, we’re having to regenerate the water softener every week (about a 30 to 45 minute job).  It’s not particularly difficult, but gets old after 10 weeks..

So, we decided to move to a Reverse Osmosis system for the whole RV. After reading through RVWaterFilterStore.com details on RO systems, I called and spoke with Rick who was extremely knowledgeable, very patient and extremely eager to answer all of my questions about the system.  That day, I ordered a Dual 75 gallon per day membrane system on Rick’s recommendation.  These RO membranes typically operate at a 3 to 1 waste to fresh water ratio (meaning, for every 1 gallon of fresh RO water generated, 3 gallons of waste water goes down the drain).  However, with two membranes operating in series, the system operates at only a 1.5 to 1 waste to fresh water ratio.  Much better in my opinion, and I get 150 gallons per day of water generation capability.  We typically only use 30 to 40 gallons a day, but I would rather have the system over-designed and run a smaller portion of the day, than to be low on water production and not have enough.

In short order, the RO system arrived at our location in Las Vegas.  Install, while taking about 4 hours to complete.. was very straight forward.  I ended up installing the same system for a friend at the RV resort, and completed it in about 3 hours.  The bulk of the time is spent crimping Pex fittings.  Yes, I could have done it with other tubing and fitting types (it comes from RVWaterFilterStore.com with water hose fittings).. but I wanted a more permanent and leak proof installation.  If going the water hose route, installation could be done in an hour or so.

As part of my shipment, I also ordered a Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) meter to keep tabs on how good the RO system functioned. Measuring the filtered only output of my previous setup resulted in TDS value of 450 PPM… The new RO water?  Oh, that’s 14!!!  Very pleased!  It’s also amazing to be able to simply rinse the shower walls down at the end of a shower, and have ZERO water spots.  Our shower has glass walls.. so we’d definintely notice if they were present.  It also is apparent on the chrome fixtures inside the shower which previously would need a good scrub with a Magic Eraser style cleaning implement after every few days to keep them even close to clean.

Parts List:

• Super Deluxe Package IIB: $530 + $100 (for dual 75gal/day option)
  Includes:
  • 2 x 75 gal/day RO membrane
  • Triple-canister filter housings with 3/4″ brass fittings
  • 2 – RV-SED5 5-micron sediment filter cartridges
  • 2 – RV-SED1 1-micron sediment filter cartridges
  • 1 – CBC-10 solid block carbon filter cartridge
  • Canister wrench
  • Mounting bracket
  • Aquatec Model 8800 Booster Pump for 120 VAC
  • Automatic Controls with Two Sensors (stops pump when either Fresh water is full, or Grey tank is near full – based on sensor position)
• PS-3C Filter Cartridge: $35
  • designed to raise PH levels to neutral or slightly alkaline
  • Needed to protect any soft metal fittings used in water system from slightly acidic nature of RO water
• Single Canister, Clear w/ Mounting Bracket: $40
  • Used for PS-3C, pH neutralizing cartridge
• 2 x 10ft 1/2″ Pex water line: $15
• Misc Pex fittings, valves, clamp rings and tools: ~$150

Total Cost: ~$900