Water filter confusion

R

roaringmouse

New member
I purchased a pair of PW-SOF cartridge (description below) and double base from http://www.pwgazette.com/gardenhosefilters.htm with the intention of filtering the water entering my DI100 filter http://www.crspotless.com/index.php?category_id=1&tpl=pgroup_descrip&pid=5&return=? to extend the DI100 cartridge life.



I received the PW-SOF cartridges and base today. I ran water through it for about 5 mins to clean it out. I then tested the water with my $20 TDS meter. My Untreated water measured 245PPM. PW-SOF treated water measured 258PPM. Why did it go up? Is my TDS meter worthless when measuring softened water?



BTW, DI-100 treated water measured 24PPM.







PW-SOF. A water softening cartridge that contains standard softener resin. Its lifespan depends on how hard your water is. But, the good news is, you can renew it and reuse it indefinitely. If you're looking for a cartridge to prevent spotting when you wash your cart, this is your most likely choice.
 
While I can't asnwer your question about the TSDS meter...I can say that softened water is not the same for spot free washing as de-oinized.
 
Hmm..I have the same filter but the de ionizing cartridge ( non renewable) as opposed to the water softening one. I got this after discussing my water with Gene Franks. He let me know that many existing water is soft but is mineral ridden , I think with excess sodium so the de ionizing cartridge is the way to go for me. If I ever get my hands on one of those water testers I'd love to know the readouts.



I'm wondering if the de ionizing cartridge on the hose before the CR Spotless unit would be the key to enhancing the water quality.
 
The PW-SOF cartridge (being a water softening cartridge) is simply replacing the "hard" dissolved solids with sodium. This makes the water soft, but TDS does not go down. Here is an interesting water analysis of my parents' well water:



Raw well water: https://netfiles.uiuc.edu/dneece/www/water-raw.pdf

After the softener: https://netfiles.uiuc.edu/dneece/www/water-soft.pdf



Note that TDS actually goes up after the softener. Although hardness minerals go down, they are just being replaced by sodium, thus the rise in TDS.
 
roaringmouse said:
I purchased a pair of PW-SOF cartridge (description below) and double base from http://www.pwgazette.com/gardenhosefilters.htm with the intention of filtering the water entering my DI100 filter http://www.crspotless.com/index.php?category_id=1&tpl=pgroup_descrip&pid=5&return=? to extend the DI100 cartridge life.



I received the PW-SOF cartridges and base today. I ran water through it for about 5 mins to clean it out. I then tested the water with my $20 TDS meter. My Untreated water measured 245PPM. PW-SOF treated water measured 258PPM. Why did it go up? Is my TDS meter worthless when measuring softened water?



BTW, DI-100 treated water measured 24PPM.







PW-SOF. A water softening cartridge that contains standard softener resin. Its lifespan depends on how hard your water is. But, the good news is, you can renew it and reuse it indefinitely. If you're looking for a cartridge to prevent spotting when you wash your cart, this is your most likely choice.
Click to expand...



I am assuming you have hard water to start with and that is why you purchased the softener cartridge. Please correct me if this is a wrong assumption. I believe your assumption to soften the water prior to using the DI system will not necessarily extend the life of the DI cartridges. As Dave already pointed out above, softened water will not extend the life of a DI filter system because you are merely replacing Ca/Mg ions with sodium and the TDS essentially remains constant.



The TDS measurement difference of 13 ppm between the untreated and softened water is not very significant IMO. The softened water now contains more sodium/chloride ions than before and this is why the TDS measurement is slightly higher. The TDS meter is actually measuring conductivity and there is a difference between measuring the conductivity of sodium ions in the softened water vs. calcium/magnesium ions in hard water. This is an oversimplified explanation, but it is part of the reason the TDS reading is slightly higher in the softened water.



The TDS meter is not worthless, but it is only measuring one aspect of your water quality. The output water from the DI system is based on many factors surrounding your input water's current state (pH, hardness, total dissolved solids, presence of other minerals, etc.). The TDS meter is just measuring one of those parameters.



The TDS meter will definitely allow you to monitor the life of the DI cartridges as the TDS readings should increase as the DI cartridges are used up. I believe the CR systems also have an indicator light to signal when the cartridges need to be replaced. Essentially, this light is also measuring the conductivty of the water much like the TDS meter does.



Edit: corrected misinformation
 
Thanks everyone for the replies and explanations. I was expecting the TDS number to go down some. Extending the life of my DI cartridges is my goal and if the softener filter does that I will be happy.



Thanks again,

Jeff
 
chml17l said:
I am assuming you have hard water to start with and that is why you purchased the softener cartridge. Please correct me if this is a wrong assumption.



I believe your assumption to soften the water prior to using the DI system will indeed extend the life of the DI cartridges. The TDS measurement difference of 13 ppm between the untreated and softened water is not very significant IMO. The softened water now contains more sodium ions than before and this is why the TDS measurement is slightly higher. The TDS is actually measuring conductivity and there is a difference between measuring the conductivity of sodium ions in the softened water vs. calcium/magnesium ions in hard water. This is an oversimplified explanation, but the sodium ions conduct slightly more electricty than the calcium/magnesium ions and therefore the TDS reading is slightly higher.



The TDS meter is not worthless, but it is only measuring one aspect of your water quality. The output water from the DI system is based on many factors surrounding your input water's current state (pH, hardness, total dissolved solids, presence of other minerals, etc.). The TDS meter is just measuring one of those parameters.



The TDS meter will definitely allow you to monitor the life of the DI cartridges as the TDS readings should increase as the DI cartridges are used up. I believe the CR systems also have an indicator light to signal when the cartridges need to be replaced. Essentially, this light is also measuring the conductivty of the water much like the TDS meter does.
Click to expand...





Very well put!



I know a little on the subject and this is a very good explanation.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top