Watermaker Parts Are Expensive

[goboatingnow]

You use a needle valve exactly the same way as a back pressure regulator, ie in series with the brine ouput of the membrane.

The other thing that is confusing people is teh term pressure regulator for example this was mentioned Pressure Regulator VB130 Regulator 463660K

Thats an unloader or pressure relief valve. remember whats needed is "back pressure" you have to provide a restriction to the flow out of the membrane in order to generate a pressure that allows for RO. These are crossflow membranes, they in themselves do not generate flow restriction.

Hey Tellie , stop telling us we may make mistakes, share your knowledge, or is being a travelling Sprectra agent rotting your brain.

[wingover]

Jim,

Forgot to ask... is your watermaker actually working (at 30 GPH) or you are still building it?

Thanks

Mike

[Tellie]

Hey Tellie , stop telling us we may make mistakes, share your knowledge, or is being a travelling Sprectra agent rotting your brain.
[/QUOTE]


LOL sorry. Maybe a little background about me.
I don't mean to sound like I'm telling anyone they are making mistakes. I really enjoy reading the water maker threads I am constantly learning and love the ideas members come up with to beat parameters. But I've also learned that I have to be careful here when responding. I walk a thin line on the board because I don't want to sound like I'm pushing Spectra, Village or Katadyn over building your own water maker. But I think I have, over the past few years very carefully, pointed out a few mistakes if I think they are obvious and gave sound reasons as to why. I've also taken a few hits directly on the board and on a few nasty PMs by pointing out what I think are mistakes. For example, I think main engine driven CAT type pumps are a mistake and have given reasons why. I've taken heat over that one more than once. But some folks have their mind set on what they want and I try real hard to avoid getting into pissing contests. What I have said many, many times before is that there is no one size or type that fits all water maker, whether it be store bought or home made. What I will admit is that I don't explain here the many variables. Because it would just simply take too much space. One persons needs, wants and capabilities are different from the next person. I personally would not sell you a Katadyn 35, nor would I sell you a Farralon 2800. I also would not tell you to build your own water maker based on either size. I freely offer my time, phone number or E-mail with anyone that wants to have a long conversation on making sure they are buying or building a water maker that truly fits their needs. I've done this with several board members with the full disclosure that it is NOT a sales pitch. That is a rules violation and a personal rule as well. If you notice the time of day I post many times it is very late at night or very early in the morning. I just don't have the time to get into long threads. If I'm on my laptop I have a few keys that don't work right, my grammar and spelling suck, I type too slow and think even slower. Plus have a few other things I like to do as well. So if I don't yet again get into more detail about mistakes I can understand the frustration. I truly do not mean to post hit and run comments. I'm certainly not the last answer on anything but if someone wants a specific answer/opinion from me I'll try harder in the future to be more informative.

[GordMay]

Originally Posted by Tellie

... I'm certainly not the last answer on anything but if someone wants a specific answer/opinion from me I'll try harder in the future to be more informative.

I, for one, am grateful when professionals offer free expert advise, even when it’s less detailed than I might expect where I paying for a full consultation.
Thanks Tellie!

[foggysail]

Originally Posted by GordMay

I, for one, am grateful when professionals offer free expert advise, even when it’s less detailed than I might expect where I paying for a full consultation.
Thanks Tellie!

YOU ARE SO CORRECT!!!

My background is in electrical design engineering, I fully understand what goes into simple watermakers. Yes, simple because usually someone else did all the dog work of calculating pump sizes, driving power requirements, pipe sizing and the list goes on. Too often design details are overlooked, building a watermaker is not just a plumbing job.

Foggy

[GordMay]

Originally Posted by foggysail

[B][SIZE=3]... building a watermaker is not just a plumbing job.
Foggy

Which (plumbing), nonetheless, requires a considerable amount of knowledge & skill.

[goboatingnow]

thanks Tellie I enjoyed your post, soory for the little push

Dave

[Tellie]

Originally Posted by goboatingnow

thanks Tellie I enjoyed your post, soory for the little push

Dave

Hey, no apology warranted. I knew the push was lighthearted. I need a good push now and then.

[foggysail]

Yes, it was exciting the last two days! I have a pump that requires a 28mm keyed shaft (pump is female) and a motor that has a 16mm keyed shaft. I searched and searched for a coupler to resolve my problem They ain't nosuch thing! Year, even drove my English nuts.

Soooo, I purchased a coupling from Dayton that had a 16mm keyed hole to fit the motor with an outer diameter larger than 28mm......nope, I din't measure it. I was elated, half of my problem solved.

To get the other half behnd me, I had my Son turn the outer diameter to 28mm. Simple, didn't take him long at all. But cutting the keyway on our lathe was something else. Anyway, we did get that accomplished also. Now the pump is attached to my 2HP 56c frame motor.

And a couple of nights ago, I ordered a 1000psi pressure transducer. That baffled me for a bit. It uses a so called current loop for pressure output. But I put together an schematic that will convert the current loop with a 4ma offset to a somethin that I can attach an analog meter to. Plan to avoid a digital meter only because an analog gives instant readouts for easier tracking.

More later--

Foggy

[scoobert]

happy for this post. i will be making my own as well. $4000 for the kit is stupid. under $2000 is doable. i would do engine driven, with an electric clutch.