Out of curiosity, have you considered doing RO filtering of your water?

Hi Gnome

When I first started my borehole project I did consider RO filtering. After having my water analyzed (which I would say is important) I found it only had large iron and manganese problems, This would not be solved with RO filtering. IF you look at the water analysis which I posted after filtration you will see I have good quality water and I do not need RO Filtering. 

For me RO filtering would be a waist and it also waists a lot of water to wash away the impurities. I can use up to 60 Kl of water a month because of irrigation and a large household. I do have a UV light in line before the JOJO tank. I also use a ESpring filter for cooking and drinking water only because I had this unit before I sank a borehole.

I also run a parallel system with the municipality for household water which is throttled as I need need to use some water to pay sewer costs.

I also do have a small RO filter system packed away in my garage should it in the future become necessary.

Hi

Today I installed an alternative to the mechanical pressure switch which is used on most pumps with a pressure tank. These switches need to be able to set for a low-pressure pump switch on and a high-pressure pump switch off. I have replaced the mechanical pressure switch twice.

The switch I found to replace this is a digital switch with a digital led readout. It is larger however was easy to fit and programming was relatively easy. 

The best feature for me was that it has a pump dry cutout that can be set.

The switch is a Coelbo Switchmatic 2 which I purchased on special from DIY Direct SA.

The pressure switch does not come with the full instructions only a quick setup. I have posted the full instructions here.

switchmatic12_en.pdf SWITCHMATIC.pdf

Edited July 23, 20222 yr by Peter Topp

 

Hi

Today I installed an alternative to the mechanical pressure switch which is used on most pumps with a pressure tank. These switches need to be able to set for a low-pressure pump switch on and a high-pressure pump switch off. I have replaced the mechanical pressure switch twice.

The switch I found to replace this is a digital switch with a digital led readout. It is larger however was easy to fit and programming was relatively easy. 

The best feature for me was that it has a pump dry cutout that can be set.

The switch is a Coelbo Switchmatic 2 which I purchased on special from DIY Direct SA.

The pressure switch does not come with the full instructions only a quick setup. I have posted the full instructions here.

switchmatic12_en.pdf 774.36 kB ·  SWITCHMATIC.pdf 2.05 MB · 

Peter what do you do for a living? I read this thread and wish I had your technical skills!

Hi

With my borehole and filtering I decided to replace my ESpring filter as the filters are not cost-effective for me, about ( R3500/yr).

In my previous post, I said I had an RO filter packed away. I decided to modify and use it.

The Ultrafilter as bought is not as good as an RO system however with the addition of UV light, it is just as effective and with my modifications and cheaper to run.  

I reconfigured it as follows. 

1. Changed the RO membrane for a Utrafilter membrane. This is done because I do not need a pressure tank and it does not waste any water or need a pump. 

2. Added a 12W UV light. To kill any viruses and bacteria.

3. Added an empty small T33 cartridge which I filled with calcite just before the output. To increase the PH.

4. Reconfigured all the piping to suit the system. Sediment, CTO(Carbon Block), GAC(granulated Carbon), UF(Utrafilter 0.02 micron membrane which fits in the 1812 RO housing, 12W UV light, Small GAC filter for taste, and finally the calcite filter to up the pH.

5. I also purchased two T33 empty cartridges and one 10" empty cartridge to fill with calcite and granulated carbon when they need replacing.

6. I also mounted the system outside the Kitchen window and covered it from the elements and UV as it is primarily an indoor unit. This unit as all RO systems will take up all the under-sink cupboard space if fitted there.

The advantages of the UF modifications are: 

No pump needed, no pressure tank, no water waisted, constant usable water flow, the UF membrane is much cheaper and the filter can be back washed if installed correctly, does not need to be remineralized, and remove all the needed minerals, empty cartridges can be refiled if needed to make it more cost-effective.

The disadvantages:

The UV light needs to be replaced once a year. (I am hoping LED UV strips with the right frequency come online soon to replace the UV light). It does not kill viruses and all bacteria without UV light, the water will sometimes warm if mounted outside but this can be overcome by running the water before using.

I hope this will be of some help for someone wanting to install an RO filter or an Espring Unit.

To end with something I find humorous.

My wife refuses to drink the municipal or my borehole water after it has been tested and gone through all the filtering of about 17 filters.

So I have to buy bottled water for her. This is what it takes to keep my wife happy.

 

Edited January 5Jan 5 by Peter Topp