FilterSorb SP3 Advanced Salt-Free Scale Prevention Units

FilterSorb NAC (“Nuclear Assisted Crystallization”) technology is the leading rival of OneFlow TAC (“Template Assisted Crystallization”). The two competing technologies both have many strong points and we now offer both. Either FilterSorb, shown  below, or OneFlow, on our main website,  will do an excellent job of salt-free scale prevention.

FilterSorb is NSF 61 certified. It adds no chemicals to the water, needs no regeneration, needs no electricity or drain connection. It is trouble free, and the expected media life is three to five years. FilterSorb not only prevents formation of hard water scaling, it also helps to reduce previously formed scale. FilterSorb does not add sodium to water and it does not remove calcium and magnesium from drinking water. It does not alter pH or total dissolved solids of the treated water.

Here’s how one author explains the NAC process:

The Filtersorb SP3 acts as a catalyst by accelerating the transformation of the calcium and magnesium minerals into harmless “Nano” particles. When the inlet water goes into the water conditioner tank, the up flow pulls the water through the fluidized Filtersorb SP3 media which then acts as a catalyst and pulls the hardness minerals of calcium and magnesium out of the solution and then transforms these minerals into inactive Nano crystal particles. Because the hardness minerals have been transformed into Nano particles, these Nanoscopic particles make their way through plumbing systems without attaching on to pipes, fixtures, valves, or heating elements. Filtersorb SP3 is also a maintenance free system that does not require cost for salt, costs for water or for regeneration material.

Because of the simple in/out design without electrical or drain connection, FilterSorb units are especially easy to install. We highly recommend installing a sediment filter in front of the FilterSorb system to guard against intrusion of particulate.

Basic FilterSorb Unit with Optional Bypass (red-handled valves). In this upflow system, water flows upward from the bottom of the tank through the treatment media.  No backwashing is required, so, unlike conventional water softeners, the FilterSorb system does not require water for backwash, rinse, or brine circulation. No connection to drain is needed.

FilterSorb units are made with only a few liters of high potency media in a large tank, so there is virtually no pressure drop. The larger-than-necessary tank enhances performance by allowing the FilterSorb media to fluidize freely and have more contact time with the water.

FilterSorb can be used in water temperatures from 38 to 140 F and up to a hardness of 75 grains, although sizing for the residential units offered on this page is for water up to 25 grains hardness. If your hardness exceeds 25 grains, we can help with sizing the unit.

FilterSorb can tolerate high salinity (up to >2000 grains). Acceptable pH range is 6.5 to 9.5. Maximum iron content recommended is 0.2 ppm, and maximum manganese 0.5 ppm. Up to 1.3 ppm copper can be tolerated, but the medium requires zero oil, phosphates, and hydrogen sulfide. Although FilterSorb is fairly chlorine tolerant, the life of the media will be prolonged if a carbon filter is installed in front of the scale prevention unit in city water or chlorinated well water applications.

Standard FilterSorb Treatment Unit with the optional bypass. No electricity or salt are needed. The standard Filtersorb unit is built in a Vortech mineral tank with an upflow Clack head.

Pure Water Products FilterSorb Residential Units

Free Shipping to Lower 48 US Addresses.

Rebedding Softeners and Filters

In general, putting new media into a water softener or tank-style filter is like screwing the lid off of a bottle, dumping out the contents, then refilling the bottle. What complicates the procedure is largely that it is a very big bottle and it is often located in an inconvenient place. It doesn’t have to be a hard job, but it can be a messy job.  Here are suggested steps:

• Start by disconnecting from your house plumbing. If you have a bypass valve on the filter or softener, put it in bypass. If not, turn off the water source. Disconnect the control valve from house plumbing. With Fleck controls, simply remove the two clips that hold the bypass (or yoke) to the control valve. The drain line will also have to be disconnected from the control valve.
• Move the filter/softener away from the plumbing connection so that you have room to work, then screw the control valve off the tank (like screwing the lid off of a bottle). It screws out counter-clockwise. You should not need a wrench, but this is often a two-person job, with one person holding the tank in place while the other unscrews the control valve.
• Next, you’re going to get the filter media out of the tank. This may be easy or very difficult, depending on where the filter is located, how large it is, and the condition of the media bed. If the filter is small enough and relatively clean, you can simply move it to a convenient location–near a drain, or outdoors–turn it over and dump out the contents. However, if it’s a heavy tank or the media is laden with iron or dirt, you’ll have to improvise. Sometimes with very dirty iron filters it’s more practical to replace the tank than empty it. Some tricks that can make this job easier include siphoning out some water to lighten the tank so it can be moved outdoors or to a floor drain or using a shop vac to suck out the water and the media. Except in exceptional cases, like arsenic filters, the old media in the tank is not regarded as a hazardous material, so you can dump it on the lawn or dispose of it as you see fit. If you have a conventional filter tank, the center tube (dip tube or riser) can be removed to make it easier to dump out the media; with a Vortech tank, the riser is attached to the bottom of the tank, so it stays in place and you’ll have to work around it. If  you’re outdoors and can get the tank propped mouth-down at a 45 degree angle, you can insert a running garden hose into the tank and in most case wash the media out easily.

Using a media funnel. Note that the dip tube is covered to keep media from getting inside the tube (and subsequently into the home’s service lines).

• When the tank is empty, rebed by pouring in media using the same procedure you would use for filling a new filter. Before you pour in gravel or media, be sure you cover the top of the riser tube with tape or a small plastic bag to keep media from entering the riser tube. If it’s a standard tank, be sure the riser is in place in the bottom of the tank, pour in gravel, if needed, then pour in the filter media. With standard tanks, you’ll need  gravel underbedding for filter media; with residential-sized softeners, gravel is usually optional.  With Vortech tanks, except in rare cases, no gravel is needed for filters or softeners.  Since dry filter media often puts off dust, it is recommended that you wear a face mask while filling the tank to avoid breathing in dust. Filling the tank is most easily done by two people. Using a media funnel greatly facilitates the task. Without a funnel, you may have to scoop it in.
• When the tank is full (“full,” in most cases, means about 1/2 to 2/3 deep in the tank), replace the control valve.  It is important to lubricate the o ring that makes the seal between the top of the tank and control valves with silicone. Also, lube the o rings inside the bottom hole of the control valve so that the riser can slide in easily and make a good seal. Be sure to clean media dust out of the threads on the tank before screwing on the valve to prevent damaging the threads. Screw the head on snugly. No tool is needed.
• When the control valve is back on the tank, reinstall to your plumbing, then follow the startup procedure you would use for a new filter or softener.
• Check for leaks.

Roundup

Glyphosate, known better as Roundup and sold under several other brand names as well, a product of Monsanto, has been around since 1974.  It is a potent and popular herbicide, registered for use in 130 countries. The world consumes more than 720,000 metric tons annually, so there is plenty to get into water. Glyphosate was detected in 36% of stream samples from 9 Midwestern US states as far back as 2002.

Although Roundup has always been viewed with suspicion, there had been little evidence that it poses a cancer risk to humans. Recent studies, however,  have shown mixed results. Currently, the EPA sets its MCL at 700 parts per billion. The World Health Organization has for years insisted that regulatory guidelines are not necessary because Glyphosate poses  low risk in drinking water.

Despite such assurances, most prefer not drinking Roundup.  There are many options for getting rid of it. These include chlorination, ozonation, nanofiltration, reverse osmosis, and filtration with granular activated carbon.

Reference: Water Technology magazine, July, 2016.

Gazette Afternote:  In August of 2018, a California jury found Monsanto liable in a lawsuit filed by a man who alleged the company’s glyphosate-based weedkillers, including Roundup, caused his cancer and ordered the company to pay $289 million in damages.This case has certainly cast doubts on the “low risk” assessment.  As early as 2015, the World Health Organization’s cancer arm classified glyphosate as “probably carcinogenic to humans.” 

Gazette Afternote 2: In June 2020, Roundup maker Bayer AB announced a blockbuster $10 billion dollar settlement to resolve cancer lawsuits connected to its weedkiller Roundup. This after Bayer faced tens of thousands of claims linking the active ingredient in RoundUp– glyphosate– to increased risk of developing Non Hodgkins Lymphoma.

The lesson here, of course, is that experts, including the World Health Organization, don’t always get it right. It is always best to err on the side of caution. Having a good drinking water system in the home serves as protection against mistakes by the experts.

The Meaning of “Temporary” and “Permanent” Hardness

Gazette Water Wizard Pure Water Annie Explains Why You Have to Watch Out for Temporary Hardness

What we call hardness in water–the property that causes hard scale to form on appliances and inside pipes and water heaters, spots on dishes, and soap scum–is caused by the presence of calcium and/or magnesium ions in the water. The more calcium and magnesium, the harder the water. The sum of the concentrated calcium and magnesium is often called “total hardness.”

All hardness, however, is not created equal. The hardness that gives you trouble in the home is what is called “temporary” hardness, as opposed to “permanent” hardness. That’s because temporary hardness, also called carbonate or bicarbonate hardness,  breaks down when it’s heated and forms hard scale. Permanent hardness, on the other hand, does not break down when heated and does not cause problems.

The test, then, for whether hardness is “permanent” or “temporary” is how it behaves when heated. Needless to say, in the home, hot water heaters and any appliances that use hot water are very vulnerable to the effects of temporary hardness.

In general terms, temporary hardness is the predominant form. Most water hardness is either all temporary or a mixture of temporary and permanent.

If you look at a water analysis, the way to determine the type of hardness is to compare the total hardness with the total alkalinity of the sample. Most water tests report both hardness and alkalinity “as CaCO3.”  Reporting “as if it were Calcium Carbonate” is simply a way of putting the items in a common frame of reference so they can be compared, the way we find a “common denominator” when we add fractions.

If the total alkalinity of the water is greater than the total hardness, then all the hardness in the water is temporary.  However, if the total alkalinity is less than the total hardness, both permanent and temporary hardness are present and the the amount of temporary hardness is equal to the alkalinity.

Here are examples:

Hardness — 150 ppm.

Alkalinity — 250 ppm.

Result: Temporary hardness=150 ppm.  (Alkalinity exceeds hardness, so all hardness is temporary.)

Hardness — 150 ppm.

Alkalinity — 100 ppm.

Result — Temporary hardness= 100 ppm.  Permanent hardess = 50 ppm.  (When hardness exceeds alkalinity, temporary hardness is equal to alkalinity and permanent hardess equals total hardness less alkalinity.)

What does all this matter?  Not much for residential water users, since most hardness is reported as “total hardness” and both types are treated with a water softener.  It might matter, though, if you were manager of a municipal water system, since temporary hardness can be reduced by a process called “lime softening” that isn’t used for residential treatment.

The
The “Light Commecial” Reverse Osmosis Unit

by Gene Franks,  Pure Water Products

Although small application RO systems, units in the 200 to 400 gallon-per-day range, are not new, they are definitely gaining in popularity. They are especially handy for small businesses that need a limited amount of high quality water. Although they are too small for most water vending or whole house applications, they work great for small private car wash or window washing applications, small restaurants that want great water for drinking, cooking, and making beverages, greenhouses, laboratories, coffee shops, company break rooms and cafeterias, etc.

Here are some general observations on the various brands available:

• Most are multi-membrane units.  Two to four small membranes running in parallel is standard. One company’s simple design advertizes two 100-gallon-per-day membranes for a 200 gpd unit, three membranes for 300 gpd, and five membranes for 500 gpd. This system works in theory but can be awkward in practice, especially when troubleshooting performance issues. A single, large membrane is probably a more practical arrangement.
• Most RO units in this class use at least two booster pumps to bump up  water pressure to the membranes. This system works well, but can become an issue unless a single electronic shutoff system is used to start and stop the pumps together. When using small pumps on multiple membranes, the pumps usually put out less pressure than the theoretical expectation.
• Most use 2.5″ X 20″ filter housings (see all units pictured on this page), although standard 2.5″ X 10″ cartridges are offered as an option in a few systems.  Standard cartridge arrangment is sediment, pre-carbon, and post-carbon, although a DI option for the postfilter is sometimes offered.  Remineralizing cartridges are also getting popular.
• Standard in/out tubing is 3/8″, but 1/4″ is often used for interior connections.
• Some units come standard with pressurized storage tanks; some offer tanks as an option. Most small RO units in this class can be used either with a pressure tanks or an atmospheric tank.
• Most, but not all, come with such electronic control features as low pressure shutoff and high pressure shutoff. Some have electronic autoflush drainline flow restrictors.
• Other options include ledge faucets, mounting stands, TDS monitors, delivery (demand) pumps, and UV lamps.

Depending on your needs, the best system may be the simplest. Most RO units in this class depend on multiple electrical control components and there is a lot that can go wrong.

This 300 GPD unit uses a single membrane.  Most systems in this category use multiple small membranes. 

A multi-membrane arrangement (membranes mounted behind filter housings)

It’s Istanbul Not Constantinople

Just as Constantinople was renamed Istanbul, Watts Water Quality’s star descaling product ScaleNet is being rechristened as OneFlow. The popular TAC medium is being rebranded to share a  name already in use by another branch of the company.

In addition to the name change and a couple of minor alterations in the delivery hardware, the new OneFlow product will be offered at a higher  price.

The new OneFlow unit looks exactly like the old ScaleNet unit, except for the decal and the  price tag.

Look for the new ScaleNet (OneFlow) pricing on our main website.  We will also be adding FilterSorb to our website offerings.  FilterSorb is a competing salt-free conditioning system that will be priced lower than the OneFlow units.  Here are the main residential sizes and prices:

More about Filtersorb.

The Real Costs of the Aging US Infrastructure

How much will it really cost to fix our water problems?

by Louise Musial

Even though water is an essential part of everyday life, residents pay much less for it than cable television or any other utility. The current water rates do not accurately reflect the actual cost of supplying clean, reliable drinking water or wastewater management and discharge to the U.S. population.

In this era of new technologies, a blind eye is often turned to the things that should be addressed. One of the most important of those is the aging water and wastewater treatment infrastructure in the U.S.

Much of the drinking water and wastewater infrastructure with its million miles of pipes beneath streets is nearing the end of its useful life and needs to be replaced. Significant growth in urban areas of the country furthers the need for change.

According to the American Water Works Association (AWWA) study, “Buried No Longer: Confronting America’s Water Infrastructure Challenge,”¹ if the country is to maintain even the current levels of water service, restoring existing water systems and expanding them to serve a growing population will cost at least $1 trillion over the next 25 years.

One trillion dollars may seem like a lot of money, but postponing infrastructure investments in the near term will only add to the problems in the years to come. According to the AWWA, the cost of fixing the water infrastructure could double to more than $2 trillion if action is not taken now. In the past year alone, 35 million gallons of raw sewage spilled into the waters of the Gallatin River in Big Sky, Montana, and $13 million of damage was incurred at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) when 20 million gallons of water spilled onto Sunset Boulevard.

The cost to implement new infrastructure will only increase with time, as will the odds of facing expensive water main breaks and other infrastructure failures. However, if action is taken now, it will leave time to plan and implement policies that will put the country on the right track for a more secure future. The $1 trillion required does not need to be invested overnight. Instead, it should be, by fiscal necessity, spread out over the next 20 years.

Even though water is an essential part of everyday life, residents pay much less for it than cable television or any other utility. The current water rates do not accurately reflect the actual cost of supplying clean, reliable drinking water or wastewater management and discharge to the U.S. population.

Replacing the nation’s antiquated pipes will require additional local investment including higher water rates. In the past, many municipalities have had to raise money through bonds, which can take years to get through red tape and voting. Programs are now in place to help expedite such issues, including the Water Infrastructure and Innovation Act Program. Congress enacted it in 2014 in an effort to offset the high costs associated with retrofitting and updating current water treatment systems.

In the most recent report by the American Society of Civil Engineers, the U.S. earned a grade of D for its water and wastewater infrastructure. It is not surprising given the fact that many of its most neglected water treatment systems are in need of maintenance and repairs and have not been upgraded in decades. And in 2009, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reported to Congress that it had assessed 16 percent of America’s stream miles and found 36 percent of those miles were unfit for use by fish and wildlife, 28 percent were unfit for human recreation, 18 percent were unfit for use as a public water supply and 10 percent were unfit for agricultural use.

Not only do citizens need reliable water treatment systems, but also industries, public and private, rely heavily on its infrastructure. If there is a delay to address updates to our water systems, the economy may be in jeopardy due to rising costs and the loss of valuable market share. The lead contamination in drinking water in Flint, Michigan, furthers this point.

Costs are inevitably rising, making the present an opportune time to use new technologies for change. Communities and the country can take many steps to ensure that water infrastructure lasts for generations.

Source: Water Technology.

Pure Water Gazette Fair Use Statement

Consumer Options for “Softening” Water

Siliphos consists of glass-like polyphosphate silicate spheres that prevent scale and stop corrosion.

There are a variety of strategies used to prevent scale buildup on pipes and fixtures. These are generally lumped together and called “softening” devices, although “softening,” if the meaning is removal of the “hardness” minerals calcium and magnesium, can only be properly applied to the conventional ion exchange water softener or to reverse osmosis units. Here’s a look at the most popular scale-fighting strategies, starting with the conventional “water softener” itself.

Ion Exchange

Although the origin of the conventional water softener is not too clear, it likely goes back to the early 1900s.

The softener works by “exchanging” sodium for calcium and magnesium, so that the hardness minerals are actually absent from the water and cannot cause scaling of pipes or spotting on dishes and automobiles or cause soap to fail to lather. Actually, conventional softeners can be used to do a lot more, like removing iron and manganese from well water and, in specialized formats, dealing with tough contaminants like ammonia, lead, strontium, barium, and radium.

The effectiveness plus the reliable and predictable performance of the softener have made it popular, but it is not without its problems and its detractors. The ion exchange softener uses a fair amount of water to regenerate its resin, it puts salt into the environment, and its product water can have a “slickness” that many  dislike. Although the newer, more sophisticated softeners use less water and less salt than early models, they still use salt and water, and many cities have banned or restricted their use. We should add that softeners are among the most aggressively marketed consumer items and, consequently, they are sometimes sold for too high a price and to consumers who don’t really need them. If you need one, they’re great, but beware of silver-tongued marketers.

Poly-phosphates

The use of phosphates to inhibit scale buildup goes back to the early 19th century. Phosphate treatment does not remove hardness minerals but “sequesters” them to prevent hardness scale deposits. Preventing scale with phosphates has wide application. Poly-phosphate cartridges (which often combine phosphate with carbon to add taste/odor improvement to scale prevention) are very popular in restaurants, for example, to protect equipment such as coffee machines from scale while providing good-tasting water. Poly-phosphate can also be fed as a liquid into a water stream to protect home appliances and to prevent hardness buildup on buildings and sidewalks from irrigation water. The popular Siliphos cartridges are an application of phosphate technology.

Other Corrosion Control Methods

There are highly concentrated chemicals that can be pump fed into the water stream to protect large reverse osmosis membranes from calcium scaling. Spectraguard, for example, is used to protect reverse osmosis membranes from calcium scaling even when inlet water is extremely hard. It can replace a water softener for RO pre-treatment even when hardness levels are very high.

The popular treatment medium KDF, most often used  for chlorine reduction, as in shower filters, for example, is also marketed as a scale preventer. KDF uses the “redox” process of passing water over dissimilar metals to modify the structure of scale causing minerals and converting hardness to Aragonite. There are variations on this technique that use metal bars inside pipes rather than granular KDF media.

Magnets, Electro-Magnets and the Newer Methods, TAC and NAC.

Over the past few decades consumer demand for non-traditional scale prevention methods has led to the development of a number of magnetic and electro-magnetic devices. Treating scale with natural magnets actually goes back to the late 19th century. Currently there are a great number of electro-magnetic and other electronic systems on the market, ranging from simple and inexpensive to very complex and very expensive. The effectiveness of electro-magnetic devices is often debated.

By far the most popular new “salt-free” technologies, however, are NAC (“Nuclear Assisted Crystallization”) and TAC (“Template Assisted Crystallization”), which have become very big in the residential market. These work both as tank style units, which require no backwash, no electricity, no salt, no drain connection, and cartridge-style units for smaller applications. Like other alternative methods, they do not actually soften water by removing hardness minerals, but instead purport to convert hardness to microscopic crystals. As with other non-traditional softening methods, NAC and TAC units do not actually remove anything from the water, so their performance is essentially impossible to quantify with a test. These units cost a bit more than conventional softeners, but do not consume water, salt or electricity. The media, however, is expensive and requires replacement, usually after 3 to 5 years. TAC/NAC units are also more fragile than softeners,  requiring protection from sediment, chlorine, copper, and iron.

Scale Prevention Offerings from Pure Water Products

We do not sell magnets or electronic conditioners, but we do offer small poly-phosphate cartridges and feed systems (pumps, tanks, media) for larger applications. We have Spectraguard for large RO protection. We have KDF in bulk, in cartridges, and in shower filters. We have all sizes of TAC (OneFlow, also sold as ScaleNet).  With ScaleNet we stock media, cartridges, and pre-built units. We ask customers to remember that TAC systems are not water softeners. They are scale preventers, and they do not do all the things that conventional salt-based softeners do.

And, yes, we do have lots of water softeners, both single tank and twins,  in different formats and sizes. They cost about 1/4 as much as the telemarketers’ systems, but you don’t get a free year’s supply of soap.

Pure Water Products Simple Emergency Filter

Here’s how it works:

Water to be treated is placed in the top container. The force of gravity (siphon) pulls the water through the filter into the bottom container.

Directions for use

The filter is a high quality coconut shell carbon block that is capable of removing chlorine and a broad range of chemical contaminants from water. It does not remove bacteria without the help of chlorination. It can be used to make excellent drinking water from any reasonably clean water if chlorine in the form of standard household bleach is added to the water.

Suggested uses are during times of emergency when standard water supply is cut off or during “boil water” alerts. Or, it can be used to make excellent drinking water from regular tap water on a regular basis.

The source of water during emergencies can be swimming pools, wells, emergency water stored in containers, rivers, lakes, ponds–any fresh water source. The filter will not work with sea water or brackish water.

Prefiltering

If the water contains visible debris, prefilter the water through a clean cloth or a coffee filter before putting it into the top treatment container.

Disinfecting

Unless the water is known to be bacteria free or is already chlorinated (water taken from a swimming pool, for example), disinfect as described below using standard, unscented laundry bleach. The following directions are from Clorox:

Using an eyedropper or a measuring cup, add bleach to the water in the following proportions:

• Two drops of regular bleach per quart of water.
• 8 drops of bleach per gallon of water.
• 1/2 teaspoon of bleach per five gallons of water.

If the water is cloudy, double the dosage.  Use regular bleach, not scented.

To treat, add bleach to water, stir well, and wait 30 minutes. Water should have a slight bleach odor.  If it doesn’t, add a bit more bleach, wait fifteen minutes, and sniff again.

The upper container must be large enough to allow the filter to lie on its side.  A five gallon bucket will work fine. 

 Operation

What you need for a complete emergency water treatment kit:  The filter itself, which consists of a carbon block filter and a 6′ siphon adapter. A bottle of bleach, an eyedropper, a measuring spoon, a few clean rags for filtering dirty water and/or a few coffee filters. A bottle or bucket to hold the filter (top bottle in the picture): must be large enough to allow the filter to lie on its side. A second bucket or bottle to catch the filtered water.

Arrange the filter so that the container with the filter is at least a foot above the receiving container.  The higher the elevation of the first filter, the faster the unit will produce.

Place the water to be treated in the upper container.  Drop in the filter, with the adapter attached. For first use, the fitler will float. Give it a few minutes to sink.  When the filter is resting on the bottom of the container, start the siphon by sucking through the tube until you get water in your mouth.  It’s just like sucking on a soda straw. When you taste water, immediately lower the tube and the siphon effect will take over and water will continue to be drawn through the filter. The first water out will taste bad because the filter has not been rinsed.   Allow the unit to run initially for at least two hours before collecting the water for drinking. This applies only to the first time the filter is used. It will not need extensive rinsing after the first use.

The siphon filter will remove chemicals, including the chlorine used to disinfect the water, and make potable, excellent tasting water. Production depends on elevation and water temperature, but you can expect at least 50 gallons per day with even modest elevation.

Production rate varies, but the greater the elevation, the faster the production. Keeping the water to be treated as free of visible debris as possible will prolong the life of the filter and keep production rates high.

The filter kit itself consists of a high quality coconut shell carbon block filter. The manufacturer suggests a 750 gallon life before replacement, but it will remove chlorine from water for a much longer time. The only assembly required is screwing the adapter hose into the hole in the top of the filter cartridge. The filter will work in a verical or horizontal position, but we recommend laying it on its side.  On its side, it will empty the container completely.

Call Pure Water Products, 940 382 3814, for performance or product purchase information.