RO/DI booster pump issues

Rhoads238 · Aug 4, 2023

Hey everyone,

I'm having some issues with the booster pump on my ro/di unit. The unit is a 7 stage BRS 200 gallon per day and the booster pump is an aquatec 8800. The setup has been in place for two and a half years and the issue started today after changing my DI resins. The pump starts off working fine, the RO flush kicks on, it the RO flush off and it runs for about a minute. Then the booster pump shuts off, when it starts back up it sounds like there is no water flowing through it. Usually it makes a hissing noise when water is flowing through. I also notice that the pressure shoots way up to nearly 100psi when it comes back on. Over the past few months I've noticed on occasion I need to turn the pressure down because its gotten too high and the sound of the pump starts ramping up and down. I don't think these issues are related to clogged filters. All stages of the filter have been recently replaced, replaced everything including RO membranes in January, in July I did the carbon blocks and sediment filters again and today I did all three DI resins.

If anyone has any ideas on what the problem is or how to fix it, I appreciate the help!

fishguy242 · Aug 4, 2023

@Buckeye Hydro ?

Rhoads238 · Aug 5, 2023

I wanted to post a little more info. I noticed that when the pump is running but the hissing sound stops the ro unit stops outputting waste water.

Has anyone experienced a failure with either the auto flush valve or the booster pump? What were the symptoms?

fishguy242 · Aug 5, 2023

@Idech ? sorry ?
@Idoc ?

csturgis1989 · Aug 5, 2023

Maybe check that the RO membranes are seated correctly and all the small o rings are where they should be. Seems like a waste line issue. Also check the flow restricor.

Idech · Aug 5, 2023

fishguy242 said:
@Idech ? sorry ?

I wouldn’t know.

Buckeye Hydro · Aug 6, 2023

Seems like you should give your vendor a chance to troubleshoot with you first. Have you called them?

If that doesn't work let us know and we'll get it squared away for you.

Russ

Rhoads238 · Aug 6, 2023

Guys, thank you so much for the assistance! I really appreciate it.

I was able to get it working. Shoutout to @fishguy242 for calling in help! After reading @Buckeye Hydro 's reply I though to myself, what would they say to troubleshoot an RODI unit? I realized that it would probably involve trying to isolate the different components to rule out parts that are not broken.

The first thing that I did was try disconnecting the auto flush, which caused the booster pump to never get to full pressure. I then tried disconnecting the DI stages of the system which included the pressure sensor and my tunze ro water controller. With this side disconnected, the booster pump was working fine. This ruled out the booster pump, RO unit and flush valve.

I then though that since I had just changed my DI resins that they may not be seated correctly or could be over packed. So I removed all three, checked that the gaskets were clean and that the containers weren't over packed. One of them was packed pretty firm, so I removed a spoonful. I put everything back on and tried it again and the booster pump was again an issue. This left only the tunze solenoid for the RO water controller. I disconnected this and tried to blow air through it and it was only open a crack. It seems that the solenoid seized and is causing issues with the booster pump. I removed the solenoid and the system is working perfectly now.

I really appreciate your thoughts on this everyone. Thank you again.