Installation Tips for Do-It-Yourself Installers

If you have a professional install it, you won't have to worry about this, but for the do-it-yourselfer, the directions included with the unit are vague about how to connect the faucet/air gap and how to adjust the valve. First, make sure you attach the blue line (product) to the threaded part of the faucet valve. This may seem obvious, but the diagram shows the black (waste) line apparently connected there, and either line will fit. The air gap connections have the pipe barbs -- black to the small barbs and red to the large barbs, then red to the rubber drain boot. Next, you may need to adjust the faucet valve itself so that it shuts all the way off or the unit will keep turning on every so often, perpetually, as water leaks out and the system turns-on to repressurize. To adjust this, slide off the faucet's black plastic lever and turn the T-nut up a little so that the valve can close all the way, then slide the lever back on. The only time you should hear air/water is when you open the faucet and for a few seconds after it is shut as the pressure builds-up. If you hear gurgling or the unit continues to run every so often, it probably means that a little water is slowly escaping past the faucet valve, and you need to adjust that valve to close all the way. Gurgling sounds can also indicate you have the product/waste lines reversed. When the unit is running, you will hear water flowing through the chambers and air sucking in through the air gap as waste water goes down the drain, but it will stop completely about 10 seconds after the faucet is turned off. It will sputter during the first few hours it is purged as the air gets out and will gradually sound better, but will always sound like the sink is running strongly when you are getting RO water. 40 PSI will produce just enough RO flow to be acceptable, but more pressure is better. It is nice not to need a storage tank and to have an unlimited supply of RO water, but its best use is probably as a space saver for under-sink cabinets.

[Friday, August 29, 2008]

Maybe not all are, but mine was garbage

Having had a reverse osmosis system at an older house, when I built this house I was insistent on getting another one. This Merlin package from GE sounded wonderful. I'd always been annoyed at the periodic and unpredictable refilling that the kind with the tanks have to go through to have enough water to satisfy demand. This one supposedly puts out a lot of water, and it will only make that bubbly sound when you're actually getting water out of it. Makes sense to me. So I bought it. I've had my Merlin in service for nearly 2 years now. Let me tell you about my experience.

For several months after installation, the manifold part of the assembly switched on and off about once a second, making a fairly loud chirpy popping sound every time. It got to be extremely annoying. So to resolve the problem, I'd turn the water on to the system only long enough to fill a jug to put in the fridge, then turn it back off. (Back to tank storage, hmph.)

Eventually, I got sick of doing that, so I contacted the dealer I bought it from and tried all the suggestions they had for me--could be a water pressure problem, maybe even a water temperature problem. I had my plumbers come out and tweak my house plumbing to increase water pressure to the system. There wasn't much I could do about temperature, but I suffered from the problem equally in the winter and the summer, except that output flow was a bit more in the summer.

So finally, I insisted something was broken and demanded that they fix it, and after several emails and phone calls, and them talking to GE about the problem, they sent me a new manifold. The first time I tried it, it had the same on/off popping problem. But after running it constantly for 5 minutes, like it says to, the problem was resolved. I was so relieved.

I had a working Merlin system for about 2 months. Then it started doing it again. Garbage. I tried to contact the dealer again and they wouldn't respond to any of my email requests. So I just threw up my hands and decided to use it the way it was.

Eventually, it just stopped putting out much of any water. When you turn the faucet on, it will spit out a bit, then quickly die down to almost no flow at all. It might be that the membranes are finally clogged and need to be replaced, but I'm not going to blow $100 on a machine that pops and wheezes.

So now the machine is on my back porch, completely disconnected. It is nothing but a pile of junk. I regret the purchase very much.

[Wednesday, July 02, 2008]

Merlin ! A Great RO System

I purchased the GE Merlin 18 months ago. I am totally impressed with this product. I'm confused about the loud noise the other reviewer spoke of. My unit makes a very soft noise, water running through the three chambers. All water filters for reverse osmosis seem to be costly. The nice thing about Merlin is that filters have a longer life that your standard RO. If you happen to use the maximum (750 gallons/per day), I would guess it could be a bit on the expensive side. In my household we use water for the icemaker, cooking, drinking and watering 4 dogs. I've had a variety of systems since 1980 and none could keep up with the demand. Merlin does it hands down. Another important thing to note. My Merlin works off of my well water that is run through a water softner (recommended for most RO's). I recommend the GE Merlin, it's met every expectation I had and the water tastes great. People have wondered why my coffee is superior to theirs and they use the same brand. I tell them it's all in the magic of Merlin.

[Wednesday, May 21, 2008]

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