Zero Water

[richmke]

I use RO water too. The expensive filter (membrane) lasts a few years. You get a lot more water from an RO system than a pitcher filter unit.

For wine making, you want TDS. The yeast benefits from the minerals. Ever read a multi-vitamin label? Lots of minerals there.

As they say, everything in moderation. Reducing TDS has some taste benefits, and can remove other things that might be harmful. Removing all TDS is not so good.

 

[ibglowin]

There is plenty of TDS in the kit concentrate. This water is just fine for wine making.

For wine making, you want TDS. The yeast benefits from the minerals. Ever read a multi-vitamin label? Lots of minerals there.

 

[ibglowin]

See post 16 above.

How many gallons now and what is ypur cost per gallon. We have pretty hard water here in Yakima and put in an RO system years ago and love it. In the new house we piped it into the fridge for ice and cold RO waster. If you like the taste of your water use it to mAke your ice too. RO is great but the filter are $$$$

 

[ibglowin]

Here is a very interesting you tube video from the folks at Filters Fast which many of us order our filters from to filter wine. The wondered what would happen if you poured a bottle of wine into a Zero Water system. The results speak for itself!


https://youtu.be/0JsLRG5eI90

 

[ErikM]

I second Bernardsmith's post- Why?

 

[ibglowin]

Serious?

As stated multiple times in this thread I use it (mainly) so as not to crap out the heating elements in a very expensive ($1000) coffee machine.

Also this thing removes all traces of metals, organic compounds, inorganic compounds (including chlorine which should not be used in wine making), VOC's, Semi VOC's, Pesticides…….

Do you have a refrigerator with filtered water? They (refrigerator filters) do literally nothing in comparison to this.

 

[ibglowin]

Update: Just hit 40 gallons of purified water on the same initial filter.

TDS meter is reading 002 so pretty sure we can hit at least 50 gallons. Cost per gallon is now ~$0.22 and could go down to ~$0.18 if I reach 50 gallons vs the $0.42 I was paying at the grocery store.

Very pleased still!

 

[vacuumpumpman]

@Mike

Can you notice any taste difference with the water ?

 

[ibglowin]

I think it taste great. Clean, pure, no off odors whatsoever. I have good pretty good tasting water to begin with coming from deep aquifer wells drilled around the county. They don't have to add a whole lot of chlorine like they do if your using water from a river, lake or reservoir, etc.

Our water is high in TDS especially silica which actually leaves almost a concrete ring around your toilet bowl at the water line. This stuff (silica) is so hard to get off that you must use a pumice stone to remove the ring in your toilet every few months.

We have a glass shower door that we squeegee every day after use to keep the silica from turning it completely white. The only thing that will remove the spots once they have formed and hardened is a dilute mixture of ~5% HF (Hydrofluoric acid) that actually dissolves the glass if you leave it on too long!

 

[geek]

I am in FL on vacation and the water at my brother has a bit of smell (once in a while) and they buy drinking water by the 5gal jug....heavy..!!
I wonder how good would the Zero Water filter work in this situation when using well water.
I don't know if he did a test on the water to see what chemicals are in it.

 

[Boatboy24]

I am in FL on vacation and the water at my brother has a bit of smell (once in a while) and they buy drinking water by the 5gal jug....heavy..!!
I wonder how good would the Zero Water filter work in this situation when using well water.
I don't know if he did a test on the water to see what chemicals are in it.

Every time I've been in FL, I've felt like there was a sulphur smell to the water...

 

[geek]

Every time I've been in FL, I've felt like there was a sulphur smell to the water...

That's the smell.

 

[ibglowin]

I think this thing will take care of almost anything you can throw at it. The higher the TDS out of the tap the shorter the filter life would be of course. You can get the 23 cup Zero Water Pitcher with 2 filters and a TDS Meter for ~$40. The filters are worth $20, the TDS meter around $15 making the Pitcher around almost FREE.

I wonder how good would the Zero Water filter work in this situation when using well water.

 

[ibglowin]

Update:

Finally exhausted the original filter that was put into service back in June of 2015. Final tally was 42 gallons filtered until it hit the 6ppm limit on the TDS meter which works out to ~$0.19 a gallon and much better than the $0.42/gallon at the store and better water to boot and no more lugging of 5 gallons of water home and hauling it into the Winery.

I have an Eclipse NZ Sauv Blanc I need to start this weekend so I pushed 2 more gallons of water through the filter to use in it. Once the filter is exhausted it goes down hill fast. The 43rd gallon came out at 10ppm, and the 44th Gallon came out at 15ppm. Good enough for winemaking not good enough to run through our Jura Capressa Coffee center.

The only (minor) complaint I have on the Zero Water system is in the design of the dispenser itself. It has a push button that is hard to depress to allow filtered water to flow out. I dispense a full gallon at a time into an empty gallon jug and by the end my thumb is pretty tired as you have to hold a gallon of water steady underneath the dispenser as well as push the button HARD to dispense water. I don't think elderly folks could do this easily at all. A better solution would have been a lockable lever of sorts that would just allow the water to flow out when switched down and locked in place and then closes when flipped back up. Pure uses this type of dispenser on their dispensers and it works very well and is very easy to fill water bottles etc. after filtering.

 

[geek]

Keeep forgetting to look into this.....grrrrr

 

[Boatboy24]

Update:


I have an Eclipse NZ Sauv Blanc I need to start this weekend...

Mmmm, good kit.

 

[ibglowin]

Got it before the MAP went into effect. Got to get-r-done as they say!