Let’s talk about how critical proper pre treatment is for any reverse osmosis system large or small and whether the raw water source is municipal or a private well. As we discussed in earlier blogs there are several materials or contaminants in the water that can foul the taste of your brew and it is some of the same things that can foul your RO system.
Before any water treatment equipment is sized and designed you should consult your latest water quality report. If you are on a municipal water supply you can simply Google the current water analysis from your local water company and find out exactly what is in your water. If you are on a private well water supply you should have the water supply tested by a local reputable lab. We here at http://www.microbrewwwatersystems.com will read and consult you on any report at no charge.
the most common fouling and scaling materials to RO are turbidity, iron, manganese, calcium, magnesium, organics, chlorine, and Chloramines. You can find all of these pesky things in most water supplies some higher and some lower. If you have have high turbidity which is generally found in in untreated well water you will require a http://www.microbrewwatersystems.com NXT sand Filter. Common levels of iron and manganese can be treated with a http://www.microbrewwatersystems.com BrewSoft system. The most common is water hardness resulting from calcium and magnesium and trust me you have it….a good antiscalent system or BrewSoft will eliminate if not slow down those problems. And for some of the worst enemies, chlorine and CHLORAMINES. Remember that we talked about standard granulated carbon and how it will not work with chlorimines but will work with chlorine and organics. This will require our http://www.microbrewwatersystems.com special carbon blend that takes care of all of those issues.
Sizing is also very critical in all pre treatment  systems for proper flow rates, contact times, flow, and pressure.
Please Brewers ….do your homework when it comes to the proper pre treatment design for your RO investment…if not it will come back to bite you in a very expensive way.
Of course we here at http://www.microbrewwatersystems.com can do your home work for you..
see ya next time
Cheers
Water Purification and Filtration 