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Old 04-04-2020, 11:18 PM   #1
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Plugging prefilters

Does anyone have advice on how to extend the life of your watermaker prefilters in plankton/algae rich water? My 20 micron plugs after several hours of running.
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Old 04-05-2020, 05:48 AM   #2
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Have you considered switching to a larger filter housing? Maybe post a picture of your current filter and housing.

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Old 04-05-2020, 07:49 AM   #3
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TwistedTree should chime in shortly with his media filter solution. It works, down side is that it takes up quite a bit of real estate.
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Old 04-05-2020, 08:02 AM   #4
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I had the same problem. I got rid of the filter. I never drink the water from my tanks, just use it for washing and sometimes boiling corn.

Coffee, drinking, iced tea, tooth brushing and pill swallowing uses bottled water.

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Old 04-05-2020, 09:48 AM   #5
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I've heard about the use of a sand filter. Would like to find a diagram and one small enough.
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Old 04-05-2020, 10:04 AM   #6
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Many filter mfgrs. make several different sizes of filter housings that can take some LARGE elements. Maybe also twinning those housings would do the trick.
Just choose a suitable element for the housing that will remove the offenders. You likely won't find them on sites like Amazon although I won't say can't.

Considered an industrial type filter? Some can be backwashed although that may be more than you want/need and they will be larger, maybe too large.
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Old 04-05-2020, 10:09 AM   #7
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What size and type filter does the manufacturer recommend? We use a pleated vs a wound prefilter. The pleated filters have more surface area than a wound filter and are easier to clean.
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Old 04-05-2020, 01:48 PM   #8
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I sourced a 7x35 tank and a manual valve from here.
https://aquatroltech.com/
Using Twisted's suggestion, instead of sand I used Micro Z.
Last summer was my first year and it worked great.
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Old 04-05-2020, 02:13 PM   #9
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We made great water offshore and in the Bahamas - no problem. When we got back to the ICW it was all over. There was so much crap in the water that it simply was not worth the effort. Plus apart from the algae etc, there is coliform contamination, oil, etc. Your RO membranes are not capable of efficiently removing coliforms or other bacteria. We did find we could rinse (back flush) prefilters a few times using a hose on the swim platform. Do not honestly think you will achieve much by having sequential prefilters with tiered porosity.
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Old 04-05-2020, 02:24 PM   #10
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I made all my own water for years and developed a system.

1) use 30 micron filters. Buy them from Home Depot or similar, instead of from a water maker manufacture or marine store. Much cheaper and well suited to purpose.

2) Change them all the time. More often than you need to. But don't throw them out, just tie a rope to them and trail them overboard over night at anchorage, they will rinse themselves.


3) Do NOT make water in anything other than clear ocean water. If it has algae in it your membrane will not last long even if the filters are clean. Buy water or go out to the open ocean to make water if need be. Filtering is NOT the answer to unclean water.


4) Do not make water in a marina. yuck.
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Old 04-05-2020, 02:47 PM   #11
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Plugging prefilters

Quote:
Originally Posted by Stabi View Post
I sourced a 7x35 tank and a manual valve from here.

https://aquatroltech.com/

Using Twisted's suggestion, instead of sand I used Micro Z.

Last summer was my first year and it worked great.


Did you put this in lieu of the 20 and 5 mic filters or did you put forward of them?
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Old 04-05-2020, 04:47 PM   #12
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I use washable 20 & 5 micron prefilters and a 1 micron disposable before the HP pump. My housings are 4.5x20 and the filters go a long time between cleanings. The 1 micron last about a year and I make all my water, liveaboard, have laundry, dishwasher, etc.
I winter on the Columbia River and make water there, too. That's why I have the washable filters. No issue with silt or algae.
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Old 04-05-2020, 04:59 PM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bigsalmonfish View Post
Did you put this in lieu of the 20 and 5 mic filters or did you put forward of them?
The media filter is plumbed ahead of the 20 & 5. We were on the boat for 5 months last year and only had to rinse the 20 mic twice, never did rinse the 5. I would backwash the media filter for 15 minutes about every 10 hrs of run time
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Old 04-05-2020, 08:16 PM   #14
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Better advice than mine.
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Old 04-05-2020, 08:49 PM   #15
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Big, I'm in about the same locale as you and have no problems with 5 mc filters, which I change annually. The best advise was mentioned above: only make water in open water, away from anchorages and marinas. That procedure has worked for me for many years.
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Old 04-06-2020, 06:07 AM   #16
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I struggled with this for years, and was forming the opinion that a water maker was more trouble than it's worth. Then I installed a media filter, and made nearly all my water for the next couple of years. To me, there is no substitute if you are in biologically rich waters.


Let me also venture a guess that you have a Spectra watermaker? By all indications, they plug up much faster and easier than other water makers.
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Old 04-06-2020, 09:45 AM   #17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by twistedtree View Post
I struggled with this for years, and was forming the opinion that a water maker was more trouble than it's worth. Then I installed a media filter, and made nearly all my water for the next couple of years. To me, there is no substitute if you are in biologically rich waters.


Let me also venture a guess that you have a Spectra watermaker? By all indications, they plug up much faster and easier than other water makers.


I have a Aquamarine About 40gph so I am pumping lots of water through the filters. A media filter seems like the solution to this. Just trying to find one that makes sense
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Old 04-06-2020, 10:06 AM   #18
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Knowing that TT has a fantastic blog, I found his post on media filtration. Thought I'd share - many thanks as always to a super-helpful fellow forum member!

Adventures of Tanglewood: Water Maker Media Filter
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Old 04-06-2020, 10:06 AM   #19
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IMO water makers are not for use in anything but clear water. I think they are primarily desalinators that must prefilter other stuff to get to the water they properly work on.
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Old 04-06-2020, 12:24 PM   #20
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bigsalmonfish View Post
I have a Aquamarine About 40gph so I am pumping lots of water through the filters. A media filter seems like the solution to this. Just trying to find one that makes sense

Well, that somewhat blows my theory that Spectra water makers are more susceptible to this. They generally have much lower pressure boost pumps (~5-10psi) vs typical AC powered water makers with closer to 30 psi.


Regardless, in my experience a media filter is the ticket, at least for the PNW and the NE US. And it's not because of running in dirty water because I only make water out in open seas. It's all about the microbial life in the water. Basically little sea beasties.
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