The Power Of Deduction

I had a minor emergency because my reverse osmosis filter was running out of water. I had recently changed the 3 filters and the system was working well, until a few days ago. Then starting yesterday, it was filtering water, but very s..l..o..w..l..y..

What to do? What to test? Had the filters been installed incorrectly or failed? Were the storage tanks broken or at the wrong pressure?

Rather than start disassembling the unit, I read some troubleshooting guides, but they were not helpful. The two possibilities they offered were not likely.

Then, mulling over the symptoms and thinking back, I remembered that there is an inline flow restrictor and screen at the waste port of the RO cartridge. They should have been replaced a month ago with the filters, but weren't included with the filter kit.

I opened up that line, and could see that both parts were clogged. I cleaned them, and voila, the system is back to normal. I just ordered replacements for both parts, and they only cost about $10.

I have terrible, high mineral well water here, and absolutely need a RO system. Once it gets hot, I will also need lots of filtered water for the evaporative cooler.

I'm so glad to have solved this problem quickly and inexpensively.