Just purchased a brand new CR Spotless Water system. I used it 3 times with no problems. The car had no spots at all. Now when I use it the meter reads over 350 ppm. The resin cartridges are about 90% full and I'm using the same hose. Any thoughts as to why this is happening? Do I need to just replace the resin?

 

These are some things to consider...
Are you filling the buckets up with water?
Are you limiting the GPM properly based on the CR system you're using?
Are you using the proper size hose?
Did you let it sit for awhile without draining the cartridges?
Are you using the system to wash the wheel wells, tires, and rims?

 

Do you have a hand held meter? You can check to make sure your built in meter is working correctly.

Which DIC system are you using and what PPM TDS did you have in your tap water?

 

I have the DIC-10 system. I'm using a garden variety hose and try to keep the water flow to just enough to a decent spray out of the nozzle. The system has the built in meter. I know the meter is working because the system leaves signifcant water spotting whereas before almost nothing.

 

There could be many reasons, but it most likely sounds like you may have VERY hard water and/or you've flowed more than the amount the unit can handle. The 3 times you used it, was it all the way through, or the final rinse. Are you using the nozzle CR supplied you on the FLAT setting?

Did you buy it from us??

 

Moe, The 3 times I used it from beginning to end, not just the final rinse. I am using the nozzle that came with the package but I primarily use the "shower" setting and I briefly used the "jet" setting.

I did not buy the unit from you.

should I replace the resin?

 

That system only produces roughly 100 gallons of good water. You are using way too much DI water.

Since you didn't respond to these questions...

Are you filling the buckets up with water? Do not fill up the buckets with DI water, complete waste.
Are you limiting the GPM properly based on the CR system you're using? I'd limit that smaller system to under 2gpm. I limit my 20" system to 1.5gpm.
Are you using the proper size hose? Did a hose come with your system?
Did you let it sit for awhile without draining the cartridges? Not using it for 60 days without draining will cause the resin to go bad.
Are you using the system to wash the wheel wells, tires, and rims? Again, do not use the DI water to clean these parts, complete waste.

 

Yes...you probably exhausted the resin. You should always use the FLAT setting.

Consider getting a cheap pressure washer from lowes or home depot. It'll double or triple the life of that resin.

Here's the economical resin replacement option...it'll charge your unit 6 times:

http://www.glisteningperfectionstore...acement/Detail

 

Thanks to everyone that responded. i'll be purchasing some additional resin from Moe.

I'll go a little easier on the DI water a swell.

 

Slightly better deal, http://crspotless.com/index.php?cate...ategory_id%3D6

 

Just curious. How do you drain the cartridges? It says nothing of this in the manual.

Also, why should you not fill-up buckets with DI water? I wash my car from start to finish with DI water and put soap in a bucket and use DI water to wash. Is this not recommended?

Thanks,
Adam

 

I never drain the cartridges. Not sure why that's necessary.

As far as using DI from start to finish, I have no choice. Water here is just runny cement. One drop of this crap on a car combined with the scorching desert sun will etch it. If your water isn't as bad, you're probably better off (economically speaking) just using it for the final rinse.

 

i also use the di from start to finish and everything else in between including filling up the bucket. also, only use the flat spray at the end to rinse, but shower and center throughout the was. am i doing everything completely wrong?

 

Its good to pull the cartridges out and let the water drain if you wont be using the system for awhile. It says this right on CR's website. I drain my cartridges after every wash, but that isnt necessary according to CR.

Filling up two buckets with the DI water isn't 100% necessary. You aren't doing anything wrong by doing it, it just increases the life of the resin by not doing so, and doesnt affect the end result. Of course results vary depending on location, but it may be something worth trying if you aren't getting much use out of the resin. Just some things to consider, thats all.

 

To help you determine how much resin you will need annually, you can calculate the amount of resin you need to deionize your water.

You will need to measure your TDS in ppm...you can try plugging in your DIC-10 with no cartridges and flush your tap water through the system and measure the ppm count to get your baseline TDS ppm.

Gallons of “Spot-free Water” = 235,000 / TDS X cubic feet of resin

The DIC-10 system has 2 canisters, with a total volume of 0.17 cubic feet resin. In my area, my water has a TDS of about 560...So a DIC-10 system would only give me 71 gallons of deionized water.

If your water is as bad as mine (TDS of 560), then you may want to consider how much deionized water you actually need, and maybe limit your DI water to just the final rinse. As Moe said...a pressure washer with a gentle fan will help you conserve your DI.

For example, in my area, an average car pre-rinse, wash, and spray down may consume up to 10-20 gallons. A DIC-10 will be used up in about 3-4 washes.