Please see our Refund Policy Page for information on RMA, Refunds, Exchanges, and Warranty Information.

The RO membrane is the workhorse of the water purification system. It uses a thin film (membrane) technology to reject impurities. RO membranes are especially good at rejecting large atoms, molecules, and other items that exhibit a relatively strong electron charge. It is less effective in rejecting small atoms, molecules smaller than water, and those with relatively weak electron charge. RO membranes will allow all dissolved gases, including ammonia and carbon dioxide to pass through. The percent rejection rating for a membrane is an indication of how many of these impurities will pass through the membrane and on to the DI cartridge.

A membrane that has a 98 percent rejection rating will pass about half of the impurities that a membrane with a rating of 96 percent will pass. The direct result of using a 98 percent rejection membrane as opposed to a 96 percent membrane, is that the life of your DI cartridge will be doubled. It is important to note that all membrane manufacturers adhere to a lower percent rejection limit for small membranes, which means that you need to purchase your membranes from a source that screens for higher rejection rates to ensure that you are getting the quality you need.

Our experience has been that not all RO membranes are the same. SpectraPure's membranes are treated with a proprietary process to enhance percent rejection and production characteristics. We have been testing our RO membranes for more than 20 years, using the industry standard of 60psi. We have a significant amount of data to draw upon when sharing performance characteristics with our customers.

Rejected membranes are sold to another, far less demanding market. The difference in price reflects some of our investment to perform necessary testing. The price difference between a membrane that is tested and a membrane that is untested becomes insignificant when you obtain a one or two percent improvement in rejection and the life of your DI cartridge is extended. Even our untested membranes are subjected to a proprietary process which increases their rejection ratio over units purchased by other vendors from the same supplier. Those who claim that all membranes from a particular vendor are exactly the same may not be aware of the intensive testing processes we use to increase our rejection rates.

Critical products like membranes, DI cartridges, filters, housings, gauges, valves, and pumps are exhaustively tested and analyzed in the lab and field, to make sure they meet our performance standards before you make your purchase.

As you may know, the quality of tap water varies substantially from county to county and from state to state. A typical home measurement can be made with a TDS (total dissolved solids) meter. These are available at your local hardware store or online. While the TDS meter provides you with an idea of your water quality, it does not tell you the chemical content of your tap water. A sample of your water would need to be sent to a lab for analysis. This being said, purchasing and installing a SpectraPure water purification system will ensure that the water you drink, as well as the water that you produce for your aquarium, is pure.

Inorganic Minerals
It's believed that mineral water helps to supply the elements that your body needs to support metabolic functions. There is scientific proof, however, to suggest that most of these minerals are in an inorganic, or dead, form. While they may enter the body’s circulatory system, they cannot be used in the physiological process of building new cells. These inorganic minerals interfere with the delicate and complex biology of the body. "The body's need for minerals is largely met through foods, not drinking water". - The American Medical Journal. One glass of orange juice contains more beneficial minerals than thirty gallons of untreated tap water.

Organic Minerals
Only after they have passed through the roots of plants do these inorganic minerals become organic minerals that are capable of being assimilated into our tissues. Pure water removes the inorganic mineral deposits in your body. Organic minerals are fully absorbed and remain in your tissues. According to many nutritionists, minerals are much easier to assimilate when they come from foods.

Here is a chart of the areas that are known to have the most contaminants of arsenic, lead, halo-acetic acids, total trihalomethanes, which have been linked to cancer, and total coliform bacteria.

Perhaps you believe that the standard filter in your refrigerator will be sufficient to remove these harmful contaminants, but this simply isn’t true. The filter in your refrigerator is meant to remove only the contaminants that cause foul tastes and chlorine. It does not reduce total dissolved solids (TDS) such as calcium and magnesium, nor does the refrigerator filter remove arsenic.

If you feel that your water tastes fine when it is cold try tasting it again once it is at room temperature, and you’ll taste the difference!

The product water production rate is dependent on the pressure across the membrane, while the wastewater production rate is mostly dependent on tap water pressure. As a bladder tank fills with water, its back pressure quickly starts to reduce the working pressure across the membrane.