RO output lacking

[maple flats]

Are you following manufacturer's cleaning instructions often enough?

[wnybassman]

The flow coming out of the concentrate is anemic compared to past performance.

Personally, I like anemic concentrate flow. That means there is more permeate flow. lol

[RC Maple]

Are you following manufacturer's cleaning instructions often enough?

Yes. I have flushed the unit as recommended after every use and at the end of the season. It has always been a wonderful time saver and made syrup season better. It has just seemed to have a bug in the system this year, maybe something I have done wrong without knowing it. I did have to undo some connections two times when swapping out parts which introduced the possibility of error. I have checked and rechecked the connections. I am encouraged by yesterday's test and want to see what it does with the next round of sap.

[BAP]

Yes. I have flushed the unit as recommended after every use and at the end of the season. It has always been a wonderful time saver and made syrup season better. It has just seemed to have a bug in the system this year, maybe something I have done wrong without knowing it. I did have to undo some connections two times when swapping out parts which introduced the possibility of error. I have checked and rechecked the connections. I am encouraged by yesterday's test and want to see what it does with the next round of sap.

You haven’t answered the questions asked by a couple of people as to whether you are doing soap and or acid washes. Rinsing alone will not keep the RO clean and flows up.

[RC Maple]

You haven’t answered the questions asked by a couple of people as to whether you are doing soap and or acid washes. Rinsing alone will not keep the RO clean and flows up.

Sorry, I didn't read the soap and acid washes as a question but a recommendation. I do a soap wash with the recommended preservative at the end of the season. I have never seen a recommended acid wash. My original membranes lasted over 3 seasons and were still performing at concentrating sap, they were just slowing down. I had new ones on hand so I changed them 4 weeks ago.

[Amber Gold]

I recommend doing a soap wash after every use. That way they're always fresh. Unless it's a small run (relative to the size of your system), I don't think just a perm. rinse does a good job getting all the boifilm off the membranes. IMO.

Do you have hard water and do you rinse with well water often? If not, an acid wash may not do much.

[Amber Gold]

I recommend doing a soap wash after every use. That way they're always fresh. Unless it's a small run (relative to the size of your system), I don't think just a perm. rinse does a good job getting all the boifilm off the membranes. IMO.

Do you have hard water and do you rinse with well water often? If not, an acid wash may not do much.

[canaanmaple]

I recommend doing a soap wash after every use. That way they're always fresh. Unless it's a small run (relative to the size of your system), I don't think just a perm. rinse does a good job getting all the boifilm off the membranes. IMO.

Do you have hard water and do you rinse with well water often? If not, an acid wash may not do much.

yes, warm soap wash often is important. Especially mid-late season. I can see the wash kettle water turn amber sometimes! Just have to have enough permeate to flush. I know for my 4x40 membranes its at least 200 gallons to flush after the soap wash.

On a side note, it was balmy mid-season day yesterday in the 50s and my 200gph unit was getting about 222 to start so I got through concentrating in record time

[SeanD]

I agree with the more frequent soap washes. You get a lot of bang for your buck with washes. It takes no more extra time at the end of your boil than the hot water rinse and backwash. I've only got 200 gal to process today, but I'm going to do a wash bc even though the sap lines will be shut down for the cold over the next few days, any critters on the membrane will have a party.

All that said, you may have a few issues going on and need multiple approaches. Maybe you already took care of it on your last test. You can get a jump on your live test in the next flow by making your own sweet to run through. The warm plain water went through well, but try mixing some sugar in a 5 gal bucket of colder water. Mix it warm then let it sit outside for a couple hours. Shouldn't take long to get it down to 34 deg or whatever your original conditions were. It shouldn't take much sugar to get the water to 2%.

[RC Maple]

Thanks to all for the good info on maintaining my RO. With more frequent soap washes I may be able to go even longer before new membranes next time and better performance in the meantime.