ATO from RODI - shut off acting up?

I have the Typhoon III Extreme from AWI hooked directly to a float valve in my sump. The problem is when the float valve closes and the pressure turns the automatic shut-off valve (ASOV) after a few seconds it releases and after a couple of drops it shuts it off again.. so it's going on and off constantly...
I tried 2 different float valves.. the second one is the level-loc but they all do the same thing.
Has anybody else had the same issue and how did you deal with it?

 

Have you tried loosening the wing nut on the float valve and rotating it down so that when the water level is ideal it really torques on the valve? Sounds like what happened with my float valve, it just needed more pressure on the float.

Off-topic but FWIW I personally don't like the idea of using the RO unit connected directly to the tank. Mainly because as water evaporates it's going to just barely open the float valve and let out a small amount of water which is going to keep your RO unit cycling on/off a bunch of times a day but the RO unit is more efficient if you can run it for longer periods at a time.

 

This is the deal with an "analog" ATO, I'm afraid. I have the same setup. In the digital world, this constant cycling is prevented by a "deadband" that's accomplished many different ways with electronic controllers. Your home A/C uses a deadband. If you have it set to come on when the temp goes above 75, say--it will come on at 76 and shut off at 75. In this fashion, your AC would cycle on and off hundreds of times a day. So a deadband is used to prevent this cycling.

Unfortunately, at the rate of evaporation, your float valve is going to register (correctly) that the water level has dropped enough in the sump to turn it on. It's just the way it is.

If you wanted to spend a bunch of money on an electronic ATO, you could go that route. I don't hear mine cycling on and off, so it doesn't bother me.

 

There is a pressure leak causing the ASOV to open back up. Once open the pressure builds back up and the cycle starts over again.

I use a float switch and a solenoid valve powered by a AC adapter to turn on the ATO. The adapter is on a timer so it only runs a couple of hours in the morning and a couple at night.

Jack

 

Triton that's a good idea, if you have the actual level-loc system you should have a solenoid, put that on a timer and only run it for a little while every couple of hours or something.

 

Thank you all!!!
Yes, I know what's happening, I was just wondering how everybody is dealing with it.. I like ReefSparky's response - I don't hear it either but want to make sure the ASOV will not eventually fail...
I also have a float switch and a solenoid valve powered by a AC adapter (park of the Level Loc) that's hooked to the same rod the float valve is on but a little higher - it's in case the float valve fails.. I guess I can bypass the float and just use the float switch but how reliable are they? I guess in case of power outage it will just shut the water off but in case of failure I wonder if it will shut it off too?
Screwtape, can you explain what you meant about the wing nut so I can try that first.
Thanks again guys

 

Tritonsgardens is right on. That's an excellent suggestion. I might just do it myself. That would solve 3 problems all at once. First, as Screwtape mentions, RO/DI units work better if they're able to produce enough water at a time to rinse the RO membrane. With the constant on/off cycling, that's not happeneng. Secondly, it would stop the constant on/off cycling. Lastly, if the float valve should fail your tank will overflow and continue until severe damage might occur. Worst case scenario, if it failed a minute after I left for work for 9 hours, my 75 GPD system would have me coming home to about 35-40 gallons of water on my floor.

So the solenoid valve set to come one twice a day, for an hour each time, would allow the RO/DI to rinse its membrane, put an end to the on/off constant cycling, would be redundant protection against flooding, and finally-- salinity stabilization would be maintained.

Again, excellent suggestion, tritongarden!!!! I'm going to buy one. You'd just need a timer which has two on/off settings per day. As for the soloenoid valve, make sure to get the normally closed configuration.

 

well, since I already have the solenoid valve I guess I am doing the same thing
Thanks tritongarden!
and thanks to all of you!

 

Not only do they work better without constant on/off cycles, they waste less water. Before doing this I noticed every time the RO would kick on, it would fill the canisters and start producing clean water. Then it would shutoff after a few seconds and the pressure would bleed off wasting a lot of water and really making my sediment filter dirty in a hurry.

Jack

 

I would still use the float valve, it's always better to have 2 layers of shutoff in case one fails. In this case the float valve will just be open most of the time and will only close when the solenoid opens and fills up the sump. In this case the float will be the backup most of the time in case the solenoid fails and doesn't shut properly.

I assume you have this system or similar with a similar float valve.
Level-Loc auto top off unit for RO systems Bulk Reef Supply
The wing nut is right at the base of the white floaty part (technical term) you can unscrew it and rotate the floaty thing so it's at more of a downward angle than in the pic.

From BRS: