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Merlin FQA First I would like to say that the Merlin is really quite a breakthrough in Reverse Osmosis systems capable of one half gallon to one gallon per minute production rates. It will put a great deal of pressure on the small commercial RO market. The cost factor will be very difficult to surmount. The Merlin offers a great deal for its price. The machine is brilliant and is mass produced. So if you currently market a 720 – one gallon per minute RO system you have real contender to compete with. Small Commercial application: If you intend to make over 10 gallons of water per day the single filter supplied with the Merlin will not be adequate. You should add additional external pre-filters to the inlet side of the Merlin. You can run a Merlin 24 /7 and expect good results, as long as you properly protect it. The minimum and maximum water quality requirements are clearly stated in the manual. As long as you do not exceed any of these you should not experience any problems at all. Water Quality: The initial water quality is weak due to TDS creep. Once the small amount of production at start up is rinsed away you can expect exceptional quality water at very good rates of flow. In fact after 24 years in Reverse Osmosis I was actually shocked at the production rate and water quality at only 40 PSI. You really do get one half gallon of production at only forty pounds of water pressure. Keep in mind we are located in Florida so we test with warm tap water. Now that I have lauded the accomplishment I have some comments as pertains to the use of the Merlin. Residential drinking water usage (under sink) The Merlin comes equipped with quick connect fitting on the main unit. So hook up is real simple. The Merlin is equipped with an air gap faucet. This faucet is actually required by code in many areas. The faucet has three connections and requires a larger hole be drilled in the sink top. In fact the hole is larger than the skill and equipment level of the novice handy man. Another sort of difficult portion of the installation is the drain connection. Since the Merlin will waste water at rates of at least two gallons per minute a rather substantial waste connection must be made. This new connection requires you to cut away a portion of your waste plumbing. I have installed hundreds of under sink RO systems in my time. We as a company have sold thousands of under sink RO systems to the do it yourself market. I can say this in our experience this is not a novice project. Greater understanding and better equipment is required to install a Merlin under sink than is required to install the typical under sink reverse osmosis system. TDS CREEP: What on earth is TDS creep? Membranes produce pure water with the aid of water pressure. Greater pressure, more water and better quality water to a point. When an RO is running up to full pressure the water quality can be really exceptional. However when an RO is in the off state with no water pressure the membrane is still sitting in water. The membrane continues to try to process this low pressure water. The water produced at this pressure level will have a much greater amount of TDS. This initial poor quality production has been an RO problem all along. The problem is that the larger the membrane the more creep you can expect. The average home RO system will have a membrane that is 2 inches in diameter and only twelve inches long. The Merlin employs two 3 inches in diameter by seventeen inch membranes. The amount of creep could easily equal the entire first glass of water drawn. The good news is once the initial water is dispensed the regular production is exceptional. The Merlin is very well made and once installed and TDS creep is understood it is a very difficult unit to find fault with. No complex set of tubes under the sink everything is straight forward and stream line.
You will not be disappointed, you will be impressed. It’s different and the difference is a good thing. But just like every other product the Merlin has its pros and cons. A personal comment from The H2O Guru If you are asking about small commercial applications I have nothing but praise. In fact you might consider selling short any stock you hold in a company that makes small commercial reverse osmosis systems. A small commercial machine as the current state of the art exists can not begin to compete cost wise. The membrane, membrane housings and the pre-filter system far exceed the cost of the entire Merlin unit. In my opinion “It is only a matter of time”
Not all brilliant products are immediately recognized
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