Res-Kem Blog

Water Softener Is Not Producing Soft Water

2008-04-23T13:35:00.015-04:00

Problem:
Your customer's water softener is not producing soft water. The brine tank may be filling with water.

Symptoms:
A water softener is used to protect clothes from iron and manganese staining, plumbing fixtures and appliances from mineral deposit damage, and reduce household chemical usage. Your customer has spotting on their glassware, cloudiness on shower stalls, and dingy clothes. Also, they may be getting iron and manganese staining on their clothes, appliances, and bathroom fixtures.

Possible Solution:
The most common problem is the brine used to regenerate the softener is not getting into the unit. The first place to look for a problem is in the "brine injector". Just like the water aspirator you used in elementary chemistry class to make a vacuum, the water softener valve uses water flow through venturi across an orifice to pull brine from the brine tank into the water softener. If anything plugs the orifice, the brine will not get into the water softener. In the following video, Michael Urbans, Technical Manager for Res-Kem's Residential Segment, shows how to clean or repair the brine injector on a Pentair^® Fleck^® 7000 multiport softener valve.

Harmsco Cartridge Filter and Filter Housings

2008-04-10T15:57:00.015-04:00

The Harmsco^® industrial cartridge filter and filter housing product line is now available from Res-Kem Corp. Res-Kem is proud to be a master distributor of the entire Harmsco^® industrial cartridge filter and filter housing product line including:

Harmsco^® HIF Series Up-Flow Cartridge Filter and Filter Housings

Harmsco^® Hurricane^® Combination Cyclone Separator and Cartridge Filter

ASME Code Harmsco^® HUR-Series Hurricane^® Filter Housings with Swing Bolt Closures

Harmsco^® WB-Series WaterBetter^® Single Cartridge Filter Housings

Standard features of the Harmsco product lines are:

NSF Certifications

FDA Grade Materials of Construction

Electropolished 304 Stainless Steel

Failsafe Top Lid Closure Utilizing Multiple Fasteners

Top Lid Design / Safest Closure On The Market

Patented Up-Flow Filter Housing Design

Vent free

No cross-contamination of "contaminated" and "clean" fluids

Here is the link to the complete Harmsco industrial product line.

Save $91,000 Annually In Low Pressure Boiler Water Treatment Chemical And Fuel Costs Using a Dealkalizer

2008-03-04T16:18:00.006-05:00

A white paper entitled "Save $91,000 Annually In Low Pressure Boiler Water Treatment Chemical And Fuel Costs Using a Dealkalizer" was written by Kevin Preising a Sales Engineer at Res-Kem Corp.

This white paper explains how dealkalization of boiler feedwater improves boiler steam/condensate systems reliability, fuel savings, and chemical savings. The Return on Investment, ROI, is substantially less than one year when a dealkalizer is added to an existing boiler feedwater plant with a conventional sodium cycle water softener - deaerator pretreatment.

Annual chemical savings are over $76,000 and "cycle-up" energy savings are over $15,000 savings using a dealkalizer with chloride form anion ion exchange resin. Reductions in condensate piping replacements can add further cost savings and will make the ROI even more attractive. In applications where neutralizing amine concentrations are limited by FDA regulations, the dealkalizer can be used in conjunction with reduced feed of neutralizing amines, achieving an optimized solution of reduced chemical feed with improved return condensate pH numbers.

The goal of this discussion is confined to the addition of a dealkalizer post water softener.
The results of adding a dealkalizer are:
- Minimized waterside scale formation
- Minimized boiler-carryover
- Minimized boiler blow down through increased boiler cycles
- Increased return condensate pH values - thereby reducing the need for neutralizing amine chemical feed to control corrosion in the condensate.

Ion Exchange Resin Disposal

2008-02-25T17:17:00.012-05:00

Recently a customer asked us what to do about getting rid of the old resin after replacing it with new. This is a common question we get all the time.

In general we can assume the following:

Municipal or City Treated water contains little or no contaminants that are harmful to drink; therefore, it is unlikely the used resin has any contaminants on it to prevent it from being land filled as ordinary trash.

Well water and untreated surface water supplies may contain contaminants that can remain on the resin after regeneration. These contaminants are usually metals and are found on the cation resin. They may include but are not limited to lead, copper, and arsenic. For more specific information about contaminants we recommend this site. http://www.epa.gov/safewater/contaminants/index.html#mcls

How to dispose of used ion exchange resin is determined first and foremost by state and local government agencies. Regulations do vary from state to state. To satisfy local regulations it is recommended that you or your environmental manager call your regular waste removal company and ask them what to do. Most likely you will be asked to provide a TCLP test (Toxicity Leachate Characteristic Procedure) for your particular ion exchange resin, see attached pdf file for more specific information about this test.

Most likely the waste removal company will ask for an MSDS on the ion exchange resin you want to throw away. MSDS for most ion exchange resins can be found on the Res-Kem website using these links: http://www.reskem.com/pages/resin-pdfs.php

As part of our rebed service (service to change out spent ion exchange resin or activated carbon) Res-Kem will arrange for proper disposal of spent ion exchange resin or activated carbon on your behalf. This assumes we are providing turnkey removal and installation and the ion exchange resin or activated carbon is purchased from Res-Kem Corp. Sorry, we don't handle hazardous rebed applications.

TCLP Fact Sheet from EHSO

How to Correctly Size a Sodium Cycle IX Condensate Polisher

2008-01-25T11:26:00.001-05:00

Problem: Customer Can't Get Enough Flow through Condensate Polisher => How to Correctly Size a Condensate Polisher

Customer called to state they couldn't get enough flow through their new condensate polisher. During the service visit, it was determined that the Deaerator and Condensate system was not being operated in accordance with Best Practices Procedures presented by the US Department of Energy's Office of Industrial Technologies, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.

In this case the customer was feeding softened make up water into the Condensate tank along with the returned condensate, directing this water through the condensate polisher, then sending to the Deaerator. A Sodium Cycle Ion Exchange Condensate Polisher is typically sized and designed to treat only returned condensate, not to heat up make up water. In this case the polisher needed to handle both the make up and returns. It was never sized for this.

Normally, the softened make up water goes to the inlet of the deaerator, is heated by steam to remove the dissolved gasses, stored in the deaerator storage tank and sent to the boiler. The low-pressure condensate goes to a condensate receiver, through a condensate polisher and sent to the deaerator storage tank.

Most likely, the customer was thinking the condensate return, which is hot, would heat up the make up water before going to the deaerator, thus saving energy and steam. Conventionally, deaerators are designed to take cold softened make up water and heat it up in the steam chamber to remove oxygen and CO2 before sending it to the boiler.

The best way to save energy would be to install a Boiler Blowdown Heat Recovery System. This consists of a Blowdown Flash Tank and Heat Exchanger. Simply put, with this system the boiler blowdown water goes to a Flash Tank, where the pressure is reduced from the boiler operating pressure to the Deaerator operating pressure; typically 5 psig (228 deg F). When this blowdown water pressure is reduced, most of the water flashes to steam. The steam is directed to the deaerator steam inlet. The remaining blowdown water goes to a shell and tube or coil type heat exchanger, which is used to heat the softened make up water prior to going to the deaerator. The heat exchanger also reduces the blowdown water to safe and acceptable temperature levels for drains.

Separate from this, the condensate return water, having traveled through the myriad of piping, contains iron (crud) and some hardness and needs to be "polished" before being recycled back to the boiler. The condensate polishers are designed to handle only the returned condensate, which is a percentage of original make up water. When sizing up a condensate polisher we need to know the percentage of make up water that is "returned". It is only that percentage we are concerned about when we size up the condensate polisher.

Thus, a basic system would look like this:

The better energy saving system (as described above) would look like this:

A condensate polisher is used in addition to this Boiler Blowdown configuration.

Use of a condensate polisher and a good chemical treatment program enables the customer to use less make up water and energy. When considering use of a condensate polisher it's important to size it for treatment of the condensate only.

For more information about energy savings and Boiler Blowdown Systems see attached pdf files that the government has made available via the Internet.

US Department of Energy Steam Tip Sheet - Minimize Boiler Blowdown

US Department of Energy "Boiler Blowdown Heat Recovery Project Reduces Steam System Energy Losses at Augusta Newsprint" - Best Practices Technical Case Study

Pentair Water Increases Prices on Fleck Controls

2007-11-26T11:22:00.000-05:00

Citing significant increases in raw materials, metals in particular, Pentair Water®, parent company of Fleck Controls, is implementing a price increase effective January 1, 2008 on select Fleck control valve products. Fleck residential control valves will increase an average of 3.6% and Fleck commercial valves will increase an average of 6%. Pentair has not published new price sheets as of this date, 11/26/2007.

3% Price Increases
Fleck 2510
Fleck 5600
Fleck 5600SE
Fleck 7000
Fleck 9100

5% Price Increases
Fleck 5000
Fleck 6700
Remote Meter Models

7% Price Increases
Fleck 1500
Fleck 2750
Fleck 2850 & 2850S
Fleck 2900
Fleck 3150
Fleck 3900
Fleck 4650
Fleck 9000
Fleck 9500
Fleck Twinflo
All accessories configured with valves.

Benefits of Working for Smaller Companies

2007-11-13T15:11:00.000-05:00

Res-Kem Corp. currently has a job opening for a water treatment engineer. To fill this position I've been trying to think outside the box. Res-Kem is a great place to work, we're not perfect, but based on a recent poll of our employees we've discovered it's not such a bad place to be. If you're a water treatment engineer experienced in the any water related field (waste water, process water, boiler water, municipal water) I'd encourage you to apply.

If you are tired of the big corporate rat race and want to have the satisfaction of really making a difference, consider coming to work here. Decisions, big decisions, can be made in the course of the day without spending countless hours politicking. Some of the advantages of being small:

Big decisions made quickly - major stockholders on site

No senseless meetings and/or conference calls

High Flexibility

Ultimate Visibility

Simply put, your contribution is vital to the success of the company.

We're good at what we do, but we need your expertise to be even better. We are looking for people with experience in water treatment willing to help us get to the next level, help us innovate and create a world class organization devoted to:

Keeping our customers happy

The safety and well being of our co-workers

Maintaining our good reputation

Creating opportunity through sales growth

Innovation

Why not become a big fish in a smaller pond? While our pond may be smaller, your ripple effect here is large - one person really can make a difference.

One of our current job openings is:
Mechanical or Industrial Engineer

Budget Price for a Water Treatment System

2007-10-30T13:30:00.000-04:00

A request we frequently get via our website is "I need a budget price for a water treatment system to treat a flow of X gpm."

Our Answer:
Res-Kem welcomes the opportunity to help you size the water treatment system but we need more information than just gallons per minute to correctly size and select the type of water treatment equipment you need. Your needs may not be as simple as a water softener, activated carbon filter, multi-media filter, dealkalizer, RO, DI, demineralizer, or Service DI, etc. Your water treatment application might require a combination of these different water treatment units.

Here is a simple water process schematic of what we are talking about:

To help you, we like to have the following information:

What is the flow rate (gpm) you need from the water treatment system?

Is the flow 24/7?

Do you have an untreated water analysis?

Do you have a treated water specification?

Do you want the system to be manual or automated?

If automated do you want a electro-mechanical timer or PLC?

Are there any special requirements for the system? Your application or industry will give us an indication of your needs.

What materials of construction do you want? Depending upon the size of the water treatment equipment, we can provide units in carbon steel, stainless steel, polyethylene-lined FRP, galvanized steel, PVC, CPVC, copper, etc.

Do you want us to provide a turnkey tearout-install-commission price?

When do you need the system to be installed?

When do you need the quotation by?

Please contact us and we can walk you through the selection and sizing of the industrial water softener, activated carbon filter, multi-media filter, dealkalizer, RO, DI, demineralizer, Service DI, etc. or whatever combination of these water treatment systems you need to make the water quality for your process.

Webtrol Centrifugal Pumps and Webtrol Replacement Parts Offered By Res-Kem

2007-10-04T13:31:00.001-04:00

Res-Kem:

Distributes new Webtrol centrifugal pumps

Repairs installed Webtrol pumps

Provides replacement parts for Webtrol pumps used in water treatment applications.

Webtrol has a complete line of single stage centrifugal, two-stage centrifugal and multi-stage centrifugal pumps used in Reverse Osmosis (RO), Deionization (DI), and filtration systems. Pumps are made in stainless steel and cast iron.

The Webtrol V-Series Vertical Multi-Stage Centrifugal Pumps offer technically advanced designs to meet market demands including reverse osmosis, other high pressure, and hot water applications.

The Webtrol HT Series Multi-Stage Centrifugal Pumps are the original Heavy Duty Booster Pump, designed for high flow at high head. The HT Series Booster Pumps are built to withstand the rigorous demands generated through use in the Reverse Osmosis (RO), Deionization (DI), Car wash, Washdown and Booster Lift Station applications, as well as various other Industrial and Agricultural uses.

The Webtrol EZ Series Multi-Stage Centrifugal Booster Pumps are available in both Stainless Steel and Cast Iron fitted models.

The Webtrol Red Lion Centrifugal Pumps are close-coupled end suction centrifugal pumps. They are excellent choices for a wide variety of pumping applications such as irrigation for farms, lawn sprinklers, pressure boosting and circulation pumps for hot water or glycol.

Ion Exchange System - Two Bed Deionizer (DI) System - Shipped

2007-09-25T09:10:00.000-04:00

This two bed ion exchange DI system was shipped from Res-Kem this past week.

The DI system consists of two identical skid-mounted ion exchange units each with a cation vessel followed by an anion vessel. The DI system was designed to treat a continuous flow rate of 90 gpm of multi-media filtered water for process water and boiler feedwater requirements. The ion exchange units incorporate air actuated GE Aquamatic valves. For simplicity and to improve reliability, all flow, conductivity, and chemical concentration parameters are monitored by a single Thornton 770 MAX Multiparameter controller.

These two bed ion exchange DI systems will be incorporated into the customer's plant automation. Given the level of automation, the customer's critical requirement was to have the ability to verify position of the Aquamatic valves remotely. Plant operators needed confirmation that when they sent a signal for a valve to actuate this actually occurred. Unfortunately, Aquamatic valves do not have the option of remote feedback. Working with a valve integrator, we were able to meet this requirement.

Condensate Polisher Vessel Materials of Construction

2007-08-31T09:02:00.000-04:00

We often receive the following question about the materials of construction of condensate polisher vessels.

Question: We're considering a condensate polisher in our boiler plant. Should the vessel be constructed of carbon steel or stainless steel?

Answer: Over 75% of the condensate polishers that Res-Kem builds utilize stainless steel pressure vessels. If you use a carbon steel vessel it will have to be provided with a high temperature liner for corrosion resistance. For a condensate polisher with a diameter of 30" or less, the liner can not be installed working from inside the tank and the quality of the lining is unpredictable. In fact most liner companies will not warrant their linings if the vessel diameter is less than 36".

Stainless steel vessels cost a little more however the entire lining issue goes away as one is not required. For condensate polishers 30" or less in diameter it does not make sense to even consider a carbon steel vessel with a liner.

Res-Kem builds a very economical line of standard stainless steel condensate polishers from 20 inch to 66 inch diameter vessels . Our standard designs employ stainless steel vessels, flanged and welded stainless steel face piping. Depending upon the size of the valves we use stainless steel Aquamatic diaphragm and/or butterfly valves. To save a little money, we have an option for smaller size systems using stainless steel vessels, threaded steel face piping, and cast iron Aquamatic diaphragm valves.

Aquamatic Valve Selection and Pricing

2007-08-16T14:04:00.000-04:00

A common inquiry we receive at Res-Kem is a customer looking for a price and delivery on an Aquamatic Valve. We, in turn, ask the customer the following:

What kind of Aquamatic valve is used on the equipment?

Is the valve normally open, or is it normally closed?

Does it have a limit stop or a position indicator?

Is there a Spring Assist Open or a Spring Assist Closed option?

Knowing the type of valve allows us to properly provide an accurate estimate and insure you receive the correct valve for your application. In most cases, it's hard to identify a valve because the equipment is old, corroded, and/or there is no longer a parts list for the system. So, where does one go from here? We hope to provide some insight into ways you can determine the type of valve you have in order to get the correct price and valve.

The best way to identify the valve is to know the Aquamatic Valve Model Number which is a 13 digit number that describes the valve.

A GE Aquamatic Valve Model Selection Guide helps determine the valve type and some options. Each valve series has its own Valve Model Selection Guide. Customers more than likely do not have this number because, again, it is an older system with no parts list. Typically, Aquamatic valves will have the valve series cast or molded into the valve body. For example, a V42 series valve is the common cast iron Aquamatic Valve. If you look closely on the body of the valve, you will see a 3 digit number, such as, 421 or 424. The 42 would indicate the series, and the 1 or 4 indicates the size.

The Aquamatic Composite Valves are the K52 & K53 series. Again, on the body of the valve, you will see a 3 digit number for these valves, 521 or 535. The 52 and 53 specify the series, and the 1 or 5 represents the size.

Now that we have figured out the type of valve, lets take a look at some ways to determine the configuration of a valve.

Is it Normally Open or Normally Closed?
The most common Aquamatic Valves have two ports positioned on the top portion of the valve cap and along the side underneath the cap. They are usually an 1/8" or 1/4" female NPT port. If the NPT port on the top of the valve cap has a a pipe plug, the valve is a Normally Closed Valve. If there is no pipe plug at all on the ports, the valve is Normally Open.

Limit Stop or Position Indicator?
Limit Stops and Position Indicators can be easily identified on valves. Limit Stops are adjustment screws or bolts which limit the valve stroke. They are primarily used to control the flow rate. Position Indicators are small rods attached to the main valve stem which are used to show the position of the valve. One thing to note: if you have a valve with a position indicator, you will not have a Spring Assist Closed Valve since those two options cannot be combined.

Spring Assist Open or Spring Assist Closed?
These options are typically used to assist full opening or closure in the absence of line and control pressure. It is also difficult to determine if one has this option because the springs are inside the valve cap. With the composite valves, the valve caps look the same if there is a spring option or no spring option. If you look closely, the letters SAO or SAC are usually marked on the valve body of the composite valves; however, that mark tends to wear off over time.

The Spring Assist Closed option can easily be identified on the metal diaphragm valves because the valve cap is noticably different.

These valves also come with metal tags that indicate the options. You can find these tags secured to the valve cap hex screws. The tags could get broken off, so you do need to check to see if there was a tag on the valve cap. If all else fails, the best way to determine if you have this option is to remove the top cap to be certain.

Water Testing Services Offered

2007-08-16T08:13:00.000-04:00

Before purchasing any water treatment equipment, the first piece of information a person should obtain is a water analysis. The challenge is you want a quick, independent test at an affordable price. While we can not vouch for it at this point, an employee may have found a reliable third party testing service for Pennsylvania residents. He found an article in the Town Talk Newspaper of Delaware County about a service offered by Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences. The College has an Agricultural Analytical Services Laboratory which offers water testing to the general public.

The laboratory has a list of standard analytical packages that range in price from $50 - $130 per sample. Also, the laboratory has a list of individual analyses for drinking water.

To submit a drinking water sample to Penn State’s laboratory, you must first obtain a Drinking Water Test Kit. Kits are available at many county cooperative extension offices or may be obtained directly from the laboratory. The kit consists of a shipping box, sample bottles, instructions on how to take a sample, and a submission form. After taking your water sample, you must send the kit to the laboratory by overnight mail along with your payment for the test(s) requested. For the bacteria test, included in all test packages, the laboratory must receive the sample within 30 hours after sampling.

How soon will you get your results? According to the Agricultural Analytical Services Laboratory's website, tests are complete within two weeks after sample receipt by the laboratory. With mailing time, you should receive your report within two to three weeks after sending your sample.

Activated Carbon Prices Going Up Again!

2007-08-07T15:26:00.000-04:00

I just had a meeting with Calgon Carbon Corp. to discuss new pricing, again. The tariff decision here in the US and the Chinese VAT change conspired to increase the cost of activated carbon regardless of manufacturer. In addition to these changes, the worldwide demand for activated carbon has increased substantially, so "supply & demand" pressures can be added to the mix.

It's always hard to tell customers when prices go up, but it's not something we as an OEM can control. Res-Kem Corp. continues to get the best available pricing on Calgon Carbon, but we can't absorb the price increases. These need to be passed along to the end-user.

Before you buy your next load of activated carbon, you might want to re-evaluate your application, equipment operation, and activated carbon selection. Keep in mind the following:

Chlorine is easy to remove- To most efficiently remove chlorine, choose the carbon with the highest surface area, not the highest iodine number. Activated carbon with a high iodine number typically is a more expensive option.

Confirm whether you are removing chloramine or chlorine- Check with your water utility to determine whether they are chloraminating or chlorinating the water coming to your plant. There is a difference in capacity for chloramine vs chlorine. You will need to consider using a different activated carbon for more effective capacity. It may cost more but it will last longer and be more effective.

Organic removal- To most efficiently remove organics, look at the iodine number, BUT remember this is a good measure of how much iodine or similarly sized molecules the activated carbon is capable of removing. If you have the option, consider trialing different types of activated carbon to determine which works best for your application.

Review your operating procedures-
Are you backwashing too much or too little? Activated carbon filters don't necessarily need to be backwashed every day. Res-Kem recommends backwashing based on pressure drop in most cases. Unlike steam activation, backwashing the activated carbon filter doesn't extend the life of the activated carbon.

Unless you are using treated (carbon-filtered) water, activated carbon filters, used for the removal of contaminants such as VOC's (volatile organic contaminants), should not be backwashed at all. Any time you backwash an activated carbon filter with raw water you run the risk of contaminating the bottom portion of the bed.

Bottom line - water costs money and you might be using too much if you are backwashing too frequently. Consult with the manufacturer or the activated carbon equipment manufacturer or Res-Kem if you have questions.

Are you losing activated carbon every time you backwash? Be sure the backwash rate is set correctly. Activated carbon weighs anywhere between 16 and 31 pounds per cubic foot. If you change the type of carbon you are using, make sure the backwash rate is set properly. If you set the rate too high, you run the risk of floating the carbon out of the tank. Conversely, if the rate is set to low, the bed is not cleaned sufficiently for full effectiveness.

Are you able to monitor the contaminant levels? If you are running activated carbon filters in series, be sure to monitor the first bed of the series for contaminant breakthrough, IF you have the means of measuring for that contaminant. Change out or rebed the activated carbon filter only when it is fully exhausted, that is when the first undesirable contaminant shows up in the effluent water of the first tank. If possible, make that newly rebedded activated carbon tank the polishing tank and begin to monitor the older tank for breakthrough.

If you have other ideas for more effective ways of saving money when operating activated carbon filters, let me know. I'll be happy to pass on the knowledge.

Automation and Control of Water Treatment Systems

2007-08-01T15:38:00.000-04:00

Res-Kem receives requests for quotation and information to automate and control industrial water treatment equipment like activated carbon, water softeners, reverse osmosis systems (RO), DI, service DI, electro-deionization (EDI), continuous deionization (CDI), ultrafiltration (UF) mixed beds, sub micron filtration, etc. using electro-mechanical timer/stagers and programmable logic controllers. We can readily respond to these requests.

In addition, Res-Kem has been receiving requests for quotation and information to automate and control other water systems for:

Odor Control

Influent Clarification

Cooling Towers

Boilers

Waste Treatment

Remote & Online Monitoring

pH Neutralization

Wastewater Control

Environmental Monitoring

Environmental Sampling

Material Handling

Res-Kem is now able to offer solutions to these automation and control needs.

Solo and Solomatic Valves from Aquamatic

2007-07-18T09:19:00.000-04:00

Over many years most water treatment equipment manufacturers utilized various types of multiport valves for their water conditioning equipment, including water softeners, dealkalizers and filters. One of these valves were known as Solo(R) Valves and Solomatic(R) Valves manufactured by Aquamatic(R) Inc., now a part of GE Water.

These Solo and Solomatic valves, once a staple in the water treatment industry, are now long gone, having been discontinued. For those not familiar with these valves, here is a brief description of the Solo and Solomatic valves:

Solo Valve: This was a manual multiport valve, three or four position, generally cast iron. The Solo Valve was also produced in acid resistant bronze for hydrogen softener and deionizer use. The three position Solo Valve was used for pressure filter applications; the four position Solo Valve was typically used for water softeners and dealkalizers.

The Solo Valve was produced in sizes ranging from 3/4" to 4". It may be nearly impossible to find the literature for the Solo valves. Here is a scanned copy of the Solo valve technical bulletin of the entire product line from our extensive archives.

Solomatic Valve: This was a hydraulically operated multiport valve designed to automatically control the regeneration and service flow through softeners, filters and other ion exchange systems. This valve was manufactured in sizes ranging from 3/4" to 2½". Here is a scanned copy of the Solomatic valve technical bulletin from our archives.

Now that Solo and Solomatic valves are no longer manufactured and parts are no longer available to rebuild or repair, what can be done should you have a system with good tanks and broken or non-working Solo or Solomatic valve(s)? Any of these systems can be retrofitted using a nest of Aquamatic Diaphragm Valves.

For automatic Solomatic systems, the controls can be upgraded to the current state-of-art electronic, programmable controls utilizing flow sensors, differential pressure switches, etc. For manual Solo systems, the multiport valve can be replaced with gate or ball valves for strictly manual operation or with Diaphragm Valves for manual, semi or auto initiation via a time clock or differential pressure initiation.

Fleck and Stenner Application Seminar

2007-06-11T13:32:00.000-04:00

Res-Kem Corp. is pleased to bring two industry leaders, Fleck and Stenner, together in one event. In our fast paced industry, we have less time to keep up with new technologies and products. This free, one day event will save you time, money and double your product knowledge.

Contact Linda Shipley at 800-323-1983 to reserve your spot.

Stenner Presentation - 8:00 AM to Noon
You will go through the Stenner Peristaltic Pump Certification class instructed by John Avery on how to rebuild the entire peristaltic pump and learn about their proper installation and maintenance. Stenner Mobile Showroom will be here until noon.

At the end of the session, you will receive a Stenner Certified Technician Arm Patch and diploma certificate.

Pentair Fleck Presentation - 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM
You will be instructed by David Smith on how to program Pentair Fleck electronics including the SE, NT, and XTR. Also, you will learn how to rebuild and service the Pentair Fleck 7000, Pentair Fleck 5600 and Pentair Fleck 2510 valve models. Fleck Mobile Showroom will be here all day.

Seminar Location
Renaissance Philadelphia Hotel at Philadelphia Airport
500 Stevens Drive
Philadelphia, PA 19113
Hotel Phone: 610-521-5900

Seminar Details
Continental Breakfast Provided - Starting at 7:30 AM

Lunch is Provided - Starting at Noon

Pharmaceutical Water Applications

2007-06-01T08:27:00.000-04:00

We have been receiving requests for quotation and information on pharmaceutical water applications. In chemical engineering terms, the "unit operations" used to produce pharmaceutical grade water are generally the same, activated carbon, water softeners, reverse osmosis (RO), DI, service DI, electro-deionization (EDI), continuous deionization (CDI), ultrafiltration (UF) mixed beds, sub micron filtration, etc., but the design of the equipment is radically different.

In particular, a water system in a pharmaceutical plant will generally need to be "validated" to comply with the United States Pharmacopeia (USP). There are standards for Purified Water and Water For Injection (WFI) that must be adhered to. Depending upon the water quality, the concerns are for, but not limited to, pyrogens and bacteria. To give you a brief idea of the nature of the complexity, please review the FDA GUIDE TO INSPECTIONS OF HIGH PURITY WATER SYSTEMS.

Although we have seen it happen in the past, a water treatment equipment supplier should not simply assume that standard industrial, or commercial water treatment equipment can be installed in a pharmaceutical plant. Please do not be told otherwise, there are substantial differences in design, documentation, materials of construction, fabrication, construction, startup, standard operating procedures (SOP), and maintenance. As our sales manager often says "They don't know what they don't know".

Through key relationships, Res-Kem offers ready access to this expertise.

Portable Service DI Tanks Added to General Water Rental Fleet

2007-05-21T13:54:00.000-04:00

Due to rapidly expanding customer demand, our General Water Service business has added new 30 cubic foot stainless steel Service DI tanks to the largest fleets of 30 cubic foot, all stainless steel, Service DI tanks in the mid-Atlantic region.

These portable service deionization tanks incorporate a welded four way pallet base for easy maneuverability at the customer's site. General Water's stainless service DI tanks are used in high purity and critical water quality applications. Based on the customer's requirement, General Water installs filter media, activated carbon, cation, anion, or mixed bed ion exchange resins in these tanks. All service DI tanks have a serial number and are lot traceable.

Visit the General Water website for more information.

General Water, a sister company of Res-Kem Corp., is a water treatment service company specializing in portable service DI water systems. We have a service area of 150 miles around the Philadelphia International Airport. General Water delivers from 1 cubic foot to 30 cubic foot tanks. Depending upon the size, tanks are PVDF-lined FRP, Poly-lined FRP, or all stainless steel.

Water Softener in Steam Plant

2007-05-08T09:53:00.000-04:00

Last week, a triple industrial water softener designed and manufactured by Res-Kem was started up in a Cambridge, Massachusetts steam plant. The softener system has an Allen Bradley PLC and PanelView 600 HMI for controlling the automated running and regeneration of the three softeners.

Each of the 48 inch diameter x 72 inch straight-side vessels holds 37 cubic feet of cation ion exchange resin. Careful coordination between A&E firm designing the entire plant and Res-Kem yielded a project that fit into the space and time allotted. The engineer responsible for starting up the entire steam plant stated that the Res-Kem triple water softener was the "best ion exchange system I have ever started up with a great design and excellent construction." The softeners are used to provide makeup to the steam plant.

About the Steam Plant and Network:
This steam plant supplies a steam network near Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). The steam network supplies process steam to global leaders in biotechnology and pharmaceuticals. The steam network used heavy fuel oil-fired boilers. The new plant now uses new gas-fired steam heating plant with a rated capacity of 110 tons per hour. The new facility will supply 150,000 tons of steam a year to its industrial customers and property owners in the Cambridge region.

Aquamatic Valve and Repair Kit Selection

2007-05-04T09:05:00.000-04:00

Res-Kem receives many requests for replacement of GE(R) Aquamatic (R) valves and Aquamatic valve repair kits. Please contact us. We have many people that can help you through the selection of the correct Aquamatic valve or Aquamatic valve repair kit.

If you can have available the following information when you contact us, this would help you quickly get the correct Aquamatic valve. If not, do not worry. We can walk you through the selection.

What is the size of the valve?

What is the valve made of? Depending upon the valve size it can be cast iron, bronze, stainless steel, or PVC.

What are the end connections? Depending upon the valve size and material it can be threaded, flanged, or union fittings.

What type of actuator does the valve have? The options are normally open (Standard), normally closed, spring assist closed, spring assist open, limit stop, and position indicator.

What is the diaphragm made of? Choices are BUNA (Standard), EPDM, and FKM.

What process is the valve used in?

On the Res-Kem website we have product information for liquid and air diaphragm valves:
Aquamatic 420 Series (421, 424, 425, 426, 427, 428 and 429) metal diaphragm valves
Aquamatic 531 Series (531, 534, 535, 537) corrosion resisitant diaphragm valves
Aquamatic VAV Series (VAV1, VAV4, VAV5, VAV6, VAV7 and VAV8) air diaphragm valves

GE and Aquamatic are registered trademarks of GE Fairfield, CT

Greensand Price Increase

2007-04-30T10:25:00.000-04:00

The manufacturers of Manganese Greensand have just notified us that the price of Greensand will be going up on June 1, 2007. The price of GreensandPlus (TM) will not.

Manganese Greensand is used to remove soluble iron, manganese and hydrogen sulfide from well water supplies. Greensand has been an industry standard for over 50 years. Manganese Greensand bulletin.

GreensandPlus is the second generation of greensand. GreensandPlus is more rugged than the original but has identical operating characteristics. GreensandPlus is a purple-black filter media used for removing soluble iron, manganese, hydrogen sulfide, arsenic, and radium from well water supplies. GreensandPlus bulletin.

GreensandPlus has the same effective size, uniformity coefficient, density, weight, capacity, backwash and pressure drop curve. Therefore, it can be used as an exact substitute for Manganese Greensand. In addition, GreensandPlus is much more resistant to attrition from high differential pressure, and works well on waters that are low in silica, dissolved solids and total hardness. It can also be used in water over 70 degrees F without any degradation.

Greensand is a mined product and as many users of Greensand know, it is occasionally in short supply. Unlike Manganese Greensand, GreensandPlus is not dependent on the mining of glauconite and this results in reduced production time. Greensand Plus is readily available for purchase.

All Manganese Greensand shipped after June 1st will be subject to the new prices. Contact Res-Kem for availability and current and future pricing.

Res-Kem manufactures systems using greensand and GreensandPlus to remove soluble iron, manganese and hydrogen sulfide from well water supplies for municipal, commercial, and industrial applications.

GreensandPlus is a Registered Trademark of Inversand Company. 226 Atlantic Avenue Clayton, New Jersey 08312

Homespring Water Purifier to be Stocked By Res-Kem

2007-03-21T12:37:00.000-04:00

The Homespring Water Purifier will be stocked by Res-Kem Corp.

Previously, the Homespring Water Purifier was marketed for a number of years through a master distributor program direct from the inventor of the system, Zenon. Now, GE Water will be distributing these systems through qualified OEM's. Res-Kem Corp is one of the qualified OEM's and will be stocking these units.

Homespring Certifications:
The Homespring Water Purifier is system tested and certified by NSF against NSF/ANSI 42 & 53 for:
- Cyst Reduction
- Turbidity Reduction
- Particulate Reduction Class 1
- Chlorine, Taste and Odor Reduction

General Specifications of the Homespring Water Purifier:
This innovative system uses ultrafiltration technology to provide the homeowner protection against viruses, bacteria and Giardia cyst. The maximum continuous flow rate is 4.5 gpm with peak up to 11 gpm. Units can be coupled for greater flows.

Homespring Features:
Whole House Treatment
Optional Activated Carbon Prefilter
ZeeWeed(R) Membranes
Flush Out Drain
Self-Cleaning, automatic backwash

Homespring Dealer Certification:
Dealers will need to be tested and certified by GE/Zenon prior to taking delivery of these systems. An on-line test is available for easy access to the certification process. Once certified, dealers will need to make a one-time purchase of an integrity test kit to ensure proper application of Homespring.

Homespring Pretreatment:
While we are just learning about this innovative product, we do know that this unit does not reduce TDS. Also, excessive hardness may foul the membrane. Although the membrane can be treated with citric acid, a softener is recommended as pretreatment. Soluble iron will pass through the membrane so staining is probable.

Homespring Rules:
In order to make the "purifier" claim certain rules exist.
1. OEM's and dealers cannot tell customers that the Homespring is certified for surface or groundwater purification. Most states require approval of each install in advance for these applications - on a site-by-site basis. OEM's and dealers cannot bypass these state regulations. When an installation requiring state regulatory approval is made, the Homespring technical team will need to be contacted.
2. Pricing cannot be posted to the web.
3. Unauthorized individuals cannot install the Homespring. This is important. The technicians installing Homespring must be tested and certified individually!
4. Homespring cannot be installed without an integrity test.

For Futher Information:
Send your email address to tdupnik@reskem.com if you wish to receive more information about this exciting dealer opportunity.

Click for more information on the Homespring Water Purifier.

Assembly Facility Expanded by 6000 sqft

2007-03-20T10:17:00.000-04:00

In order to meet our demand for new industrial, residential, and commercial water systems, Res-Kem Corp. recently completed the move to our new, 6,000 square foot, expanded assembly facility in Aston, Pennsylvania.

As part of this effort, our Production Manager, is instituting the Kan Ban system to streamline inventory, improve order accuracy, and decrease production times. Also, we are completing an expansion of our Water Supplies Distribution Warehouse to provide better service for and rapid deliveries of the ion exchange resins, filter media, Fleck valves, Aquamatic valves, Autotrol valves, Stenner pumps, etc. you need.

Please contact us for a plant tour of our Assembly, Distribution Warehouse, and Service DI Resin Regeneration Facilities. We are just south of the Philadelphia International Airport.

Condensate Polisher with All Stainless Steel Construction

2007-03-20T09:42:00.000-04:00

Last week, Res-Kem shipped a condensate polisher designed to treat an 80 gpm flow rate with a 390,000 grain capacity. The condensate polisher had an all stainless steel construction including an ASME code stainless steel pressure vessel, stainless steel internals, stainless steel Aquamatic valves and face piping. Not shown is the brine tank used to regenerate the high strength cation resin.

Condensate polishers can save a considerable amount of energy by reclaiming waste heat that is in the condensate return from steam boilers, rather than having a large "blowdown" to drain. Treating the condensate return, and keeping the temperature high, usually around 120F, with a condensate polisher, the blowdown rate to drain can be dramtically reduced. Recent calculations show an ROI in as little as 6 months!