[quadra]

Originally Posted by rohan_iitr

If you are not comfortable with the Aquaguard product, I would say opt for the Kent Pearl model. It has provision for wall mounting as well as counter top installation. (I am not comfortable with wall mounting such a heavy appliance using 2 puny screws).

Another benefit of Pearl is that it has a transparent removable storage tank, which is easy to clean periodically.

Rohan

Thanks for the info. As stated in the thread earlier, the TDS is 900+ in my apartment. Is there any other major difference between kent grand+ vs Pearl?

[an_and]

Also try the zero b kitchen mate. IT sits neatly below the counter, and all that is there on top is a faucet. Almost like running pure water. I have it installed and am pretty happy with it over the past one yera.

[S_U_N]

Just thought of sharing, we have migrated from AquaSure Storage purifier to PureIt Autofill after four years.

The new filter is auto-fill, so we don't need to worry about the water supply timings at all. A T-joint is installed with a valve and internal floats take care of auto-cut off.
Peace of mind at Rs. 3100.

[dre@ms]

I am also using the same Auto-fill for the past 10 days. The water quality is good and complete peace of mind with no tension on electricity. Looks beautiful too.

[quadra]

I thought kent grand+ was the costliest but when I inquired, pearl has taken that top place.
14.5K for grand+
15.5k for pearl.

Someone please advice between these 2 models.

[sgiitk]

I think first evaluate whether you really need an RO. Most people do not. My biggest issue with RO is that a lot of water is wasted. We haev avoided RO for over 35 years even though our water is hard.

Then if you must have an RO then do you want UV polishing (Kent, Eureka Forbes etc), or Iodine polishing (ZeroB). Only then move further. Most of them source their membranes from the same manufacturers so the differences are marginal. afaik the brand leaders are Kent and Ion-exchange (ZeroB).

[rohan_iitr]

Originally Posted by quadra

Thanks for the info. As stated in the thread earlier, the TDS is 900+ in my apartment. Is there any other major difference between kent grand+ vs Pearl?

Grand+ and Pearl are technically the same. Pearl model is aesthetically better.

Originally Posted by quadra

I thought kent grand+ was the costliest but when I inquired, pearl has taken that top place.
14.5K for grand+
15.5k for pearl.

Someone please advice between these 2 models.

Pearl was always costlier than Grand+.

Between the 2 models, I would say Pearl is better.

Rohan

[quadra]

Originally Posted by an_and

Also try the zero b kitchen mate. IT sits neatly below the counter, and all that is there on top is a faucet. Almost like running pure water. I have it installed and am pretty happy with it over the past one yera.

Earlier when i was researching on what to buy, i did go through this product. Somehow i was not convinced about having the product installed below the sink & then the water would come through existing tap right. The water pipes in our apartment were laid like 11yrs ago, so i had to skip this. Must say that this product gets 10/10 for space utilization.

Originally Posted by sgiitk

I think first evaluate whether you really need an RO. Most people do not. My biggest issue with RO is that a lot of water is wasted. We haev avoided RO for over 35 years even though our water is hard.

Then if you must have an RO then do you want UV polishing (Kent, Eureka Forbes etc), or Iodine polishing (ZeroB). Only then move further. Most of them source their membranes from the same manufacturers so the differences are marginal. afaik the brand leaders are Kent and Ion-exchange (ZeroB).

The TDS is 924 in my apartment, i need everything to convert that water for drinking. Wastage is there, yes.

Originally Posted by rohan_iitr

Grand+ and Pearl are technically the same. Pearl model is aesthetically better.

Pearl was always costlier than Grand+.

Between the 2 models, I would say Pearl is better.

Rohan

Based on your advice which i read last minute, i went in for Pearl model.

The dealer gave me a pre-filter (outside of pearl) for visible particles to get caught first. This will make sure the parts inside the actual filter get a longer life.

Cost: Pre-filter + Pearl + installation = 15k
Tip: 50rs.

There is a lot of wastage of water which (for the time being) i am collecting in a big bucket. Later use that water for plants and washing utensils.

Any ideas on smart usage of waste water are welcome.

Thanks to t-bhp again.

[an_and]

[quote=quadra;2764629]Earlier when i was researching on what to buy, i did go through this product. Somehow i was not convinced about having the product installed below the sink & then the water would come through existing tap right. The water pipes in our apartment were laid like 11yrs ago, so i had to skip this. Must say that this product gets 10/10 for space utilization.



congrats on your purchase. Just wanted to clarify that the existing pipes have no relevance on the under the sink fixture. All piping done for the RO Plant is new. The water is stored in a pressurised containers that pushes the water out, and according to zero B never needs any cleaning.

[sgiitk]

Originally Posted by an_and

Just wanted to clarify that the existing pipes have no relevance on the under the sink fixture. All piping done for the RO Plant is new. The water is stored in a pressurised containers that pushes the water out, and according to zero B never needs any cleaning.

I would say this is self evident. Existing plumbing is only used for the water going into the unit. As for the output it is near distilled water quality so obviously should not corrode or leave deposits in the outlet pipe!

[srishiva]

I bought a Sensa SMP+ (load of crap acronyms) from Acquaguard. The unit decides to fill the container whenever it wishes and it was fine for a couple of months. Now it takes awfully lot of time to fill the tank completely.

I have seen similar complaints on the web. Now a days it never fills the complete tank and have heard that TDS levels are applicable for a complete tank fill and now a days it doesnt fill completely at all. It wastes a lot of water compared to Zero B.

All this when even my borewell water had TDS of 246 (just marginally higher than Cauvery!)

[quadra]

There is a glitch in the design of kent pearl model. The water storage tank is not 100% sealed off. So, if you have roaches in your kitchen, chances are, they might end up in the tank. The good thing is, since the tank is detachable and transparent, you can detect any foreign element and take action.

I first removed the water tank, then lifted the rest of the body upwards as its resting on two solid 3" screws. Used a hairdryer to bust the roaches rave party. Applied lakshmanrekha on the wall near the screws and till date, no issues at all.

In Kent Grand+, where the water tank is not detachable this shouldn't happen (i think). However if by chance anything gets inside the water tank, you cant see it. The entire tank is opaque except a small vertical bar which is transparent which is used to show the water level indicator.

Now you might think that grand+ is what you should go for coz pearl has this design flaw (my personal opinion). The catch is, after 1 week of installation of pearl, this roach thing happened due to which i had to remove the tank for cleaning. After 1 week of usage, i could make out that the tank does need to be cleaned every week (instead of every 15 days as prescribed by the doc) else you might have that stagnant water smell (even though water keeps flowing out).

Bottom line is, cleaning the tank is DIY in pearl which has its own advantages. Calling kent for cleaning the water tank is time consuming & should be done every 3 months.

Hope this helps

Attaching few pics of the pearl model

[JMaruru]

Today, i got the salesperson of permionics to demo us the capabilities of pureflo, their domestic water filter. The guy said, the company has come out with a new model of pureflo with higher tank capacity,better flow rate and aesthetics. He could not bring in the new model. Is anyone using the latest model of pureflo?

Please share your experience.

[anmolbedi]

Originally Posted by srishiva

I bought a Sensa SMP+ (load of crap acronyms) from Acquaguard. The unit decides to fill the container whenever it wishes and it was fine for a couple of months. Now it takes awfully lot of time to fill the tank completely.

I have seen similar complaints on the web. Now a days it never fills the complete tank and have heard that TDS levels are applicable for a complete tank fill and now a days it doesnt fill completely at all. It wastes a lot of water compared to Zero B.

All this when even my borewell water had TDS of 246 (just marginally higher than Cauvery!)

Check for the membrane and the motor pump for pressure and flow. One of them might be choked leading so slow filling. Happened with my whirlpool RO.

[KRN]

I am in the lookout for a good RO water purifier for our home in Chennai.

Requirements:
1. We do not have municipal water supply and rely on tankers + borewell. Tanker water has TDS around 400 and borewell around 1400. So, looks like an RO system is must. We currently buy bubble top cans for drinking water
2. Minimum long term maintenance costs. I do not mind paying 1 to 2k more now, for a system that requires less maintenance over 5 to 10 years
3. Reasonable A.S.S in Chennai

Research done so far:
1. Aquaguard: I had the Aquaguard rep visit our home. He suggested the RO Enhance model which costs Rs. 13,900. This model does not have UV or UF. Aquaguard has an offer of life term free service (labor costs) which is expiring soon and I need to make a decision.

Pros: I have to pay only for candle (Rs. 450) + membrane (Rs. 800) as periodic maintenance. The rep claims that these have to be changed only once in 2 years for upto 2000 TDS water

Cons: We have a 4 year old kid and would like to use a purifier that can dispense drinking water directly without a need to boil further. The aquaguard model has no UV/UF. So, not sure if it meets our needs. The UV/UF model costs Rs. 16,900

2. Kent
I placed a demo request in the Kent helpline yesterday and no one bothered to call back for a demo appointment. I called them again and they promised a call back in 10 minutes, but nothing so far.

Pros: I see that Kent Pearl model is well priced at Rs. 15k and has RO + UV + UF as opposed to just RO in Aquaguard for Rs.14k

Cons: Given the lack of response from Kent, I am worried about A.S.S. Can someone comment on long term maintenance costs of Kent compared to Aquaguard?

3. Zero B

Their "below the sink" product looks good, but I am unable to contact Zero B at all for a demo. I tried registering through their website and got an error. Their SMS number returns another error and they don't have any other phone number listed. Can someone help with the contact number for Zero B in Chennai? Any comments on long term maintenance costs?

Can any Gurus help me pick the right model?

Thanks in advance and sorry for the long post!