A little forethought to fend off flooding

Although filtered water systems have become very popular in recent years, my first experience with a residential filtration array was less than appealing.

After completing a full basement renovation for a homeowner before he took possession of his new house nearly a decade ago, I received a call the day after he moved regarding a potential issue with the filtered water system I didn’t even know existed. It turned out to be more than an “issue” — it was a full-blown water disaster.

Apparently, the previous owner had failed to disclose a prominent leak in the filtration system at the kitchen sink area, and never having been fixed, the sink had not been used for quite some time. Unaware, the new homeowner simply turned it on along with everything else when he moved in, resulting in nearly $40,000 in damage overnight.

This story has haunted me for years. Although we were able to restore the areas on the main floor and basement that had been affected, this unfortunate scenario had undermined the entire premise of “completing the desired renovations before he had moved in.”

This slight turn of a shut-off valve under the kitchen sink unleashed a leak that not only destroyed a large portion of the main floor hardwoods, but also infiltrated the finished ceiling of the basement. The moment I arrived, I poked the ceiling drywall and released nearly seven gallons of water. The ceiling looked like a balloon — I couldn’t believe it held until I arrived the next morning. Fortunately, no one was injured, and the affected areas were addressed in as timely a fashion as was possible.

Fast forward to last spring, as I was nearing the end of a three-month kitchen renovation/expansion project. At a separate location in the kitchen deemed the “coffee bar,” the homeowners decided to include a separate and smaller cold-water tap for a reverse-osmosis (RO) water system.

This immediately prompted a discussion regarding the implementation process, and how a previous experience had revealed to me the vulnerabilities of such a system if not installed properly and in such a way to allow diligent inspections on a regular basis.

The homeowners heeded my warnings, and the system was installed in a manner that minimized damage caused by a potential leak by placing most of the system’s key elements below main-floor level. Other than the source feed to the faucet, everything else was fed through to the basement, where the main system would be housed.

Essentially, a reverse-osmosis water filtration system is fed by the existing water supply, and flows across a tightly woven membrane that separates the water from contaminants as small as a single atom. Typically, the RO process combines other stages of filtration including a sediment filter, carbon filtration and additional specialty filtration stages. Although entire-house systems are also available, they most often exceed budgetary constraints. Off-the-shelf versions are very reasonably priced, and boast they can be installed by almost anyone as a DIY project. It is, of course, never quite that simple.

Before starting the installation, filtration termination requirements were established. Beyond the smaller faucet at the coffee bar, two lines to both water/ice dispensing fridges would also split off from the output feed of the RO. And because the RO system chosen functions using three-eighth-inch feeds, there would be a series of water fittings required to convert the half-inch source feed to these smaller lines. The smaller lines are essentially made of PVC, using PVC quick-connect push fittings with retaining clips.

In the spirit of redundancy, it’s also prudent to introduce several shut-off valves throughout the system, deliberately placed for easy access should the system need to be shut down for service.

Once the main cold feed was adapted with a fitting for conversion, the line was fed toward the pre-mounted RO system. A shut-off was introduced before the system, and another as the filtered water leaves the unit. From that point, the main line branches into two: one is fed to the coffee-bar faucet on the main floor and the other is directed toward the area below the first fridge. Before that line receives an adapter that ties into the mesh hose connected to the first fridge, it splits again so the water can be fed to the second fridge.

To test the system, the first shut-off valve was opened and the lines were checked for any water anomalies. If none were found, the next valve was opened, and so on, until the RO system was fully filled and the output lines were energized and checked for leaks.

Despite the flimsy nature of the plastic fittings supplied with the RO system, it appeared the entire array of three-eighth-inch water lines was void of leaks at every junction. The coffee bar faucet was then fully functional, as were the lines to both dispensing fridges.

My fear of potential leaks remains, no matter how illogical it may seem. Water is a great destroyer and will wreak havoc on anything in its path if left unchecked.

Installing the main RO system in the basement and feeding the termination points directly up and into the main floor area from below no doubt minimizes the risk. Should a leak arise, it would likely be confined to the basement, which remains unfinished at this point and subject to grave damage.

Multiple successive shut-off valves throughout the system cater to easy maintenance should any issue surface. Oddly enough, beyond the detailed installation and technical specs of the RO system itself, one key aspect was overlooked — I never did get to taste the RO water. No matter, I trust the system is everything the homeowners had anticipated.

RenoBoss.Inc@outlook.com