Q-Water Manual

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ALPHA-Q CLEAN WATER SYSTEM
Maintenance Summary

Due to poor feed water quality in Building 570, maintenance is done more often than manufacturer recommendations.

Maintenance	How Often
chlorine sanitize UF membrane	every 7-10 days
change activated carbon and sediment pre-filters	every 2-2 ½ months
change Q-Pak and final filter	when resistivity falls below 17.9 megohm-cm or every 4 months, whichever comes first (on average, the Q-Paks have been lasting about 2-3 months)
NaOH sanitize UF membrane	about every 6-8 months (this should be done at the same time a Q-Pak is being changed out)

Chlorine Sanititization Procedure for UF Membrane

Chlorine sanititization should be done every 7-10 days

Purpose: To keep biological growth from accumulating on and clogging the UF membrane, which is the first filter feed water encounters in the Alpha-Q water system.

Procedure:

Turn the recirculation/production knob to production and press the operate/standby button to put the system into operate mode for a few seconds. Press the operate/standby button again to put the system back into standby mode. Allow the system to depressurize (wait until water stops flowing out of the final filter cartridge) and turn the recirculation/production knob back to recirculation.
Turn the sanitization/production knob to sanitization. This shuts off all water flow to the Q-Pak and final filter.
Open the door on the top of the Q-water system main housing to expose the chlorine sanitization port.
Unscrew the sanitization port cap, drop in one chlorine tablet and replace the cap.
Press the sanitization button on the Q-water system keypad to start the sanitization cycle.
Enter the chlorine sanitization in the log book.

Let the system sit overnight but no more than 3 days to make sure all chlorine is flushed from the UF membrane housing, then turn the sanitization/production knob to production.

Changing Activated Carbon and Sediment Pre-filters

Activated carbon and sediment pre-filters should be changed every 2-2 ½ months

Purpose: These filters remove sediment (particles larger than 5mm) and chlorine from the feed water before the water enters the Alpha-Q system. Both the activated carbon and the 5mm sediment filter should be changed at the same time.

Procedure:

Draw off some Q-water into a squeeze bottle if there isn’t a squeeze bottle with Q-water in it already.
Turn off the Q-water system and unplug it from the electrical outlet. Turn off water flow to the system at the faucet as well.
Position the Q-water system so you can easily access the two cylindrical housings attached to the metal frame on the right side of the system.
Disconnect the tubing from the faucet and let it drain in the sink. All tubing connections are quick-connect ports. To disconnect the tubing, push in the black ring on the port and pull out the tubing
Locate where the tubing from the carbon filter housing (the cylindrical housing in the back on the right side of the system) connects to the inlet port of the main Q-water system housing. Disconnect this tubing from the inlet port of the main system housing and let it drain to the sink or a bucket to depressurize the cartridge housings.
Using the housing wrench (white plastic - looks like a semi-circle with a handle), unscrew the bottom section of the sediment filter housing and remove it. If you are looking down on the top of the housing, twist the bottom section clockwise to unscrew it. Remove the old sediment filter from the top of the cartridge housing by pulling down on it.
Rinse out the bottom cartridge housing with some previously-drawn Q-water.
Get out a new sediment filter. Look to find the end of the filter cartridge with the o-ring and open this end of the filter packaging enough to expose the o-ring. Wet the o-ring with Q-water. NOTE: Do not touch the filter surface.
Seat the new filter cartridge into place by pushing it up into the center of the top section of the cartridge housing. If seated correctly, the cartridge will stay in place when you let go of it.
Reattach the bottom section of the cartridge housing. When screwing on the bottom housing section, only make it finger tight plus a little nudge with the housing wrench.
Repeat the above steps for the carbon filter. The new carbon filters are the black filter cartridges stored in the cabinet under the Q-water system.
Trim all tubing from the faucet to the inlet port on the main Q-water system housing. Cut about ¼ to ½ inch of tubing off (try to cut off the main yellowed areas). Make sure the cut is not angled as you want a flush connection between the tubing and the port.
Reconnect all tubing except for at the inlet port of the main Q-water system housing. Leave this tubing running from the carbon filter cartridge to the sink for now.
Turn on water at the faucet. After the pre-filter cartridge housings have filled up with water, let the water run through the cartridges for 5 minutes to allow any particles to flush from the cartridges. Turn off the water at the faucet.
Reconnect the tubing from the carbon filter housing to the inlet port on the main Q-water system housing. Fix any leaks you may have discovered while flushing the pre-filters by disconnecting, recutting and reconnecting the tubing at the leaky spot.
Turn on water at the faucet. Plug in the Q-water system and turn it back on. It will jolt, stall/pause, then start a flushing cycle when you first turn it on. As the system is running, the regulator on the metal frame between the two pre-filter cartridge housings should read somewhere around 30-50psi. If it goes above this, then you probably knocked the knob on the regulator to the unlocked position and will need to readjust the regulator pressure (push the regulator knob all the way in, then pull it down slowly until you feel it settle into a groove – it’s very subtle, turn the knob until the reading on the regulator is around 40psi and push the knob all the way in to lock it into place). If it is below this, then you either need to increase water flow at the faucet or adjust the regulator.
When the Q-water system finishes its flush cycle, put the system in operate mode (turn the recirculation/production knob to production and press the operate/standby button) for a few minutes. Flush any air from the system by venting air bubbles through the vent cap in the top of the final filter casing (remove the final filter cover box on the top, left, front of the Q-water system to expose the final filter case). After all air has been flushed from the system, put the system back into standby mode (press the operate/standby button and turn the recirculation/production knob to recirculation).

Log the pre-filter change in the log book. Also remove old labels and put new labels on the pre-filter cartridge housings indicating the date the new pre-filters were installed and initial it. Discard the old filters in the garbage can – no special disposal required.

Changing Q-Pak and Final Filter

Changing Q-Pak and final filter should be done every 4 months or whenever the resistivity falls below 17.9 megohm-cm

Purpose: The Q-Pak is the main filter unit for the Q-water system. When it is functioning properly, water resistivity is about 18.2 megohm-cm (pure water is 18.3). Water quality is unacceptable at resistivities below 18.0 megohm-cm. Q-Paks are designed to deliver about 500L of Q-water and have a working shelf-life of 4-6 months in optimum conditions. The exchange pack light on the front of the Q-water system is set to blink after 4 months have elapsed since the installation of a new Q-Pak. Don’t rely on this light. The timer for this light is only reset when there is a time lapse of about 30 seconds between when the old Q-Pak is removed and the new one is installed, so if the last Q-Pak was installed too quickly, the timer for this light may not have reset. Spare Q-Paks should be stored in the refrigerator. After you install that spare, make sure a new one is ordered as soon as possible.

Procedure:

Put the system in operate mode for a few seconds, then switch it back to standby mode to reset the timer for the hourly flush cycle.
Press in and pull down the retaining arm in front of the Q-Pak and swing it around so that you can pull the Q-Pak out without hitting it. Remove the Q-Pak by sliding it forward out of the system housing. Turn this old Q-Pak upside down in a sink to let water drain out of it.
Open up a new Q-Pak and remove the two red caps from the o-ring ports at the top back. Wet these two o-rings with previously-drawn Q-water. Make sure you wait at least 30 seconds since you removed the old Q-Pak to reset the timer for the exchange pack light and install the new Q-Pak by sliding it into position until you feel the o-ring ports clunk into place. Slide the retaining arm back across the front of the Q-Pak and up until it locks (clicks) into place.
Put the system in standby mode and let sit overnight.
Log the change of Q-Pak in the log book. Also write the install date and initial the label on the Q-Pak.
In the morning, put the system in operate mode and let it flush for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, put the system back in standby mode.
Install a new final filter (Millipak-40 point-of-use filter). To do this, remove the old final filter or the tubing adapter. Put Teflon tape around the threads of the new final filter and screw it into place. Remove the plastic splash guard from the bottom of the final filter and attach the point-of-use tubing to the bottom of the final filter. Replace the splash guard at the end of the point-of-use tubing with the new splash guard. Put the system in operate mode to flush air through the vent cap on the final filter. Replace the final filter cover box. Put the system back into standby mode.
If the resistivity isn’t reading 18.2 megohm-cm, then let the system sit in standby mode for a few more hours/overnight again and then check it again later. Usually the resistivity is at 18.2 megohm-cm by the morning after the new Q-Pak is installed. Once resistivity reaches 18.2, the system is ready for use again.

NaOH Sanitization of UF Membrane

NaOH Sanitization of UF Membrane should be done every 6-8 months. This should be done at the same time a Q-Pak is being replaced. Allow about 5 days for this process. The manufacturer recommends NaOH cleaning or replacement of the UF membrane annually.

Purpose: The UF membrane is the first filter feed water goes through in the Alpha-Q system. As such, it is prone to algal/bacterial growth and clogging if not regularly sanitized. Even with weekly chlorine sanitizations, this membrane tends to start growing stuff or start clogging after 6-8 months with the poor feed water quality in Building 570. The UF membrane is particularly expensive to replace and NaOH is really cheap in comparison, so make sure to keep up with NaOH cleanings. Do not do the cleanings more often than 6 months unless absolutely necessary to avoid prematurely wearing out the membrane with rigorous cleanings.

Procedure:

Make sure the system is in standby mode. Leave the old Q-Pak in the system. – DO NOT INSTALL A NEW Q-PAK BEFORE UF MEMBRANE SANITIZATION.
Turn the recirculation/production knob to production and the sanitization/production knob to production.
Open the sanitization port on the top of the Q-water main system housing. Put in approximately 13 NaOH pellets and close the port.
Press the sanitization button on the keypad to start a sanitization cycle. After the 15-minute sanitization cycle is finished, press the sanitization button again to do a second 15-minute sanitization cycle. Do NOT add any more NaOH for the second sanitization cycle.
Leave the system in standby mode overnight.
Log the NaOH cleaning in the log book.
In the morning, put the system in operate mode (leave both knobs on production) and let the system flush for 5 minutes.
The manufacturer’s instructions say to check the pH of the feed water (after it has passed through the sediment and carbon pre-filters, but before entering the main Alpha-Q system) and the product water. If the two pH’s are within ± 0.2 then all of the NaOH has been flushed from the system. If they are different, then let the system sit in standby for another 24 hours and check the pH’s again. Do this until they agree. We don’t have a pH meter, so let the system sit in standby mode for 2-3 nights and it will be thoroughly flushed by the third day. After it has sat for 2-3 nights, install a new Q-Pak as per Q-Pak replacement instructions. When the new Q-Pak and final filter are installed, the system is ready to use again.