water filter and pressure regulater

SKIPCAROL wrote:
We are at a campground with high water pressure and use a regulator
(we always do)and a filter. By the time it gets to the tap, pressure is really low...if I take the filter off it's ok. Do you think the filter (it's new) somehow slows the flow even more?

if the regulator is one of those cheap, screw-on types you might want to take it off and see if the inside pressure changes. it's sure one or the other.

Could be a couple of problems. What is the micron rating on your new filter? the lower the micron rating the more restriction placed on water flow. Have you removed the regulator to see if flow improves? We upgraded to a whole house regulator by Watts which I set at 60 pounds. it made a big difference in flow. Lastly have you cleaned the screens in the end of your faucets lately. Every time I check mine I find build up from hard water which restricts flow. On my last coach there was a back flow valve in the coach water supply that I had to remove as it was restricting the flow too much.

In general, flow rates for sediment filters are higher than for equally sized carbon or media filters. The tighter the filter, the slower the recommended flow rate is also a generalization you can count on. One manufacturer, for example, gives the following maximum flow rates for its pleated 9.75" X 2.5" filter cartridges:

1 Micron Absolute -- 3 gpm.

2 Micron Nominal -- 4 gpm.

5 Micron Nominal --7 gpm.

20 Micron Nominal -- 8 gpm.

50 Micron Nominal -- 10 gpm.

Carbon block cartridges in the same size are usually rated at a maximum flow rate of 1 gpm, and if serious chemical removal is expected, the flow recommendation would be slower.

so yes the filter can effect flow.

Turn water source off
Disconnect hose from city water connection
Turn water on and check flow (with regulator & filter in place)
Then check flow without filter

How high is CG water pressure?
What type of regulator....brand.....fixed or adjustable?
What type of filter...whole house/canister or in-line screw on type?

Also check city water inlet screen/washer......is it dirty?

Have you tried the on board pump.....any change in flow vs city water?

Have you removed/clean faucet aerators?

If you haven't done it already, place the filter before the regulator. Then their pressure drops do not add together.

A cheap regulator will work fine as long as it's a "High Volume" model.
The standard part will cause low pressure at times.

Take a look at the water pressure regulators at the RV Water Filter Store. Give them a call. They are more than willing to guide you toward the proper regulator for you coach. I use a Watts Adjustable 263A Regulator.

Everything between the campground faucet and the outlet of your RV tap slows the flow. This is due to pressure loss through the plumbing system components, which is additive.

In general, the smaller the opening(s) in the component, the greater the pressure drop and the slower the water will flow. You can get more flow through a 5/8” hose than a ½” hose, through a filter housing with ¾” connections than ½” connections, and through a sediment filter with 50-micron pores than 5-micron pores – all because of less pressure drop at a given flow rate. Therefore, the specified flows for sediment filters should be accompanied by a pressure drop value. For example, the flow rate is 5 gpm at a pressure drop of 10 psi.

For a cartridge that is sealed in its housing and is installed by pushing it up into the head an twisting, the specified pressure drop is the total drop. For a sediment filter using a cartridge that can be removed from its housing, both the cartridge and its housing may have separately specified pressure drops, so you would add them together to determine the total drop. By measuring the pressure drop with pressure gauges at the inlet and outlet at the specified flow, you can determine whether or not the drop is excessive. This is how to determine when the filter cartridge is plugged.

Some combination cartridge/housing filters are designed with a shut-off that activates when the assembly is removed from the head. If the assembly is not properly re-installed, the shut-off valve might not open fully. For separate cartridge and housing filters, On occasion, the pressure drop was caused because the installer forgot to remove the protective shipping wrap before installing the cartridge.

By determining pressure drop at various points in the system you can determine where excessive restriction is causing lower than expected flow.

BTW, the specified flows for carbon filters usually are not based on pressure drop, but on the maximum flow at which they can successfully reduce contaminants like chlorine.

wny_pat wrote:
Take a look at the water pressure regulators at the RV Water Filter Store. Give them a call. They are more than willing to guide you toward the proper regulator for you coach. I use a Watts Adjustable 263A Regulator.

Thanks for the clicky Pat, I bookmarked it! I'm going to order the 263-A with the stainless steel. I priced one via Lowes at Lake Havasu City, AZ. they special ordered it from Watts and they quoted me a price over $200.00 for the 263-A? The #263-A at the water filter store is a good buy IMHO!

Most filters restrict water flow something fierce.

One solution is to use TWO regulators.. Both Watts whole house and clearly labeled (paint one)

one is put between the filter and the RV set it at 45-50 PSI

The other is set between the park and the hose to the filter (Which by the way needs to be as close to the RV as it can get, OUT of the sun if posible) and set that one to like 60-75 PSI. You hose should be able to stand 80.