What is a water fed system?
A water fed system, or pure water system, is designed to take tap water and remove the impurities. By removing the contaminants, the water will dry spotless on glass. This allows window cleaners to work faster with their water fed poles and brushes to just scrub the dirt and then rinse. No need for multiple steps like soaping up the window, squeegeeing it off, and repeating until perfect. These systems are made to be mobile so you can take them to any job site and get set up in minutes.
How does a water fed system work?
Water Fed Systems are designed to remove minerals and contaminants from water through the use of filters. The purified water can then be fed to a waterfed pole to leave spotless windows. There are two types of waterfed systems, either DI or RO/DI:
- A DI System relies on one or two stages, with the main being DI Resin to remove impurities from water. The DI resin uses a De-Ionization process to pull minerals out of tap water. These systems work best in soft water areas.
- An RO/DI System uses multiple stages of purification to create pure water. Source water travels through the different types of filters keeping it efficient and cost effective. Generally you'll find a carbon filter, an RO membrane, and DI filter on a basic unit. These systems are great for hard water areas.
How are purification systems powered?
It's a surprise to most, but these systems don't require any external power sources. They run thanks to the pressure of the incoming water. A good PSI going into your system will give you good flow out, as long as you don't overdo it with the hose.
However, some systems have optional booster pumps if you need to produce greater GPM. The XERO Pure MAX Power and the XERO Wall Mount System have pumps built in that you can connect to a power source when you want to use the pump. There are separate booster pumps available that run off of 110v and 12v that you can add before your system for greater flow.
What is the most budget friendly Water-Fed Sytem?
If you're looking for the lowest initial cost, a DI Tank is the way to go for an affordable way to enter waterfed window cleaning. However, if you plan to clean regularly in hard water areas, you'll find the overall lifetime cost of the DI Tank to be higher due to the frequent resin refills it will require.
When working with hard water (TDS over 100), you'll be better off with a multi stage RO/DI system like the XERO Pure that utilizes multiple filters to remove impurities. By having these different filters, you can replace the cheaper ones frequently to protect the more expensive RO membranes and only replacing those every few years. This makes the lifetime ownership cost much more affordable.
What Water-Fed System do I need?
Just like every job is unique, there is no one size fits all recommendation for a pure water system. There are multiple factors that play into which unit will be best for you.
- Do you plan to operate multiple poles?
- Do you work on residential or commercial properties?
- What is the quality of water you're starting with?
If you aren't sure which water fed system is right for you, we recommend chatting with one of our experts who would be happy to walk through the pros and cons of each option with you. Thanks to their years of knowledge out in the field, they'll guide you in the right direction.
What is a VFT RO Membrane?
VFT stands for Variable Flow Technology. When it comes to your RO Membrane, this means it will perform at it's peak, even if you PSI may vary from job to job. All 40-inch XERO systems come with the Max Flow VFT RO Membrane.
