Here’s How the Reverse Osmosis Water Storage Tanks Work

Reverse osmosis systems use pressurized tanks to store purified water until the demand for the water is started. RO water storage tanks also keep the RO system efficient by turning the system on and off as the tank fills with water and pressure enhances. A reverse osmosis tank is a hydropneumatic pressure tank meant to fit beneath the sink and in line with your reverse osmosis system. The reverse osmosis tank is a storage tank, collecting the water being purified gradually by the reverse osmosis membrane. The reverse osmosis filtration procedure is a slow one. Like commercial hot water tank water is pushed via the semipermeable membrane one drop at a time. The tank enables water to accumulate, so, when you go to pour yourself a glass of water you can have instant access to plenty of water. 

Reverse osmosis tanks are made out of rolled steel and lined with an inert material known as butyl internally. The butyl lining guarantees that the purified RO water does not come into contact with the steel. 

The reverse osmosis tank offers very important functions in the context of the RO system as a whole. Primarily, the tank offers you pressurized water whenever you need it. But the secondary function is no less important to the system’s operation. The reverse osmosis tank maintains pressure all through the reverse osmosis system and actuates the on/off cycling of the system by monitoring line pressure. The reverse osmosis system is equipped with a sensory valve that halts the production of water when the pressure in the tank reaches a certain line pressure. If your feed pressure is 60 psi, the membrane will carry on to filter water and fill the storage tank until the compressing air within that tank reaches 40 psi. When the tank senses that 2/3 of line pressure has been reached, it will move the valve to the closed position, and water production will stop. The automatic shutoff valves work in tandem with the storage tank to preserve thousands of gallons of water per year. If the system did not shut off automatically when the tank filled, water would continue to be sent through the membrane and down the drain.