Manual Katadyn PowerSurvivor 160E (page 16 of 36) (English)

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Prefilter Maintenance

Background: Maintaining a healthy watermaker largely involves taking proper care of the

prefilter assembly and seawater intake plumbing. Failure to do so is the most common cause of

the two most frequent types of watermaker “failure” we hear about: (1) producing diminished or

no freshwater output, or (2) producing “bad-smelling” product freshwater. Here is what happens:

No Freshwater Output: The most common cause of diminished or no product

freshwater output is air entering the seawater intake system at some point. The pump volume is

small and the pressure required to press water through the membrane is high (about 800 psi).

Since air is highly compressible, a very small amount of air can keep the pump from producing

enough pressure to produce product freshwater. Periodically inspect and test the entire

seawater intake system to assure that all joints and fittings are airtight, especially the

connections at the prefilter assembly. (Note: Be aware that a stable air gap at the top of the

prefilter housing while operating is not uncommon, and doesn’t necessarily mean that air is

getting to the pump itself.)

Bad-smelling Product Freshwater: The purpose of the prefilter assembly is to trap

any particulates in the intake seawater that are larger than 30 microns. A coarse strainer (if

installed) performs the same chore for contaminants of larger size. In each case, trapped

material remains in the prefilter housing (and/or strainer bowl) until removed.

Much of the trapped material is organic: plankton, seaweeds and flotsam of all types. After a

watermaker has been turned off, this material soon begins to decompose. As it does, it breaks

down into a number of chemicals composed of smaller molecules. Some of these molecules are

small enough to pass through the watermaker membrane along with the product freshwater.

Perhaps the best-known example of such a chemical is hydrogen sulfide, a gas which (in small

concentrations) smells like “rotten eggs.”

Two main factors affect the speed with which these products of organic decomposition will

contaminate a watermaker system: (1) the ambient temperature and (2) the quantity of trapped

material. We realize that many users of our equipment run their watermakers in near-shore

situations while anchored. The amount of trapped material is usually high in such locations, and

the prefilter assembly will require more frequent attention. Moreover, the high ambient

temperatures in tropical locations greatly accelerate the rate of the decomposition process.

The following maintenance routine for the prefilter assembly is appropriate for a “worst case”

scenario: using the watermaker in a near-shore location in the tropics. Users in temperate

climate areas or users processing open-ocean seawater during offshore passages are not as

likely to require the same diligence.

Prefilter Maintenance: At the end of each run of your watermaker, examine the prefilter

assembly (and the coarse strainer, if installed) for trapped material. If anything is visible,

perform the following procedure:

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Katadyn PowerSurvivor 160E Manual

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