Ideal H2O Professional Pre-Filter - GAC Carbon - for 2000 and 4000 GPD RO

What a GAC Carbon Pre Filter Removes, and What It Does Not

Granular activated carbon works by adsorption. Water passes through a bed of loose carbon granules. Chlorine binds to the internal surface area of the carbon rather than being strained out of the flow. Free chlorine removal runs up to 95%. The same bed also takes volatile organic compounds, pesticides, taste and odour. That is the job it is here to do, and it is not a small one. A thin film composite membrane is destroyed by free chlorine. So the carbon stage is what decides whether a membrane lasts a year or a month. Now the limit, which matters more than anything else about it. Granular carbon has no useful effect on chloramine at all. A growing number of municipal utilities disinfect with chloramine rather than free chlorine, because it persists further through the network. Chloramine needs catalytic carbon, which is processed to reduce it rather than adsorb it. Both cartridges fit the same housing, and catalytic costs more. So the question to settle first is which disinfectant your utility uses, and one call to the water authority answers it. Ideal H2O ship catalytic carbon as the standard fit on the Professional Series, and granular carbon is the alternative.

Where the Reverse Osmosis Pre Filter Sits on a 4000 GPD System

The Professional Series frame is the same across the range, and the pre-filtration stage is a single 4.5 x 20 in housing with one O-ring. Feed water enters the system at a 3/4 in FNPT connection, passes the carbon stage, then meets the membranes. The system's operating conditions set the envelope the cartridge works inside. Feed pressure runs 45 to 85 psi, feed temperature 40 to 85 degrees Fahrenheit, and feed TDS to a maximum of 2,000 ppm. The 2000 and 4000 GPD models share that housing, which is why one cartridge covers both. Ideal H2O recommend replacing granular carbon every four to six months, and it is worth holding to that. A spent carbon bed stops holding chlorine long before it looks dirty. The first symptom is usually the membrane going off rather than the filter looking tired. Keep the change on a calendar instead of on appearance.

Key Features

• Granular activated carbon: A loose carbon bed that adsorbs chlorine rather than straining it.
• Protects the membrane: Free chlorine destroys a thin film composite RO membrane.
• Up to 95% of free chlorine: Plus volatile organics, pesticides, and taste and odour compounds.
• Not for chloramine: A utility dosing chloramine needs catalytic carbon in this housing.
• Fits a 4.5 x 20 in housing: The single O-ring pre-filter housing on the Professional Series.
• Covers both system sizes: The 2000 and 4000 GPD models share one pre-filtration stage.
• Four to six months: The replacement interval for granular carbon.
• Catalytic is the standard fit: This is the granular alternative to what ships on the system.

Technical Specifications