TDS meter to test water from water maker

[jcody]

I just bought a 2007 54DS and it came with a CruiseRO seamaker 40 water maker. Previous owner did not ever use the water maker, so he did not know if it functioned correctly or not. I am going to test it out but started thinking about how best to test the water if it does work.

What TDS meter would anyone recommend?

Thanks

[Charlie-Bravo]

I don’t have a water maker on the boat, but having run my own private water supply at home have some water quality experience.
I question the value of knowing the Total Dissolved Solids content of your processed water , presuming you are acquiring your water from either a large lake or the sea the bacteria and enzymes hiding in the water may be a greater threat to you than dissolved minerals.

Having processed your water , desalination etc, and if you actually want to drink it, a 1 to 5 micron filter followed by a UV sterilising unit should be considered , all more stuff I know, but feeling ill kinda spoils the joy, but gives the heads some exercise!

CB

[SaltyDog]

I just ordered an el-cheapo TDS meter with Aliexpress. It works like a charm
TDS Meter

[moonshadow]

When desalinating seawater a TDS meter can tell you if the system and membrane are intact. An important test. The experts say that anything less than 500ppm is “good”. And the membranes are much finer than 1 micron so not so important to have a 1 micron filter later. I think most inexpensive tds meters are fine for this purpose. I can’t argue against ultraviolet light etc except that it is usually unnecessary. Viruses are smaller than the membrane pores but usually are transported attached to something bigger. An occasional dose of bleach in the take should fix that. For drinking tank water it’s easy to add a charcoal filter in the cold water line at the galley tap. There are many other options that add another separate tap etc and take up a lot of room.
Best to read about these and decide what works for your boat.