Help! Air gap leaking on reverse osmosis

19 years ago

6 months ago we had a Novatek 4 stage RO system installed by the plumber. Because we found the faucet too loud when making the filtered water he installed an air gap adapter under the counter that took the place of the air gap on the faucet.

The system had been working great until I awoke to a giant puddle in my kitchen last week.

First frustration is with the plumber who is being a real idiot and not answering my calls...so now I don't know what to do.

From what I can deduce, the water filtering process is fine until it hits the air gap adapter and instead of continuing through to the drain it's leaking from there.

The leaking stops when I shut off the safety valve that controls the water supply to the RO.

The drain tube does not have any kinks in it.

For now I can continue to make water but I must put a bucket under the air gap adapter and drain it as it becomes full.

Anyone with any ideas?

Featured Answer

asolo

19 years ago

The "air gap", as it implies, is open to the outside. I "seal" this opening with my finger so that my mouth-air blast goes down the tube to the drain-pipe and I can tell by sound down there that my air is flowing freely -- as the RO drain water does when it's clear.

On two occasions over the last decade, I was unable to clear it this way and had to disassemble the drain pipe to get the obstruction. Both times, the obstruction was some fibrous material discharged from the disposal that had entangled itself with the RO discharge line in a way so my mouth air-blast wouldn't free it.

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Comments (6)

User
19 years ago
3 possible causes:
1. Air gap is clogged. Clean it.
2. Drain line is clogged. Replace it - cleaning would be too difficult.
3. Drain flow is too high because the flow restrictor is damaged or missing. Replace the flow restrictor.
Most likely #1 or #3.
asolo
19 years ago
Ditto Alice....

My suspicion is air-gap line clogged...probably only superficially because it's a gravity-drain line.

These lines are typically small in diameter. Mine gets some crud in it (blown in by disposal) about every 3-4 months. I seal it and blow it out with my mouth using a like-diameter tube until I can hear my puff of air clear it down below.
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alpenmicho
Original Author
19 years ago
thanks...I took a peek and the tubing looks darker near the disposal although it's hard to see back there.

What do you mean by seal it and blow it out using a like diameter tube? What is it that you seal?

So, do I take the tube off the airgap adapter and disconnect the other end that's attached to the drain first, or do I leave the drain part connected?
alpenmicho
Original Author
19 years ago
I just wanted to thank you guys. We took the discharge tubing out and the end closest to the drain was clogged with a bunch of crap..yuck. We snipped off that part of the tube and reconnected it and it works again.

I can see that this will be an ongoing maintenance issue though. You'd think my plumber (very reputable, recommended by friends, did tons of work for us), would have put a Y instead of a T where the water discharges.

Anyways...Big thanks!
Catalina Reyes
10 years ago
Asolo rocks!!! I took a straw and placed one end over the air gap and blew from the other end and it worked!!!!! I heard the drain clear and water stopped flowing from the air gap.