Studio Dweller |
2014-10-22

This system was recommended to me by a friend and after installing it and having it running for about three months I couldn't be happier with it. The water is hands down the best I've ever tasted from any source and it's completely eliminated the need to buy bottled water for my wife and I so it will pay for itself in about a year. I also bought a TDS meter to measure the total dissolved solids in our water (HM Digital TDS-4). Our tap water consistently measures 690-720 ppm which is extremely high and consequently, it tastes pretty terrible. Our previous faucet mounted Pur filter only made a marginal improvement. The water coming out of the RO system now measures at around 25 ppm and tastes amazing. From reading most of the reviews here and from my personal experience of installing it, I put together some information that I've given to friends and thought it would be helpful to have it consolidated into one post here. A few reviews mentioned that the main shut-off valve that comes with the RO system started leaking after a while and that you'll be much better off if you just replace it with a better one from the start. The valve is $11 and you can get it at Home Depot and I opted to replace it from the start. It's a Watts 1/4 in. Plastic Adapter Stop Valve model #:P-467CS and Home Depot SKU: 1000018247 Just a few notes regarding the installation: Very important: Cut all hoses so the ends are square and and the cuts are clean before making the connections or they may leak. I did that and I've had no leaks, but I can see how you might have leaks if you decide to skip this very important step which is also mentioned in the installation instructions. A few reviews mentioned that changing the order of the filters so the mineral stage comes before storage tank improves the taste of the water. I opted to do this and have never looked back as the water tastes amazingly good. The way it's configured out of the box (after the 3 big filters) is RO Membrane->Storage Tank->Carbon->Mineral->Faucet Change it to RO Membrane->Mineral->Storage Tank->Carbon->Faucet. When you're ready to run water through it for the first time (and whenever you change filters), disconnect the input hose to the RO membrane and flush the first three stages into a bucket. Just like a faucet-mounted filter (ie: Pur, Brita), the water will come out gray at first from the residual carbon so it's probably better not to send all that into the RO membrane. Once the water runs clear connect it to the RO membrane. I think the rest of this is in the instruction manual, but I'll mention it anyway: After you re-connect the RO membrane, keep the valve to the storage tank off and let the water run for a while. It will only trickle out and like the carbon filters, the RO membrane needs to be flushed for a little while and you don't want that going into the storage tank. When you're ready to fill the storage tank, it takes about two hours to fill. Once the tank is full, open the faucet and let it drain it completely and re-fill. You'll want to do that twice before using it. The water will have some bubbles in it at the beginning and it will gradually become very clear. I think that covers it! All of that made a for a leak-free installation and some very tasty water!

Steve Lowther |
2019-01-10

Dislikes:1) The package was kind of heavy. I had to grunt a bit when picking it up. (Hey, I had to find SOMETHING!)But I'm pretty critical, so I'll update this review if I find any more gripes. I guess I should include I almost wet my pants when I heard a loud snap when installing the RO membrane cartridge in its housing while their customer service guy was on the line (see below). But everything worked out just fine after I checked to see if the cartridge survived and if I needed to change my underwear.Likes:1) I won't say it was a breeze because it does take a few hours. However, there are YouTube videos by the company and some by individuals installing this product and systems by other companies. The extensive directions with the system say in bold print to watch the video first. I say watch as many different videos as you can. I discovered many tips that iSpring didn't mention including using the drill bit you just drilled to keep the hole aligned why installing the "drain saddle".I did a "leisure time" installation. That is, I unwrapped the filters and put them in their housing while sitting in my easy chair. Before I knew it, I was 75% done! All I had to do then was empty out the area under the sink, grab my tools and work light, and start installing the feed water adapter. (I decided not to call it a "thingy", so I had to go the trouble just now of looking up the name of the part in their glossary.)2) Their customer support was great! They did some very patient hand-holding over the phone. For example, the instruction manual shows an old style threaded compression fitting for the faucet they provide. Well, I missed seeing that they included a flyer with update instructions mentioning that a new part provided was easier to install, and no you don't have to use the blue clips on the faucet side. That really made it easy!I was also concerned that the RO membrane cartridge was resisting my efforts. I was afraid of breaking it, but some threads were still showing on the housing. So while talking to one of the guys, I became a bit more aggressive in tightening it and heard a way too loud "snap"! I guess mine fit a bit tighter than most as it works perfectly. Whew!3) Their documentation is excellent! Not only are the illustrations very clear with appropriate use of color in routing the lines they provided a parts list, additional products (of course!), and extensive theory on how RO works, dissolved solids, even minerals and life forms that can and cannot be removed by RO. This was almost "Reverse Osmosis 101"!4) The parts are high quality! Some bozo here gave them a rating of "1" because the items are made from polymers! Was he expecting for everything to be made of surgical stainless? My god, even plumbers in their own homes use "plastic", and have for the last 40 years! This guy was either an idiot or a dishonest competitor. You can't even BUY a system made of metal!

ReynerN |
2012-07-02

My old RO filter (with UV) was not working right, even after replacing all the filters. So I was looking for a new RO system with good reviews and decided on 2 systems: Tap Master TMAFC Artesian Full Contact Reverse Osmosis with Alkaline by Perfect Water and iSpring 6-stage with RO Alkaline. The Tap Master had tons of great feedback, but so was iSpring (the non-alkaline model). The only reason why I ended up purchasing iSpring was the price.DAY 1The system came in a well packaged box and I found everything easily including some spare parts for future use, which I appreciate. Fittings and pipes were included. All I need was the tools (wrench, scissors, etc) and a Teflon sealer that I got from Home Depot. I noticed a little trace of water and I found out that iSpring did a real test for quality control so that's a good thing.Installation was not hard, but it took me 45-60 minutes because I had to make sure that all fittings were tight and I also labeled the in/out just for future references, steps that most people won't do or not required to get the system up and running. The manual is clear and upon my purchase, the seller emailed me a youtube link that shows how to install it.Once everything was installed, I ran the water for about 10-20 minutes just to flush the system. I used HM Digital TDS-EZ TDS Water Quality Tester and got 150+ PPM (parts per million) in the beginning, and got better as I continually ran the water within minutes to as low as 20 PPM. I also tested a very popular bottled water that I like, and it showed the same 20 PPM with similar taste, which is great. After about an hour or two, it seems to stay within the 15-45 PPM range.Note on PPM:0-50 PPM = ideal water50-100 PPM = carbon filtered water100-200 PPM = hard water200-300 PPM = average tap water300-400 PPM = high total dissolved solid (TDS)500 PPM = US EPA's high contaminant levelI've run it off and on for a few hours now and saw no leak. Everything works great. The water quality is crisp and better yet, the Alkaline level is better than just an ordinary RO (alkaline has many benefits and will help you detoxify your body naturally).DAY 2Tested the water often and I get 20-40 PPM. Water came out with less bubbles.DAY 3As of now, the PPM is constantly in the low 20s with very little bubbles. This system runs very quietly and I've never heard any noise from it. I will update this review if I see some degradation in quality other than normal wear/tear or scheduled filter change (which is recommended every 6 months for some, 1 year for the other). Overall, I am happy with the quality and most importantly, I have a good, clean and great tasting water again. I will not have any problem recommending this system to anyone.

JimM |
2018-11-23

It all went together exactly like the installation directions, which were clear and easy to understand. My wife is a picky water drinker and her choice of water is Nestle's pure life. She dislikes some of the more expensive cliche' waters so I had some reservations about purchasing a system only to have her not like it, but for the price I could throw it away and not have it bankrupt me.Installed it yesterday, filled and drained the tank twice, and went to bed. This morning I go to the kitchen and find a happy face note stuck to the faucet saying "I like it!". I also bought a tds meter to test my ro water, which is 25 tds, and used it to test some bottled water. Found out that some of the expensive waters that taste like dirt, register on my meter like dirt too! Nestle pure life was one of the better waters tested and it recorded a 35 tds.We've both had 5 stage ro water in the past and found it to taste very bland so I had my doubts that the ph filter would fix the problem, but it sure did! If my wife is happy, then there's a very good chance that you will be too!Update:. It's been a year now and I'm still using my original filters and our water still tastes great. TDS meter reads 18 filtered and 168 tap water. There's just the two of us and it's used for all drinking and ice. No leaks, no problems. We'd give six stars if we could.

T. Miller |
2018-04-12

I've had this filter system installed for 4 years now and won't be without it. Our water has a high level of chlorine in it and this system takes all of it out. I know this because when I run tap water in the sink and use the pool test chemical to test it, the water turns bright yellow which indicates chlorine. When I run water from my RO faucet, it runs clear and does not turn bright yellow. I also like the fact that this system has an alkaline filter to add some vital minerals back in since it strips so much out during the filter process. I was also able to install this myself with the help of the videos I found on their website, so if you are a do it yourself type of person, you should be able to handle this with no problems. I calculated the cost to run this from how much I pay for filters each year and it works out to about 27 cents per day, which is much cheaper than bottled water.

MW |
2018-09-25

My wife just finished installing the RCC7AK under our kitchen sink, and it took a little over an hour taking her time and watching the 15 minute youtube video while going step by step. There is literally no part of this installation you cannot do yourself, no matter your skill level. You plug in some tubings, connect a few things, and the hardest part is just drilling a single hole into the drain tube, which may sound intimidating but it's super easy. So save the $200 and treat yourself afterwards for a job well done instead!I've been very impressed with the build quality and level of instructions given for a product of this price. We did see our TPM drop from 320 down to a permanent 13 (I'm assuming because of the remineralization) and now that I have it hooked up to the fridge as well, our automatic ice-maker produces crystal clear cubes.

Seth |
2018-10-07

The system actually took several hours to put together as I had to move around the garbage disposal to get it to fit. The actual assembly process isn't very difficult as most of the pieces don't need extra tools. For instance the tubing has quick connectors that lock into place sort of like a shark bite. I did have to drill a hole into the drain line for the drain fitting. I already had a hole for the faucet. The kit comes with some spare fittings and odds and ends in case something needs a little retro fitting. I actually had some extra 1/4" pex that I used with a T fitting to run it over to my refrigerator. So far it is running smooth and I haven't had a glass of water yet but I'm excited for it when I get home from work. I actually had a different system from another company that had an ASO failure which cost me $150 in water bills. During the installation I found out there was no possible way to fit the reservoir tank under the sink. (I have a small sink and a massive garbage disposal on one side). I ended up using the reservoir from the old system as it had the same fittings and was much smaller. It had the same specifications just smaller. So that ended up working out from me. When I bought my first RO system several years ago I didn't do much research. I'm glad I switched to Ispring. The old system had multiple points of failure that were just unnecessary.

LarryD |
2018-09-06

It should have been a quick install considering it was not all that complicated. But after getting up and down too many times, my back was killing me! After a few hours it was done. Once the flushes were completed, I was getting clear and tasty water. The small air bubbles introduced some cloudiness, but it cleared out fairly quickly. After a week, the bubbles are mostly gone.I had only one problem with the installation: the faucet was leaking around the base and was pooling on the sink. Josh at iSpring said they would send a replacement. The replacement was a bit smaller (it actually looks better on the sink) and is leak-free after a few days of use. iSpring seems committed to customer satisfaction and maintaining their reputation as a high-quality water purification company. Good for them. And us!

Domenick Bellusci |
2018-05-14

This is a great system. There was room under our double sink so I installed it there. It was easy to install except for the spigot which was in an awkward spot and I have arthritic hands, so it took some patience. I am a 50+ woman and did it by myself in a couple of hours one evening--the instructions and videos this company offers are second to none. I love that they provide a leak alarm just in case. I turned it on and had no leaks straight away. The water tastes fantastic and I feel better that the mineral filter is replacing what has been removed. I love that the first filter is in a transparent housing so I can see that after a few months there is rust collecting on it. The only downside is that the pressure is a little low, but I totally anticipated that with my house pressure being barely adequate. I haven't changed any filters yet but it looks very straightforward and easy to access. So much better than my old RO system.

Eric |
2016-09-08

I have owned the iSpring RCC7AK for over a year now.I've always been able to taste the city water and for years really played a role in the small amount of water I was drinking. When I wake up in the mornings I would try to drink a glass of water. When I did, I did not feel very good and my stomach was upset. I decided to use Crystal Spring, and paying almost $30 a month for 15 gallons of water was not cutting it. Between me working out and drinking water, and my wife and our 3 kids water was starting to cost me a lot of money. I will not lie, I drank the hell out of that Crystal Spring water. I moved out of the apartment into our new house and I felt like I was just throwing money away and wanted to get a RO water system. I looked at Home Depot, Lowes, and a few online. The cost for those were very high and when I read the reviews online they were not very high. There were a lot of customers who hated their systems or the filters were junk. I looked a while on Amazon, and came across this system and the 9 stage with the UV light. From what I read about the UV, people were saying the water was coming out really warm, and for me I love cold water. I opted to forgo the 9 stage and just get the 7. So now you know why I wanted the system, lets talk about the actual system. I thought the install was a 4/5. Instructions were OK, but if you go on the website and watch the video, it will make it a lot easier. Once you get everything hooked up you have to prep the tank by running the system for a while and flushing it out. You want to make sure you have an extra opening on the counter, because it has it's own facet for the water.My city water is a good alkaline value; however the TDS meter reads at over 400 parts per million. That is considered on the high side of things. With this system in place I have a healthy alkaline value and my TDS is around 24 on average. I can wake up in the morning and drink 2 glasses of water and I have 0 taste and my stomach is not upset. One of the other reasons I like this system is that the filters are not expensive at all. $70 for a year supply. That equals about 2 months for me at Crystal Spring. Im happy i made the switch, i'm saving money and at the same time I still have some great quality H20.