After researching and reviewing the CRSpotless water system, I recently decided to purchase one. I've had a heck of a time keeping my Atlas Gray 911 swirl-free even after drying with a waffle-fiber towel, and was anticipating that this would be the solution.

Unfortunately I am not getting the expected results, and after a thorough rinsing and drying, I still get tons of water spots? Perhaps I'm priming the system incorrectly? After about 8 washes, the meter is reading .07, so I should be well within the established range of efficacy. Can someone who has experience with this product help me out with the initial start-up procudure? I've called customer service several times, and have yet to hear back??? Thanks guys...

 

I'm confused by your meter reading. The meter reads total dissolved solids in PPM...it should be under 10-20. Any higher, you will need to replace the resin.

The filter does not work miracles. If your towel is dirty, or you haven't washed your car completely, rinsed completely, or still have dust or debris on the car, the water will still be dirty, leaving spots. If your resin is completely new or charged, and your TDS is 0, and you properly rinse your car, you shouldn't have spots.

 

There could be several reasons for getting spotting. The system is a very basic plumbing system so there isn't any part that could go bad.

Here are a few suggestions:

1. Flow no more than 35-40 gallons per minute through the system. Sometimes, people tend to cranck up their water from the house, which is usually about 80-140 gpm.

2. Use the nozzle provided to you by CR and keep it on the FLAT setting.

3. Get a TDS meter, very cheap, from a pet store or a store selling aquarium equipment. You may have VERY hard water going into the system and the resin may be exhausted.

4. Also, have you ALWAYS had the water spotting as an issue? How long have you had the resin and how often are you using it?

Feel free to call me if you need further troubleshooting. Not sure if you bought the system from us or not, happy to help a fellow 6speeder and keep the good name of a product alive.

 

Thanks for the responses. I'm going to try with keeping the water-bib turned down. As noted by Moe, I think I might have made the mistake of turning the water up all the way. I can see why this might be the culprit. I'll post an update soon.

 

Glad I could help...I've heard every situation and it's usually something minor.

 

Just a quick update: Customer service ended up calling me back and forwarding my issue to Chuck, the owner of CR Systems. Let it be known that this is a stand-up guy through and through. He helped with the trouble-shooting process himself, and to make it good, fed-exed a brand new package of resin! I carefully followed his directions and reloaded the system with the new resin. To my relief, the final rinse did indeed dry completely spot-free...as advertised. Thanks to all you who offered insight, and thanks to Chuck for his outstanding customer service and willingness to stand by his product. For any of you who may be 'on the fence', considering the purchase of this product, I suggest you give it a try!!! Two thumbs up to CR Spotless!

 

so what was the process that Chuck had you do? i bought the cr spotless from moe a couple of months ago but only just used it this weekend for the first time lol but i had the same experience as you. the water spots.

 

He had me take a baseline TDS reading by removing the cartridge and running the water directly through the system, filter-free. This will help gauge how many gallons your system will filter based on the water hardness in your area. My baseline TDS was ~118-125.

He also explained that in the initial use, you need to slowly turn the water on and allow the resin to completely saturate the incoming water. Additionally when the filter is filling, or 'priming', your outlet should not have your water hose attached; the hose should only be attached when the reservoir is full and starts to trickle out of the outlet side.

The nozzle should only be set on the 'flat' setting, as it was explained that this is most effecient setting for optimum water flow.

The replacement resin that he sent me was also a different color than the one that came with my system. The resin I discarded was light, almost the color of play sand. The resin that I reloaded was very dark and more gritty, like sand that had been saturated in oil? I don't know if this has anything to do with the results, but I thought that it should be noted.

I suggest you call CS if you can't get it just right. They really do support thier 100% satisfaction claim. Good luck, and keep us updated...

 

ya weird. mine is sand color too. ok will do doesnt hurt to give them a call. thanks for the info.

 

Moe might know the answer to this but my first few replacement resins were sand colored, but the last group was darker and more gritty feeling as you described...did they improve it or change it? It still works great just looks and feels different.

 

I think they might have switched vendors...I'll find out for sure today...have an order to place with them anyway.

 

I've been using the CR Spotless for about 2 years and have had PERFECT results. Keep the flow rate low, use the FLAT nozzle and keep an eye on the TDS meter. I can't even see spots on the darkly tinted tailgate glass on my Grand Cherokee. This system is awesome and really eliminates the swirl marks that are impossible to avoid when towel drying.

 

hmm... mine is spotting too. do you guys ONLY use it to rinse?

I use mine for both the wash and rinse, but I feel like I'm using too much resin too fast...

 

You have to take into consideration that the resin usage and changing will depend on how much water is flowing through the cr and how hard your water is.

I always recommend getting an inexpensive pressure washer and using it all the way. The pressure washer will reduce the 4.5 gpm output of the cr to 1.5 gpm, therefore, almost tripling the life of the resin.

 

meh ya I need to give them a call. i have only used it the first time and i got dry spots. I will try it again but more careful on the faucet flow. i think i will definite give them a call to make sure i am doing it right.