Clean Water Systems Birm 7800 Installation manual

Clean Water Made Easy
www.cleanwaterstore.com
Birm 7800 Iron Filter Installation & Start-Up Guide
Thank you for purchasing a Clean Water System! With proper installation and a
little routine maintenance your system will be providing iron-free water for many
years.
Please review this start-up guide entirely before beginning to install your system
and follow the steps outlined for best results.
BIRM MEDIA CONTAINS DUST.
USE PAPER MASK AND VENTILATE AREA TO AVOID BREATHING DUST DURING
INSTALLATION
IMPORTANT: YOU MAY NOT NEED TO ADD ALL THE FILTER MEDIA YOU
RECEIVED. THE FILTER TANK SHOULD NOT BE FILLED MORE THAN 2/3 FULL.
Questions?
Call us toll-free: 1-888-600-5426 or 1-831-462-8500
Email us: [e-mail]
See more information on our website: www.cleanwaterstore.com/resources

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Table of Contents
Packing List.................................................................................................................................................... 2
Pre-Installation.............................................................................................................................................. 3
Best Practices for Piping & Drain Installation ............................................................................................... 3
How Your Birm Filter System Works............................................................................................................. 4
Fig. 1: Birm Filter Tank Diagram....................................................................................................... 4
Fig. 2: Typical Installation of a Birm Filter System ........................................................................... 5
Assembly and Installation Instructions......................................................................................................... 6
Fig. 3: Media Funnel Use.................................................................................................................. 6
Fig. 4: CWS 7800 Bypass and Pipe Connectors ................................................................................ 7
Fig. 5: CWS 7800 Bypass Knobs........................................................................................................ 8
Programming Instructions ............................................................................................................................ 9
Starting The Initial Backwash........................................................................................................................ 9
Maintaining Your Birm Filter System .......................................................................................................... 11
Troubleshooting the Birm 7800 Iron Filter System..................................................................................... 11
What to Do If Your Filter Tank Does Not Sit Level on the Floor .................................................... 11
How to Remove the Red Clips from the 7800 Control Valves without Breaking Them ............................. 12

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Packing List by Model
Each system comes with the following:
1 7800 Backwash Control Valve with Pipe connector kit (either 1”or ¾”)
1 Enpress filter tank with distributor tube installed
1 Media funnel
In addition, each system comes with the following, depending on the model ordered:
1.0 Cubic Foot Birm:
Quantity Description
1 12 lbs Gravel
2 ½ cubic foot boxes of Birm filter media
1.5 Cubic Foot Birm:
Quantity Description
1 16 lbs Gravel
3 ½ cubic foot boxes of Birm filter media
2.0 Cubic Foot Birm:
Quantity Description
1 20 lbs Gravel
4 ½ cubic foot boxes of Birm filter media
2.5 Cubic Foot Birm:
Quantity Description
1 35 lbs Gravel
5 ½ cubic foot boxes of Birm filter media

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Pre-Installation
1. Review your packing list and make sure you have received all the parts before beginning
installation.
2. If you are going to be turning off the water to the house and you have an electric water heater,
shut off the power to the water heater before beginning installation in case water heater is
accidentially drained.
3. Pick a suitable location for your filter system on a dry level spot where it won’t be exposed to
freezing temperatures. A minimum of 20 PSI is required. Maximum pressure is 90 PSI.
4. Get all of your plumbing parts together before beginning installation. Installation typically takes
3 to 5 hours. However after installation the Birm Filter must be allowed to run through a
complete backwash and rinse cycle.
5. After the system is installed and running, your water may be discolored, or full of sediment or
rust, particularly if this is older or corroded piping. Typically this clears up over a day or two.
Best Practices for Piping & Drain Installation
1. See typical installation (see Fig 2). The Birm filter is installed after the pressure tank. If you are
also installing a water softener, install the softener after the Birm filter.
2. Make sure to connect the in pipe to the 7800 control valve inlet and the outlet to the outlet (see
Fig 3). As you face the 7800 control from the front, the water enters on the right and exits on
the left. From the back (see Fig 3) the water enters on the left. The inlet and outlet are
attached to the bypass valve which is marked with arrows as well.
3. Make sure there is a working gate or ball valve before the 7800 Birm filter and also one after as
shown in the diagram Fig 2. The pressure gauges are optional and perhaps not necessary but a
hose bib (which is a faucet that you can attach a garden hose to) is strongly recommended after
the Birm filter before the second ball valve. This makes it easy to rinse your new Birm filter on
start-up and gives you a place to test the water before it enters your household plumbing.
4. If you will be using copper piping, do not sweat the copper pipe directly on to the 7800 control
valve. Avoid heating up the 7800 control valve plastic with the torch.
5. You do not need unions to install your 7800 control. If you need to remove it, the 7800 has
quick-release couplings that make it easy to put the Birm filter on by-pass and remove the filter
system from the piping.

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6. The drain line tubing (not supplied) is connected to a drain from the drain outlet using flexible
½” ID tubing. Note that the drain can run up above the 7800 control and into a drain, it does not
have to drain down, as the filter backwashes under line pressure from your well pump. Most
plumbing codes require an air-gap connection, so that if your sewer or septic tank backs up, it
cannot cross connect with the drain tubing.
How Your Birm Filter System Works
See Fig 1. In your Birm filter, the water enters the top of the tank (red arrows) and flows down through
the media and up the distributor tube (blue arrows). Iron and manganese in the water turns to an
oxidized particle upon contact with the media and is trapped in the media. During backwash, the water
flow is reversed and water flows down the distributor tube and up through the media, lifting and
expanding the Birm (BIRM , also called ‘Filox’ ) media, and removing all the iron and rust trapped in the
filter. During the backwash the Birm filter media is cleaned by the action of the water flowing up
through it.
Fig 1 - Birm Filter Tank Diagram

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Fig 2 - Typical Birm piping installation with ball valve and hose bib after the filter. Filter strainer is
optional, and useful if there is sand or grit in the water. The 25/1 micron filter after is optional, and
used when there is very fine sediment or colloidal particles over 1 micron present.

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Assembly and Installation Instructions
1. Unscrew by hand the entire 7800 control valve from top of tank if it was shipped screwed on.
The Vortech distributor tube is already installed in the tank. If not already done, make sure blue
temporary plug is on top of distributor tube, or wrap the top of distributor tube with electrical
or duct tape.
You do not want gravel or filter media to go down the distributor tube.
Fig. 3: Media Funnel Use
2. Add filter gravel supplied first, using the funnel sent with the Birm filter. NOTE: Be sure not to
let any parts of the bag or foreign materials enter the tank when you are adding media.
3. Next add the Birm media. Tank will be approximately 60% full. Do not fill past 60%, even if there
is some extra media left over.
4. Remove cap or tape from top of distributor tube.
5. Add 2 cups of household bleach down the inside of the distributor tube and fill tank completely
with water. This will allow the Birm media to become activated and also sanitize the media. It
will also eliminate the need of “purging” the air out of the tank later.
6. NOTE Regarding Teflon tape and pipe sealants: It is OK to use Teflon tape and pipe sealant on
the water pipe connector threads, where you attach your pipes or plumbing to the 7800. DO
NOT USE any Teflon tape or pipe joint compound on the tank itself or on the threads where
the 7800 threads into the tank. Please Note: When installing the 7800 backwash control-timer
valve on to the top of the filter tank, do not over-tighten. Tighten by hand; there is no need for a
pipe wrench or other wrench.
7. See how the by-pass is connected (Fig 4). Note that the pipe connectors and the other end is
what gets attached to the control valve, while the red clips hold the pipe connectors to the by-
pass valve. To put the system on or off bypass do NOT remove the red clips, just turn knobs. The
7800 is usually shipped in by-pass position.
Temporary cap
on top of
distributor tube

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8. Make sure the by-pass valve is in the bypass position when starting the installation. Follow the
IN and OUT arrows on the bypass valve and control valve for proper connection of in and out
water piping. Leave in the BY-PASS position for now.
Fig. 4: 7800 Bypass & Pipe Connectors
9. Lubricate the by-pass valve o-rings only on the pipe connectors with some vegetable oil or
silicone grease and connect the bypass assembly to the 7800 control by sliding the bypass valve
firmly into the body of the 7800. Once bypass is in far enough, you will be able to easily insert
the red connector clips. DO NOT USE PETROLEUM GREASE ON ANY PART OF THE 7800
CONTROL VALVE.

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Fig. 5: 7800 Bypass and Service Positions
10. Now install your water pipes to the 7800 bypass end connectors. Our preferred method is to
wrap the pipe threads with 2 or 3 wraps of Teflon tape, then apply a thin coating of white non-
hardening Teflon joint compound paste (available at all hardware stores) before attaching the
pipe fittings. Make sure inlet is installed to the 'In" pipe connector on the bypass valve and
outlet is on the “Out”connector.
11. Connect some flexible tubing from the drain connection on the 7800 control valve to a suitable
drain such as a septic tank or drain to a sewer. It is OK to run the drain line up and over the
7800 Birm filter up to 4 feet above the top of the tank. If the drain line will be more than 20
feet, and especially if your system is a 2.0 or 2.5 cubic foot size, use larger diameter tubing such
as ¾” or 1”. Note that it is desirable to be able to run the drain line into a bucket in order to test
the backwash flow rate in the future. This is why hard piping the drain line is discouraged,
however, if you do use hard PVC piping for the drain line, and you are able to remove the hard
PVC drain piping and attach flexible tubing should you ever desire for testing purposes, it is OK
to use rigid PVC pipe for the drain. Make sure the drain tubing is firmly clamped to the barbed
fitting with a hose clamp to prevent leaks.

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Programming Instructions
12. Plug in your 7800 control valve to an outlet
13. From the display screen, press and hold the settings button for three seconds to access the
programming menu.
14. Set Time of Day –Use the up and down arrows to select the proper value. Once the proper
value is set, press the Settings button (Enter) to proceed to the next setting. Hitting the Manual
Regen button at any time will take you out of the programming and back to the main menu
15. Set Year - Use the up and down arrows to select the proper value. Once the proper value is set,
press the Settings button (Enter) to proceed to the next setting
16. Set Month - Use the up and down arrows to select the proper value. Once the proper value is
set, press the Settings button (Enter) to proceed to the next setting
17. Set Day - Use the up and down arrows to select the proper value. Once the proper value is set,
press the Settings button (Enter) to proceed to the next setting
18. Set Regen Days - Set the number of days between backwashes, typically for every 3 days for
moderate to heavy iron. If the iron level is low and water usage is light you can try setting it for
every 4 days, but a setting of every 3 days is recommended by the manufacturer. If your iron is
very high (over 4.0 ppm) and you use a lot of water you can set it to every night. Frequent
backwashing prolongs the life of the media by several years.
19. Gallons On/Off –Select Off to program it to be used as an Iron Filter
20. Regen Time - Set the time of the night that you want the Birm filter to backwash. The default
time is 2:00 am. Adjust the time by pushing the up or down arrow if you want.
21. Programming Complete –If you need to go back and change anything, simply press and hold
the Settings button to go through the programming menu again.
Starting The Initial Backwash
22. Now you are ready to turn on the water. Turn on the water and leave the Birm filter on bypass
and check for leaks. Leave the ball valve after the Birm filter closed, so water is still off to the
house, but connect a garden hose and open up the hose bib after the Birm filter and allow the
water to run for several minutes. This important step clears out any foreign material that may
be in pipes from the installation. If you do not have a valve and hose bib installed after the Birm
filter, you will need to turn the water on inside the house to let the water run. Use a bathtub or
laundry sink or other fixture that does not have an aerator screen.

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23. Press and hold the Manual Regen button for three seconds which will start a manual backwash,
watch the display and wait until it starts counting down. Now unplug the power supply and
proceed to step 24.
24. Now you can slowly turn the bypass valve to the service position. You do NOT remove the red
clips on the bypass knobs in order to turn the bypass valves from the bypass to the service
position. First open the Inlet Side of the bypass valve. Second slowly open the Outlet Side of the
bypass until it is in the full service position. The 7800 bypass valve knobs are a little stiff, so you
can use Allen wrench placed in the holes to turn the knobs. Turn the bypass valve knobs in the
correct direction which is counter-clockwise as you face the bypass valve knobs.
25. There should be no Birm media coming out of the drain line, but the water will be black or dirty
looking. At this point the Birm filter will be in a backwash cycle. The backwash takes 10 minutes.
If the water slows down or stops during the first 10 minutes of backwash, press the Manual
Regen button to move the 7800 control to the next cycle, the Rinse cycle. Then repeat the
backwash and rinse after the rinse cycle is done, by pressing and holding the Manual Regen
button for three seconds again. If you have high water pressure you may need to turn on the
water slowly to the Birm filter at first to prevent some Birm fines from coming out the
backwash. However it is normal for some small amount of fines to come out during the
backwash, although you do not want to see a large amount of media coming out, which would
mean you have very high water pressure, or the drain flow control for the 7800 is missing.
26. If possible verify that the backwash flow rate. You can easily run the drain hose to a bucket and
using a watch verify the flow rate in gallons per minute. For example, if the backwash fills a 5
gallon bucket in 30 seconds, you have 10 gallons per minute or 10 GPM. An adequate
backwash is critical to properly clean the Birm media and prevent it from cementing together.
1.0 Cubic Foot Model: 5 GPM recommended
1.5 Cubic Foot Model: 5 GPM recommended
2.0 Cubic Foot Model: 7 GPM recommended
2.5 Cubic Foot Model: 10 GPM recommended
27. The next cycle is the Rinse cycle and this runs for 6 to 8 minutes. After the backwash, the 7800
will automatically advance to the rinse cycle.
28. After the Birm filter has gone through the backwash and rinse, press and hold the Manual Regen
button for three seconds and repeat the backwash and rinse. This is the same procedure that
needs to be done each time you add Birm media in the future, that is, the Birm media must be
thoroughly backwashed and rinsed.

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Maintaining Your Birm Filter System
There is little or no maintenance required. Every 6 –10 years the Birm media can be replaced for best
results.
Troubleshooting the Birm 7800 Iron Filter System
One problem that may occur is if you do not have enough backwash flow rate to properly clean the Birm
filter. You can verify the backwash flow rate by running the drain line into a bucket and timing it when
the 7800 is in backwash.
If you are still getting some iron through the system, you can adjust the filter to backwash every 1 or 2
days.
What to Do If Your Filter Tank Does Not Sit Level on the Floor
Your black filter tank base is not glued to the bottom of your tank. Occasionally tank bases
will become crooked during shipment. If you find that that your tank does not sit level on
the floor, you can easily adjust it by holding the empty tank and rapping it on a concrete or
solid floor once or twice in order to level it.

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How to Remove the Red Clips from CWS 7800 Control Valves
without Breaking Them
The CWS 7800 is a great programmable control valve that lasts many years. While it is easy to install and
program, reading this guide prior to installation can save you some time when removing the red clips.
What happens is, when the water is first turned on and the control valve comes up to line pressure, the
bypass valve and pipe connectors push out or push apart slightly and lock in the red clips. When the
water is turned off, and even if there is no water pressure, it’s impossible to remove the jammed in clips,
without great difficulty, and eventually most customers end up breaking them to get them out.
Step 1: Turn off water to the CWS 7800 and relieve the water pressure by opening up a faucet in the
house. You can also put the CWS 7800 on bypass, by turning the bypass valves to bypass. Either way,
the 7800 control valve must be depressurized before removing the red clips.
Step 2: At that point they can practically be removed with your fingertips, although a small flat head
screw driver or needle nose pliers works best to pull out the red clips.