Hoffman INNOVATEIT User manual

Fully Integrated, High-Efficiency R.O. Spot-Free Rinse System
For Further Assistance Please Contact
innovateIT Car Wash Equipment LLC
518-741-4200 option 2
Instruction Manual
REV2.00
Updated 11/2/2023
INNOVATEIT
HOFFMAN
REVERSE OSMOSIS

2 |Section
Table of Contents
1. Introduction...................................................................................................................................................................................................................4
1.1 Warranty...............................................................................................................................................................................................................4
1.2 Safety Information..................................................................................................................................................................................4
2. System Overview...................................................................................................................................................................................................5
2.1 Principles of Operations.................................................................................................................................................................7
2.2 System Operation...................................................................................................................................................................................7
2.2.1 Pump Inlet Pressure Switch (PS1)....................................................................................................................7
2.2.2 RO Pump Pressure Switch (PS2)........................................................................................................................8
2.2.3 RO Product Flow Sensor (ROFLO)...................................................................................................................8
2.2.4 Tank Level Sensor..................................................................................................................................................................8
2.2.5 Recirculation Flow Switch...........................................................................................................................................8
2.2.6 Re-Pressurization Pump Flow Switch........................................................................................................9
2.3 System Functions ....................................................................................................................................................................................9
2.3.1 Stop Mode.........................................................................................................................................................................................9
2.3.2 Start Mode.........................................................................................................................................................................................9
2.4 Tunnel Signal Command for RO Water Delivery to Tunnel.....................................................10
2.5 RO Storage Tank...................................................................................................................................................................................10
2.6 System Performance ........................................................................................................................................................................11
3. Installation Requirements......................................................................................................................................................................13
3.1 Pre-Treatment Solutions.............................................................................................................................................................13
3.1.1 Carbon Block for Chlorine and Chloramine Removal.......................................................13
3.1.2 Additional Feed Water Pre-Treatment...................................................................................................14
3.1.3 System Requirements...................................................................................................................................................14
3.2 Installation Preparation................................................................................................................................................................14
3.2.1 Water Supply.............................................................................................................................................................................15
3.2.2 Floor Drain.....................................................................................................................................................................................15
3.2.3 Compressed Air Supply...............................................................................................................................................15
3.2.4 Unit Placement.......................................................................................................................................................................15
 3.4 ReverseOsmosisSystemIdenti cation...............................................................................................................16
4. Installation....................................................................................................................................................................................................................17
4.1 System Installation.............................................................................................................................................................................17
4.1.1 RO Membrane Installation......................................................................................................................................19
4.1.2 Electrical Installation......................................................................................................................................................20
5. System Startup......................................................................................................................................................................................................23
6. Maintenance.............................................................................................................................................................................................................28

Section | 3
6.1 Replacement Parts............................................................................................................................................................................28
6.1.1 Catalytic Carbon Block Assembly.................................................................................................................28
6.1.2 Carbon Filter...............................................................................................................................................................................28
6.1.3 RO Mebrane System (Membranes and O-Ring Seals in Housing) .................28
6.1.4 Pressure Switches..............................................................................................................................................................29
6.1.5 ASCO 8290 Air Valves (A-D)..................................................................................................................................29
6.1.6 Air Pilot Air Valve.................................................................................................................................................................29
6.1.7 Pumps.................................................................................................................................................................................................29
6.1.8 Electrical/Controller Hardware........................................................................................................................29
6.1.9 Flow Switch.................................................................................................................................................................................29
6.2 Maintence Schedule ........................................................................................................................................................................29
7 Troubleshooting..................................................................................................................................................................................................32
7.1 HMI Fault Codes.....................................................................................................................................................................................34
8 Glossary of Terms..............................................................................................................................................................................................36
 Appendix1-ROSystemIdenti cation................................................................................................................................38
Appendix 2 - Electrical Schematic..............................................................................................................................................42
Appendix 3 - Spare Parts.........................................................................................................................................................................48

Section Header
4 |Introduction
Introduction
1. Introduction
The manufacturer innovateIT Car Wash Equipment LLC is committed to the continuous improvement of its equipment
construction quality and the safe operation of its equipment.
1.1 Warranty
This manual covers the installation, intended use, and maintenance of the Reverse Osmosis (RO) Spot-Free Rinse System.
Misuse or improper operation of this device will void the manufacturer’s warranty.
A 1-year limited warranty from the shipping date covers this product. This warranty shall be void and of no effect if:
• Any installation defect that was apparent or ascertainable at the time of installation was completed but was not
promptly reported to innovateIT Car Wash Equipment LLC.
• Damage occurs due to the customer’s failure to observe any instructions from innovateIT Car Wash Equipment or an
authorized distributor and/or requirements of the manufacturer with respect to the product.
• The breach results from misuse of the equipment as outlined in the instruction manual.
When purchasing through a distributor, please ask about their warranty coverage on the unit.
1.2 Safety Information
CAUTION!
FAILURE TO FOLLOW INSTALLATION AND OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS MAY RESULT IN DAMAGE TO EQUIPMENT OR
PERSONAL INJURY.
The instructions in this manual provide you with the information necessary to install and operate the R.O. System. Before
starting installation, the instruction manual should be carefully read and understood. This relates to all Reverse Osmosis
Spot-Free Rinse System documents from innovateIT Car Wash Equipment.
The basic pre-requisite for safe working is compliance with all the safety and handling instructions stated in this manual.
Furthermore, follow all local accident, hazard prevention regulations or general safety regulations when installing and operat-
ing the R.O. System.
The equipment’s operation, maintenance, and troubleshooting must only be carried out by trained personnel. Personnel be
abletointerpretawiringdiagram,useamultimetertoreadACandDC,andapplyLockOutTagOutsafetyproceduresspeci c
to the equipment.
Eye protection should be worn at all times when operating the RO. System, as the unit includes high pressure water lines and
membranehousingswhichmayleakif ttingsloosenovertime.
Electrical installation must adhere to local codes and the National Electrical Code, ANSI/NFPA 70 for electrical wiring. To avoid
electrical shock hazards, do not operate this device when controller enclosures are open and energized. Electrical power must
be shut off and a lock-out procedure utilized to ensure all electrical power is disabled before performing maintenance to any

Introduction | 5
portion of the system.
Plumbing installation must adhere to a local code and Uniform Plumbing Code (UPC), and plumbing connections and drains
must adhere to local standards and facility codes.
• Do not remove any Caution, Warning, or any other descriptive labels from the RO system.
• Donotoperatethisdeviceinanexplosiveenvironmentorinthepresenceof ammablematerials.
• Movement or vibrations during shipment may cause connections to loosen. Check all connections before
starting up a unit.
• Do not operate this unit in an environment where water temperatures may be below 40°F or above 80° F.
• This equipment is intended for installation in ordinary locations, by the National Electrical Code, ANSI/NFPA 70,
where the ambient temperature does not exceed 104°F maximum.
innovateIT Car Wash Equipment LLC does not accept liability for accidents or damages due to negligence or disregard for
the instructions in this manual. Also, the Company does not accept liability for damages due to improper use of the equipment.
This instruction manual should always be kept in a safe and easily accessible place near the equipment’s site of installation
and operation, and be available for the operator at the user site at any time.
If the manual is damaged, lost, or misplaced, you should mmediately request a new copy from innovateIT Car Wash
Equipment LLC.

System Overview
6 |System Overview
2. System Overview
innovateITCarWashEquipmentLLChasdevelopedahigh-ef ciencyreverseosmosissystemtoprovidespot-freerinse
service for express car wash applications.
The system uses “Flow on Demand” control algorithm to adjust pump pressure based on number of cars being washed, opera-
tor demand, and condition of the membranes.
The VFD pump allows the system to respond to the car wash demand for RO water and is sized to generate RO needed to
match the demand throughout the day. This approach allows the use of a reduced-size RO storage tank which is fully integrat-
ed into the RO stainless steel stand.
Inaddition,theVFDpumpallowstheunittoproducefull ow(10GPM–StandardFlow,15GPM–HighFlow)downto40Ffeed
watertemperaturetoensureconsistent owforthewasheveninextremelyfrigidwinterclimates.
RO usage is monitored and the RO production rate is automatically adjusted to meet the demand (number of cars in the tun-
nel)toimprovetheenergyef ciencyofthesystemandeliminatetheon/offcyclingtypicalofexistingROsystems.
In addition, the integrated system eliminates the cost of buying and installing large buffer storage tanks needed to meet the
high-volume tunnel demand at busy washes.
This R.O. System has been engineered to allow years of trouble-free operation and low life cycle costs for the operator. The
systemutilizescommercial(highef ciency)ROmembranesthatoperatefrom70to200psipumppressures.Allthecompo-
nents(chlorine lter,pumps,membrane,etc.)havebeenselectedtoimprovethesystem’sreliability,minimizeenergyuse,and
reduce required maintenance.
AlargetouchscreenHumanMachineInterface(HMI)providesanintuitivescreendisplayfortheoperatortomonitorand ne-
tune system performance according to the wash site.
The unit includes the RO storage tank but requires a separate tank for the rejected water. RO reject water is recommended for
use for other wash processes which include wheel blasters, underbody spray, and various rinse processes.
 g. 2 - 1 - Feed water temperature vs. RO output
High Flow
Standard Flow

System Overview | 7
2.1 Principles of Operation
NOTE: Most car washes operate with varying feed water temperatures over the course of the year. This unit is designed to
ensure that the unit produces adequate RO for rinsing cars across a wide range of feed water temperatures and levels of
dissolved solids.
The system is designed to automatically generate the required RO for the demand of the tunnel (up to 24,480 GPD with the
Standard Flow system or 37,440 GPD with the High Flow system.
The unit uses the Grundfos VFD Pump along with a PLC controller to match the RO production to the RO usage. This ap-
proachproduceshighqualitywaterwithmaximumoperatingef ciency.
Thetanklevelsensor(pressuresensor)isusedtogeneratetherequestforROproduction owratewhichvariesbasedupon
theROstoragetanklevel.Thisfeatureallowsthesystemtoincrease owasthetankleveldrops.Whenmatchedtoproperly
sized nozzles in the tunnel, the unit is designed for up to 200 cars per hour continuously.
Thevariable owapproachbasedontanklevelallowstheuseofasmallerROstoragetankswhichintegratedirectlytotheRO
system. The result of this feature allows the pump to operate at lower pressures for longer periods, increasing membrane life
andreducingpumpcycling.Thisavoidsshortcyclingthepumpandallowsunittorunef cientlyevenduringperiodsoflowor
intermittent carwash tunnel volume.
An electrical control box is installed on the unit which includes the PLC, HMI, and mechanical disconnects from the main pow-
er supply, to convert the 480VAC three-phase power to 24 VDC to power the HMI, PLC, and air solenoids and water quality TDS
sensor (24Volt).
The control box also includes a motor starter for the re-pressurization pump which uses RO water from the storage tank and
deliversRO owtothetunnel.There-pressurizationpumpisturnedonbasedonanROrequestsignalfromthetunnelcon-
troller and does not integrate into the RO production pump controller.
A owswitchandanairoperatedsolenoidvalvehavebeenaddedtothere-pressurizationpumpoutputtoprotectthepump
fromadryrunningcondition.Thisfeaturewillturnoffthere-pressurizationpumpandregisterafaultifthe owswitchfailsto
close.
The electrical inputs and outputs (I/O) has been selected to minimize the number of sensing devices while providing the abili-
ty to diagnose failure of the equipment.
2.2 System Operation
The following input and output signals are used to provide the controller information to operate and troubleshoot the system.
These sensors are shown on the system schematic (Appendix 2).
2.2.1 Pump Inlet Pressure Switch - PS1
• 0-5 psi adjustable pressure switch which is used to detect an issue with the water supply. The switch is normally
open and if this switch fails to close after start-up, it will turn off the RO pump and register a system fault. A PS1 fault
will shut down the RO Production Pump and log a fault in the data log.

8 |System Overview
2.2.2 RO Pump Pressure Sensor - PS2
• This pressure sensor is used to protect the system from operating over the setpoint pressure.
• The system can produce 10 GPM (Standard Flow) or 15 GPM (High Flow) of RO below 200 psi at a water temperature
above 40F.
• This pressure set point is to allow the use of membranes that might be lower-pressure or cold-water membranes.
• This situation may occur as the membranes reach the end of life or if feed water drops below 40 F.
2.2.3 RO Product Flow Sensor - ROFLO
• This sensor provides the feedback signal to the pump controller to adjust RO Pump speed and pressure to achieve
thedesiredRO owrate.Theprogrammed owrateisadjustableonthePLCsettingsscreen.
• This sensor provides a 4-20 mA signal to the controller and the calibration is set in the controller software. This
allowstheoperatortoadjusttherequested owbasedonthetanklevel.Asthetankleveldecreases,the owisset
toincrease.ThisapproachallowstheunittogenerateROatthelowestenergycosttomeetthe owrequiredbythe
tunnel.
• ‘ROProduction’turnsonwhenthetankleveldropsto75%and llsitbackto95%.
• Verify the RO pump turns on when the tank level drops to 75% tank level.
• Once the re-pressurization pump is commanded off, the unit will keep running continuously until the level reaches
100%. The system will wait 15min then initiate a RO MEMBRANE FLUSH CYCLE before shutting down.
• Duringthe ushcycle,theROpumpcirculatesafewgallonsofROwatertothefeedsideofthemembranes.
RO water pulls deposits from the surface of the membranes. The  ush water (RO water) remains in the dirty
(concentrate) side of the membranes until the next production cycle.
• Using this method, the feed (concentrate side) of the membranes will always be cleaning the membranes between
the RO production cycles.
Thetankisdividedintothreesectorswhichallow exibilityinset-up.Theobjectiveistoallowtheunittoadjust owbasedon
tanklevelwithlower owratesasthetankisnearing100%fullandhigher owratesasthetankapproachesempty.
The ‘RO Production Turn On’ level is adjustable and will normally be set in the 60% range. In the screen shot above the oper-
ator has set this number to 80%. Based on the settings above the unit will ramp from 0 GPM to 8 GPM when the tank reaches
80% full condition.
2.2.4 Tank Level Sensor
• The tank sensor is a low-pressure sensor that measures the static water head pressure based on the depth of water
in the tank.
• The0-5psisensorisscaledtoa4-20mAsignal.Thissignalisusedtorequest owratebasedonthetanklevel.This
signalisaninputtothePLCwhichisusedtomodifythe owrequestbasedonthetanklevel.
2.2.5 Recirculation Flow Switch
• Therecirculation owswitchveri esthattherecirculationloop ow(thecombined owoftherecirculation owand
reject ow)isoperatingatmorethan12GPMof owduringoperation.
• Thisswitchprotectsthemembranesfromfouling,verifyingthatValveCisopenandtherecirculationandreject ow
ori cesarenotblockedduringROproduction.Ifthereject owori ceortherecirculationori cebecomesblocked
it would increase RO recovery and potentially damage the membranes. The switch will not close if the RO pump
pressure is less than 70 psi.

System Overview | 9
2.2.6 Re-Pressurization Pump Flow Switch
• TheswitchclosesasROpressureatthepump owreaches5GPM.
• Thisswitchveri esthatwhentheRORequestforwaterissentfromthetunnelcontroller,ValveDhasopened,the
deliverypumphasturnedON,andROwateris owingtothetunnel.
• If this switch fails to close it will turn off the re-pressurization pump to protect it from running in a dead-head or dry
running condition. (It is recommended that you have a spare  ow switch and cable to allow quick repair if the
switch fails. PN: Flow Switch- RC-FS VK309)
2.3 System Functions
The following diagram shows how the system works and shows the operating steps to operate in START mode.
 g 2.3 - 1 - HMI screen in START mode
Each of these functions is designed to ensure a reliable and consistent supply of RO water for the spot-free rinse portion of
the wash.
2.3.1 Stop Mode
The unit will always start up in the STOP mode. In this mode, power is supplied to the RO system, and the 24vac signals are
energized. However, the pumps and solenoid valves are all commanded off. The HMI will show a red dot in the mode button
on the main screen.
2.3.2 Start Mode
PressSTARTontheHMI( g.2.3.2-1)
• The system will go through a short initialization of 5 to 10 seconds.
• START MODE will produce RO water until the tank is full (Set maximum tank %)
• The RO pump will continue to operate until the tank reaches the set tank level %.

10 |System Overview
• Iftheunitisinactivefor15minutes,theunitwillperforma ushcycle.
 g 2.3.2 - 1 - START button
Note: IntheeventofeitherlowRO owfromthesystem(duetofailedmembranesorpumpproblems)orifthedemandfrom
thetunnelexceedsthe owfromtheROsystem,thereisamunicipalwaterlinethatusesavalve(E)to lltheROtankifthe
water level drops drop below 25%. This is to protect the re-pressurization pump and ensure rinse water is delivered to the
tunnel.
2.4 Tunnel Signal Command for RO Water Delivery to Tunnel
This signal is controlled directly by the tunnel system controller using a 24 Volt DC relay signal to the R.O. System Controller
and is used to turn on the Re-Pressurization Pump.
This signal switches on and off for each car in the tunnel based on the conveyor speed. The re-pressurization pump is limited
to 180 cycles per hour (maximum continuous cycle rate).
2.5 RO Storage Tank
ThestainlesssteelROstoragetankisintegratedintothestainlesssteelstand.Municipalwater owstoasolenoidoutsidethe
tank to automatically supply municipal water to the tank if there is a failure in the system.
Note: ThesolenoidsupplieswateriftheROpumpormembraneshavereducedRO ow.