6 Myths & Facts About Desalination Systems

In many remote parts of New Zealand and the Pacific Islands, getting access to clean water still means relying on rain tanks, old bores, or expensive water deliveries. These can do the job, but they’re not always reliable. If you’re wondering whether modern desalination could be right for your property or project, it helps to separate myths from the real facts about desalination. Here are a few worth unpacking.

Solar desalination is becoming a dependable alternative – especially for off-grid and coastal sites – but there’s still a bit of confusion around how it actually works. Some of the common ideas that used to be true no longer apply. Let’s see…

Myth 1: Desalination Uses Too Much Energy to Work Off the Grid

This was true in the early days. Traditional desalination systems, particularly reverse osmosis units, used a lot of power and were often tied to diesel or the electricity grid. That made them a poor fit for remote homes and sites.

Things have changed. With energy recovery technology and solar panels, today’s systems are far more efficient. Add battery storage, and you’ve got a setup that can run completely off-grid – without fuel deliveries or rising power bills.

These systems are developed by Elemental Water Makers and are exclusively distributed in Oceania by Bluemont. They use solar power, reverse osmosis, and a built-in energy recovery process, all packaged in a compact solution suited to smaller sites across NZ and the Pacific.

Myth 2: You’ll Still Need Diesel as a Backup

This used to be true for many hybrid systems. They’d use solar during the day and switch to diesel when sunlight dropped off. That meant dealing with fuel storage, engine maintenance, and higher running costs.

Today, with properly sized solar and battery systems, it’s entirely possible to run desalination around the clock without diesel. No fumes, no noise, and no ongoing fuel bills.

That’s a big deal in places where fuel deliveries are unreliable or expensive – or where people simply want to reduce emissions and simplify operations.

Myth 3: Desalination Systems Are Hard to Run and Maintain

Many older systems were maintenance-heavy. Operators had to regularly dose chemicals, monitor filters, clean membranes, and keep things balanced. That kind of upkeep is hard to manage if you’re on your own or far from technical help.

But! Here’s another fact about desalination…modern systems are much easier to use. The Elemental Water Makers units Bluemont supplies in Oceania are designed with off-grid sites in mind. They’re built from durable materials, require minimal servicing, and don’t rely on complex software or automation.

Most owners only need to do occasional filter checks, and remote monitoring is available if you want added oversight. You don’t need engineering experience – just basic knowledge and a bit of time now and then.

Myth 4: You’ll Need to Use Chemicals to Keep It Running

It’s common to hear that desalination systems need chemicals to stay clean. And with many conventional designs, that’s still the case – especially if you’re using antiscalants, acids, or disinfectants to prevent membrane fouling.

But there’s a better approach. Elemental Water Makers’ systems, exclusively distributed in Oceania by Bluemont, are fully chemical-free. They automatically flush the membranes using a portion of the clean water they produce, eliminating the need for chemical dosing or manual cleaning.

This is a big win for remote sites where storing or managing chemicals would be risky, expensive, or just impractical.