I was just kinda wondering if anyone on here did this in previous tank.i have never used ro water.I dont really have any room to putu a ro unit that wont be in way so im prolly not going to be useing ro
I really think not using RODI water for your water changes is just setting yourself up for a crash and failure.
They are really not that expensive and and can be small enough such as the Air Water Ice The Mighty Mite 50GPD to easily fit under a sink.
Not me. my untreated tap water has higher nitrates, phosphates and chlorine compounds in it i dont have natural spring water. i have water from the Artesian water company wells, right behind my backyard and a few hundred yards from a super fund contaminant site. The well draws water from from the ground table. but they have very large activated carbon filters to remove the bad stuff. then they chloronate it before they send it down the pipe, to me and my neighborhood.
It’s all good!
I Fred it when I first put up my tank and like kaptkens said wow! Nitrates even after a 2pt carbon filter it was/is still super high!probally not the best thing to do if you want to keep your stuff alive :TWOCENTS
Maybe you could buy RO water from a LFS
I tried to run m first tank w/out using RODI - I was constantly battling algae, couldn’t keep corals, alive, and the water just didn’t “look” good.
Air, Water, Ice does sell good units (been using one for years now) and they’re small enough to keep under a sink, or in a cabinet, and they don’t have to be hooked up full time. You can get an adapter that screws on to your faucet when you need it, and pops off when you don’t.
And don’t forget AWI is a sponsor and we get 10% off by using the discount code 32379
I am also trying to figure out if I should be buying RO water as well. Figured out my tap water has high nitrates in it. We have a RO tank under our sink already but can only get like a gallon at a time out of it. Not sure how well this would work when trying to do a water change. Is there a different system that I would be able to get more out of at a time?
I’d like to make a suggestion to all noobies in this hobby.
Take the advice given from expierenced club members. They have been there, done that. If you take short cuts or think you can get away without using a particular piece of equipment, in the long run it will cost you more money.
Keep it simple…Do it right, do it once.
Just my :TWOCENTS
Guys if your planning on doing a real reef tank that is not a short cut you want to take, corals , clams etc anything besides fish ,require very good water quality to survive. I have under 35 ppm in TDS and under 25 in nitrates coming out of tap before the RO and still would not use it by it-self.
Think you will find that most hobbiest with a successful reef tank use RO water.
I believe not just RO water but DI as well. You want the water to be at 0 TDS.
What is DI?
DI is deionized water… RO is reverse osmosis…
I have a RODI unit for both my aquariums and for drinking water, but that said, I think the statement of “go RODI or dont bother” is a little too broad.
there are a lot of ways to skin a cat and it really depends on your situation. I know MANY people who successfully run reef tanks with well water. I would be a little more hesitant with municipal, but even that can be circumvented if you are really motivated…
the other question is what are you planning to put in your tank? if your doing a FOWLR or softies you can probably get away with it. you may have more algae issues, but you could just put a large fuge on… that said, if you want to do high end SPS, the amount of money you are going to be spending and the required water quality pretty much dictate going RODI.
the other approach is to go with a no water change settup. I change my water about 3 times a year. the only thing you would need then is to get some distilled from the grocery store every week for top off…
again, for the money, an RODI really IS worth the price. but there ARE other ways to go.
[quote=“houndsbayman, post:5, topic:6182”]
Maybe you could buy RO water from a LFS[/quote]
That will become very expensive, I initially set up my first reef tank with distilled h2o purchased from a grocery store.Using tap water completely negates the efforts put into maintaining precise reef tank chemistry. Air water ice has great RO systems for around 150. Well worth the initial investment considering the cost and labor not using RO water will incur. Even using tap or well water in FOWLR setup will eventually turn your tank into an algae garden.
how much water can you get out of a RO/DI system? we have a RO but only gives us a gal at a time maybe 2 or 3 times a day.
[quote=“nerak, post:14, topic:6182”]
how much water can you get out of a RO/DI system? we have a RO but only gives us a gal at a time maybe 2 or 3 times a day. [/quote]
Average is 75 gallons per day but they make them alot bigger. 50-75 gallon per day will give you very good results and in most cases you don’t need more then that.
does that involve a huge tank?
It doesn’t have to. When I started I simply made ro water one 5g bucket at a time.
I will admit that a 50g drum is MUCH nicer, but not practical for everyone.
so you hook this RO/DI up to your kitchen sink and then just take the water from you faucet?
You can hook it up to the sink . What ever works best for you
I am considering getting a RO/DI set up . is it cold water that comes out of it? if so how do you warm it before putting it in your tank ?