Water?

waterone · 02/19/2008, 08:30 AM

We just got a larger tank and now we need to fill it up. We do not have a reverse Osmisis unit. We were planning on just buying water from the store by the gallon that has been processed by Reverse Osmisis, Is this a good Idea?

AZDesertRat · 02/19/2008, 08:41 AM

Better than tap for sure. My only reservation would be some prepared bottled RO waters are remineralized to make them taste good, you may not want these minerals and addatives in your tank.
Do you have free standing Water & Ice type stores in your area? That may be a better route to go as they are usually staffed andwill test the water quality in your presence. It will probably be cheaper too as most of them are still 25 cents a gallon. I keep 5 of the 5 gal drinking water jugs around to store my RO/DI water in but have taken them to the store when I need to do a bulk purchase like that and its much easier than lugging around 25 5G jugs.

Of course the best option is to purchase an RO/DI unit of your own. That way you alone have control of your water quality. I use RO for drinking and cooking water too as well as the ice maker and pet watering so the purchase is easily justified.

ihopss · 02/19/2008, 08:51 AM

I would buy a R/O unit with a larger tank,you will save $ in the long run.And you will know your TDS.
http://www.thefilterguys.biz/ro_di_systems.htm

ccso139 · 02/19/2008, 08:57 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by waterone
We just got a larger tank and now we need to fill it up. We do not have a reverse Osmisis unit. We were planning on just buying water from the store by the gallon that has been processed by Reverse Osmisis, Is this a good Idea?

When I was getting ready to fill my 55g w/ 20g sump, I was gonna do the same as you. But, then I started doing the math of cost of buying bottled water, plus cost of gas back and forth to stores (couldn't get it all in one trip), plus the headache of moving all that water; I decided that it wouldn't be that much more expensive to just buy a RO/DI unit. Plus the unit will last for years, just having to change filters so often. I am happy w/ my decision!!

Aquarist007 · 02/19/2008, 09:01 AM

invest in a pocket TDS meter(total dissovled solids) 25 dollars and you can take it anywhere
for a rough guiide
distilled water should have 90 % of dissolved substances removed
r/o water 95% dissolved substances removed
and r/o di water 100 % removed

the ro water from my unit tests at 3% for comparison

rbrusletto · 02/19/2008, 09:07 AM

what ccso said

we did the same. I gathered with the new 75g tank we got a while back, that it would take about 6 months to see return on the investment of a 100GPD RO/DI unit. This took into account salt,gas, electricity, and time..

AZDesertRat · 02/19/2008, 09:14 AM

If you do decide on an RO/DI unit be very careful where you shop and in general avoid anything with a 100 GPD Dow Filmtec (only 90% efficient vs 96-98% efficient for the 75 GPD variety)membrane in it or any that do not give a specific brand name. Lots of the e-bay type vendors sell imported knock offs that do not perform well. The price may look attractive but yoy really do get what you pay for with RO/DI and cheap is not where you want to be.

waterone · 02/19/2008, 09:37 AM

what about RO/DI units from the LFS? Does anyone have any more info on RO units or refugiums for a firsttimer to this area?

AZDesertRat · 02/19/2008, 10:23 AM

Most LFS are going to carry units from Kent, which are overpriced and overrated, Seachem which is of questionable quality or Coralife which is very poor quality.
It is best to stick with a company that deals in water treatment as their primary business as it is what they do best. All the ones above sell additives or lights and just jumped on the bandwagon.
There are a half dozen very good vendors here on RC that also happen to be sponsors and help keep these forums alive for all of us through their sponsorships. I would suggest talking to each of them and explain what it is you are looking for and how you intend to use it. None will try to sell you anything you do not need or want and will not pressure you in any way. They all rely on word of mouth through these forums and dtrive to please the customer by providing the best possible units at a good price. Yes the e-bay special may be $50 less initially but when you really look at the things it is missing or the quality of the filters it contains you begin to see the difference.
Check out:
www.spectrapure.com
www.buckeyefieldsupply.com
www.melevsreef.com
www.thefilterguys.biz
www.airwaterice.com
www.purelyh2o.com

All sell reef quality systems starting at about $150 up to maybe $350 for the very best system being sold today.

dsn112 · 02/19/2008, 10:27 AM

My LFS's all sell that coralife RODI. I think its junk. For RODI go to our sponsors page. I have always had a great experience with the Filter Guys.

As for refugiums build your own. It can save you a ton of cash.

My fuge cost about $100. $60 for the 29g tank, 25 for a a few glass baffles and 15 for silicone and some other miscellaneous items.

AZDesertRat · 02/19/2008, 10:37 AM

Same with me, I built my own sump/refugium too. Much cheaper and you can easily configure it to fit your particular equipment.

waterone · 02/19/2008, 10:45 AM

We had arleady purchased a refugium with the tank as a set with thw over flow kit and got a 20% discount. What about sand and things in side I guess I'm not to sure how it will work. My husband seems to understand but I get confused when he explains it to me. Do you place live rock in the refugium too? How much sand? We are setting these tanks to get a mandrinfish and taking our time to get it all right and learn as much as I can before I start.

AZDesertRat · 02/19/2008, 10:52 AM

You can. If you look in my bottom picture you will see on the far right of the sump is the refugium chamber. It is full of live rock rubble and cheatomorpha macroalgae. I have a deep sand bed in my display and didn't need additional sand so just stuck with the rubble and macro.

02/19/2008, 08:30 AM	#1
waterone Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Greeley Colorado Posts: 18	Water? We just got a larger tank and now we need to fill it up. We do not have a reverse Osmisis unit. We were planning on just buying water from the store by the gallon that has been processed by Reverse Osmisis, Is this a good Idea?

02/19/2008, 08:41 AM	#2
AZDesertRat Moved On Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: NW Phoenix Posts: 16,621	Better than tap for sure. My only reservation would be some prepared bottled RO waters are remineralized to make them taste good, you may not want these minerals and addatives in your tank. Do you have free standing Water & Ice type stores in your area? That may be a better route to go as they are usually staffed andwill test the water quality in your presence. It will probably be cheaper too as most of them are still 25 cents a gallon. I keep 5 of the 5 gal drinking water jugs around to store my RO/DI water in but have taken them to the store when I need to do a bulk purchase like that and its much easier than lugging around 25 5G jugs. Of course the best option is to purchase an RO/DI unit of your own. That way you alone have control of your water quality. I use RO for drinking and cooking water too as well as the ice maker and pet watering so the purchase is easily justified. Last edited by AZDesertRat; 02/19/2008 at 09:00 AM.

02/19/2008, 09:01 AM	#5
Aquarist007 Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Hamilton, Canada Posts: 28,240 Blog Entries: 1	invest in a pocket TDS meter(total dissovled solids) 25 dollars and you can take it anywhere for a rough guiide distilled water should have 90 % of dissolved substances removed r/o water 95% dissolved substances removed and r/o di water 100 % removed the ro water from my unit tests at 3% for comparison __________________ I prefer my substrates stirred but not shaken Current Tank Info: 150gal long mixed reef, 90gal sump, 60 gal refugium with 200 lbs live rock

02/19/2008, 10:27 AM	#10
dsn112 Premium Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: South Jersey Posts: 1,139	My LFS's all sell that coralife RODI. I think its junk. For RODI go to our sponsors page. I have always had a great experience with the Filter Guys. As for refugiums build your own. It can save you a ton of cash. My fuge cost about $100. $60 for the 29g tank, 25 for a a few glass baffles and 15 for silicone and some other miscellaneous items. __________________ I'm disturbed! I'm depressed! I'm inadequate! I got it all!! Current Tank Info: Fluval Edge w LED freshwater. Looking at doing a 20-40g long penninsula fowlr soon

02/19/2008, 08:51 AM	#3
ihopss Premium Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Gilmer,tx Posts: 751	I would buy a R/O unit with a larger tank,you will save $ in the long run.And you will know your TDS. http://www.thefilterguys.biz/ro_di_systems.htm

02/19/2008, 09:07 AM	#6
rbrusletto Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Denver, CO Posts: 239	what ccso said we did the same. I gathered with the new 75g tank we got a while back, that it would take about 6 months to see return on the investment of a 100GPD RO/DI unit. This took into account salt,gas, electricity, and time..

02/19/2008, 09:14 AM	#7
AZDesertRat Moved On Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: NW Phoenix Posts: 16,621	If you do decide on an RO/DI unit be very careful where you shop and in general avoid anything with a 100 GPD Dow Filmtec (only 90% efficient vs 96-98% efficient for the 75 GPD variety)membrane in it or any that do not give a specific brand name. Lots of the e-bay type vendors sell imported knock offs that do not perform well. The price may look attractive but yoy really do get what you pay for with RO/DI and cheap is not where you want to be.

02/19/2008, 09:37 AM	#8
waterone Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Greeley Colorado Posts: 18	what about RO/DI units from the LFS? Does anyone have any more info on RO units or refugiums for a firsttimer to this area?

02/19/2008, 10:23 AM	#9
AZDesertRat Moved On Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: NW Phoenix Posts: 16,621	Most LFS are going to carry units from Kent, which are overpriced and overrated, Seachem which is of questionable quality or Coralife which is very poor quality. It is best to stick with a company that deals in water treatment as their primary business as it is what they do best. All the ones above sell additives or lights and just jumped on the bandwagon. There are a half dozen very good vendors here on RC that also happen to be sponsors and help keep these forums alive for all of us through their sponsorships. I would suggest talking to each of them and explain what it is you are looking for and how you intend to use it. None will try to sell you anything you do not need or want and will not pressure you in any way. They all rely on word of mouth through these forums and dtrive to please the customer by providing the best possible units at a good price. Yes the e-bay special may be $50 less initially but when you really look at the things it is missing or the quality of the filters it contains you begin to see the difference. Check out: www.spectrapure.com www.buckeyefieldsupply.com www.melevsreef.com www.thefilterguys.biz www.airwaterice.com www.purelyh2o.com All sell reef quality systems starting at about $150 up to maybe $350 for the very best system being sold today.

02/19/2008, 10:37 AM	#11
AZDesertRat Moved On Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: NW Phoenix Posts: 16,621	Same with me, I built my own sump/refugium too. Much cheaper and you can easily configure it to fit your particular equipment.

02/19/2008, 10:45 AM	#12
waterone Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Greeley Colorado Posts: 18	We had arleady purchased a refugium with the tank as a set with thw over flow kit and got a 20% discount. What about sand and things in side I guess I'm not to sure how it will work. My husband seems to understand but I get confused when he explains it to me. Do you place live rock in the refugium too? How much sand? We are setting these tanks to get a mandrinfish and taking our time to get it all right and learn as much as I can before I start.

02/19/2008, 10:52 AM	#13
AZDesertRat Moved On Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: NW Phoenix Posts: 16,621	You can. If you look in my bottom picture you will see on the far right of the sump is the refugium chamber. It is full of live rock rubble and cheatomorpha macroalgae. I have a deep sand bed in my display and didn't need additional sand so just stuck with the rubble and macro.