Chyendra Posted March 4, 2004 Share Posted March 4, 2004 I found the water at Walmart that is suposed to be R/O, (it has the purple cap) But it doesn't say anywhere on the package that it is R/O filtered. Is this safe to use just for the cycle while i look for someplace to get good ro/di water? Link to comment
Aiptasia Posted March 4, 2004 Share Posted March 4, 2004 Wally world sells two types of bottled water in my town. "spring" water, which is supposedly microfiltered, and purified water, which is microfiltered, ozonated then RO'd. Beware of simple "spring" water because it's often not as pure as you'd think. Many bottlers have also started introducing antibiotics into "spring" water after the bottled water bacteria scares a few years ago. Check the label very closely on the front of the bottle and it should tell you what kind of filtration it's had, if any. Walmart in my area doesn't carry distilled water, but a lot of local grocery stores (Kroger, Food Lion, Bi-Lo) carry steam distilled water in jugs. Use steam distilled water if you can find it, then RO/DI water and at last resort, simple RO water. Coralife and Kent Marine also make some really good bare bones RO units between $80-$150 (if you get tired hauling home water jugs). I know the Kent Marine units have 3/4" threading on the input line (because I own one) which is the same threading used on garden hoses. I bought a 3/4" threaded sink adapter that let me hook it up to a standard faucet, and I just connect it once a week, run it to fill up about six empty jugs, then disconnect it. It works great! Link to comment
nano-nemo Posted March 4, 2004 Share Posted March 4, 2004 sweet idea aptasia, the unit pays for itself in a month or so at that rate Link to comment
f355gtb Posted March 4, 2004 Share Posted March 4, 2004 Aiptasia, I have an RO/DI that I don't want to mount. I want to hook it up when I need it like you do. But I read that you can't let the RO membrane dry out. What do you do to store it? When you store your R/O unit, do you do a flush? The dircections that came with my unit are quite vague. Thanks for any help! John Link to comment
Aiptasia Posted March 4, 2004 Share Posted March 4, 2004 Simple. Just keep the hoses lifted above the unit and the water won't drain out. This is easy to do and the water won't foul unless you don't plan on using the unit for 2-3 weeks. If you only plan on using it once every 2-3 weeks or longer, take out the TFC membrane from the unit and put it in a freezer sized ziplock baggie along with two tablespoons of water and let it sit in your refridgerator until you need it again. By keeping the membrane cool and in contact with water, it won't dry out. BTW, i'm quoting the instructions that came with my Kent Marine unit. I wouldn't flush the membrane just because you stored it. Flushing the membrane with a flushkit is a good idea in a hard water area (lots of dissolved solids) or in an area that chlorinates heavily (big cities) because it can remove some of these wastes and preserve the life of the membrane. If your source water runs higher than say 200 ppm TDS (total dissolved solids, ask your water company or get a TDS meter from a hydroponics shop) then a backflush kit would be a good idea. So, no I wouldn't backflush the membrane unless you feel you need to, certainly not after removing it and zipping it up in a baggie. Link to comment
f355gtb Posted March 4, 2004 Share Posted March 4, 2004 Aiptasia, Your information is most helpful and I will set up the RO/DI this weekend. Thanks again, John Link to comment
Chyendra Posted March 4, 2004 Author Share Posted March 4, 2004 Guess i'll just used distilled water for now. I've thought about buying an RO unit but besides the price, i'm leaveing for collage this august, and i'm not sure what type of facets they have. Anyway I've heard there is a fantasic reef LFS near my college town, and hopefully i can just get water there. Thanks! Link to comment
trmiv Posted March 4, 2004 Share Posted March 4, 2004 I'm tempted to get an RO unit. After only a month and half of getting water from the LFS, I'm tired of it already. Do you have one of the ones on this page Aiptasia? http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod...1&N=2004+113075 Link to comment
mapv281 Posted March 4, 2004 Share Posted March 4, 2004 walmart does have a reverse osmosis system, that culligan system is the one that i'm talking about, i read the specs, that's the water i use and it's been doing well for me, if that doesn't work for you, get distilled Link to comment
Chyendra Posted March 5, 2004 Author Share Posted March 5, 2004 my walmart doesn't have a water system... but my meijer does, and its a culligan. That would be better since it's only a few minutes from my house. Are all in-store culligan systems R/O? Link to comment
vyger Posted March 5, 2004 Share Posted March 5, 2004 I just did a water change last week with the RO water that I bought from Walmart and I haven't seen any ill effects. I've also been using it for top offs.It says thats it's bottled in Kutztown PA. It's only 50cents a gallon here and the RO water from Great Bear at the local supermarket which is Waldbaums, is 1.00 dollar a gallon. The Walmart water says on the bottle i have that it's processed by Reverse Osmosis and ozantion. At half the price I'll keep using it. Link to comment
Cichlidius Posted March 5, 2004 Share Posted March 5, 2004 Be very careful with steam distilled, some places use copper cooling coils :x, which could be a problem. You are best to go with an RO unit or certified TDS free bottled RO water. A TDS meter is a great tool in the reefers arsenal. Link to comment
theclearblue Posted March 5, 2004 Share Posted March 5, 2004 Chyendra The water I buy at Wal-Mart that is R/O filtered is actually in green labeled bottles. In fine print toward the bottom of the label it gives all the details. HTH Link to comment
mapv281 Posted March 5, 2004 Share Posted March 5, 2004 i refill mine @ $.38/gal, find a culligan machine and go with it, i use it for top offs and water changes, hasn't failed me yet Link to comment
Aiptasia Posted March 5, 2004 Share Posted March 5, 2004 Trmiv: Yes, I have the High-S unit 34 g.p.d.. My local tap water is very high in phosphates and silicates, and the high-s model has the highest rated membrane for rejecting these chemicals. Combined with my DI post filter, it can remove up to 99.5% of all contaminants. It's even too pure to drink because there aren't any trace elements at all left in the water. My TDS meter reads zero in the product water. That's saying something because the untreated tap water is generally between 200-220 ppm of dissolved junk in the water. And yeah, some distillers use copper pipes, so you may have to use reef carbon or a metal removing compound for it to be safe. Glass distilled water is the best if you can find it. BTW, there's nothing wrong with using RO water. I use it myself. Link to comment
Chyendra Posted March 5, 2004 Author Share Posted March 5, 2004 I'd prefer R/O I just want to mke sure that either the Walmart water or the Culigan system at my local meijer is in fact R/O water. I'll make some phone calls today and find out for sure. Link to comment
Aiptasia Posted March 5, 2004 Share Posted March 5, 2004 Culligan sells microfiltered and TFC Reverse Osmosis systems in Lowes hardware stores, so it might be RO water. In which case, go for eet! Link to comment
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