Where do I get RO/DI Water?

[JDWells]

I've been using tap water with dechlorinator and I know that's a no-no but I can't shell out for an RO unit, but I don't know where to get it around here. My LFS uses tap water in his reef tank and it seems to work fine. He has a really cool lion fish and lots of corals. Anyway if anybody knows where to get RO water in the Beaufort, SC area let me know. Thanks for reading.

[OnTheEdge]

Try Walmart they sell distilled water I think in a pink cap for 80 cents and it comes out to 0 TDS.

[JDWells]

Ok I'll look at that. If anybody lives in this area maybe sell me some? I need between 5 and 10 gallons a week for water change and top off. That would be cool too.

[jbb]

+1 to Walmart distilled . It's your best alternative if a unit is out of your budget.

 

I think spectrapure is still selling the 90gpd refurbs , might see if that is affordable for you.

[dalovesj]

If you go to Wal-Mart they have reverse osmosis water for about .85. It is labeled as "drinking water" but if you read the fine print on the label it will say something like "purified through reverse osmosis filtration." That is what we do for our 14G biocube as we also don't want to shell out for the RO unit.

[OnTheEdge]

If you go to Wal-Mart they have reverse osmosis water for about .85. It is labeled as "drinking water" but if you read the fine print on the label it will say something like "purified through reverse osmosis filtration." That is what we do for our 14G biocube as we also don't want to shell out for the RO unit.

 

Distilled water will have 0 TDS while RO won't. RO/DI is equivalent to distilled. Drinking water might have certain stuff used in order to make it for drinking.

[Veng]

If you go to Wal-Mart they have reverse osmosis water for about .85. It is labeled as "drinking water" but if you read the fine print on the label it will say something like "purified through reverse osmosis filtration." That is what we do for our 14G biocube as we also don't want to shell out for the RO unit.

I would really recommend against that. The RO membranes are rarely changed, and it's almost as expensive as Distilled water. Just buy distilled.

[AZDesertRat]

Normally bottled RO labelled as Drinking Water has minerals added back in to make it taste better so it will have TDS present.

If you cannot get RO/DI, distilled is by far you next best choice.

 

At best RO only is a 90 to 98% efficient device so will always have TDS present, its the DI that takes it to 0 TDS which is what you want. Distilled should be very close to that.

 

Vending machines would be way down my list of choices, the maintenance is hit and miss and since they are for drinking TDS is not really a concern. Since TDS is not considered a Health Risk, it is actually labelled as asthetics, most vending machines are not inspected or regulated by health authorities only by weights and measures to ensure you get a gallon for your quarter.

[slowngreen]

Ok I'll look at that. If anybody lives in this area maybe sell me some? I need between 5 and 10 gallons a week for water change and top off. That would be cool too.

Check craigslist for saltwater/reef related items for sale in the pets or general for sale, good chance of one of those guys who are selling something would have and sell or give you some.

[jam77]

A lot of fish stores sell ro/di water or so they claim but be careful. I started out this way and always had problems with hair algae. I used to think it was something I was doing wrong but once I got my own ro system the algae started going away so it was more than likely a water quality issue.

[JDWells]

So what I'm reading here is since I'm not getting an ro/di unit now, the best option is distilled drinking water. I did check craigslist and there aren't any hits for it. And my LFS uses tap water for the store tanks so no luck there either. Plus his tanks have algae and stuff in them usually. I always figured that was a light issue though because he has one T5 fixture on a 125 gallon tank.

[dalovesj]

Wow... I was given very bad information from someone I know. Thanks for the heads up guys! And sorry for passing on crap information...:/

[kriskristofferzen]

post on hardware classifieds your looking for used RO/DI, someone will PM you pretty quickly. If not, I agree, go the distilled water route. But would be much easier to just buy a used one. Spectrapure is good and sells refurbished units. BRS has a good unit as well. Good luck. I know folks who go the tap water route. you'll be fine just watch your water params for nitrates and phosphates, cut down your lighting and start low go slow with stocking of fish and coral regardless... (if algae persists).

[AZDesertRat]

You can get bottled distilled water, not drinking water, at any WalMart (purple caps I think) and it usually tests out very low on TDS. Do not buy it if it is labelled drinking water.

 

Not sure where you are located but in the phoenix area we have hundreds of Water & Ice type stores, seems like one on every corner. They are RO only but for the most part do a excellent job so the TDS is usually very low, maybe 3-5 down from 600+. Every store I have visited or used was very happy to pull out their TDS or conductivity meter and show me the results once I told them it was for a reef system. I would not hesitate to use a good manned or staffed water store in most cases if they are like that and their product is good, yes it has a small amount of TDS but they take pride in their product unlike a vending machine that gets wiped down with a bleach rag once a month.

 

Rarely do I recommend a used RO or RO/DI system, there is a reason they are selling it and its usually exhausted and in need of replacements that can add up to or exceed the cost of a new system. You can get a brand new 90 GPD reef quality RO/DI for $125 with a guarantee from somewhere like www.spectrapure.com . You buy a used system and you are getting the housings is pretty much it, the filters, membrane and DI are almost always shot so you spend $50-$100 on the used system then another $100 on the sediment, carbon block, membrane and flow restrictor and DI cartridge or resin and you still have an old system with no guarantees?

[Redemer123]

RO/DI units are soooo worth it

[kriskristofferzen]

here ya go from the classifieds...

 

http://www.nano-reef.com/topic/322797-brs-5-stage-rodi-75gpd/

[AZDesertRat]

Thats $125 used and you can get a better system new for $125?

Makes no sense by the time you figure in replacement filters and resin at a minimum you are at around $175 plus shipping on both and you still have a used system?

For $125 you can get a 90 GPD with a specially treated and batch tested high rejection rate RO membrane, 1 micron absolute rated sediment filter, 1 micron 12,000 gallon carbon block, fresh full size 20 oz reef specific DI, capillary tube flow restrictor you adjust yourself for your exact water conditions and an inline pressure gauge.

[slowngreen]

wow, Im guessing if your LFS uses tap water, then mine does too. They lied to me about several things at first and even told me the salt they sold was good used with tap water. Luckily I bought all distilled. Luckily a new LFS just opened and Ive seen his RO unit in action and its a brand new unit so Im hopefull there. Offered me all I want for free too.

[JDWells]

I think I'm pretty much sold on just getting an ro/di unit now. lol I looked up the purple cap distilled water from walmart and on the nutritional value sticker it shows 3500 mg of potassium. I figure if that's there then what else is too? I'm already getting some pretty bad algae on my sand bed and it's only been 2 weeks so I think I'll just bite the bullet. What do you guys think of this unit?

http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/brs-5-stage-ro-di-system-75gpd.html

My only reservation is that the prefilters are 5 micron. That seems pretty big right?

[shaner014]

I think I'm pretty much sold on just getting an ro/di unit now. lol I looked up the purple cap distilled water from walmart and on the nutritional value sticker it shows 3500 mg of potassium. I figure if that's there then what else is too? I'm already getting some pretty bad algae on my sand bed and it's only been 2 weeks so I think I'll just bite the bullet. What do you guys think of this unit?

http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/brs-5-stage-ro-di-system-75gpd.html'>http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/brs-5-stage-ro-di-system-75gpd.html

My only reservation is that the prefilters are 5 micron. That seems pretty big right?

 

I like my BRS RO/DI.

 

Spectrapure is apparently unarguably the winner for an inexpensive variety though. Still, I went against that advice and supported BRS. If your on a tight budget spectrapure is your best bet.

[dalovesj]

Do I need to change my water out? I used all RO water and now I'm worried that my whole tank is screwed. I'm currently cycling our live rock (day 5)...

[JDWells]

I'm in pretty much the same boat as you dalovesj. My plan is once the RO/DI system gets here to slowly change all the water out, but I have fish in mine so I can't very well drain all the water and start over. If there were no fish I might do that, though. And if you're using RO without the DI the water is still much much cleaner than your top water is. After the RO membrane depending on the membrane used it's like 90% clean. I'm no expert, but I've been reading a lot over the past few days.

[reefone]

you guys that started with tap water. no need to empty it all out. just start doing your water changes with ro/di.

[knoxvegas]

I've discovered in my area Dollar General Market (not the regular DGs) sells distilled jugs for .75/gal. Walmart purple top distilled is now .89/gal.

 

My LFSs all sell RO/DI for .50/gal. Water from all of them seem to create more algae in my tank. I need to get a TDS Meter and check theirs. I suspect TDS. Switching to DGM distilled has cleared it up.

[andrewkw]

Not to be harsh but imo if you can't afford an RO/DI you can't afford to keep a reef tank. There are plenty of economy options on bulkreefsupply ect. Then you're going to need to be able to afford replacement filters ect. It's just the cost of having a reef. No different then salt or fish food, or corals and fish for that matter.