Distilled water

[louy99]

Distilled water is too pure...it strips all beneficial elements from a reef, paint off your walls and kill your lawn. I once used distilled to make coffee and It striped 10 yrs away. I went from 31yrs back to 21! so I'm sure you can use it for top offs but don't say I didn't warn you.

[itsyahboydanny]

Win Dixie Distilled for 1 year, no problems at all.

[AZDesertRat]

Distilled water is great for your top off and as a substitute for RO/DI in making new salt water. Most modern salt mixes are blended to be used specifically with RO/DI or distilled water. RO/DI is always my first choice and owning your own system is your best bet but there are good water vendors if you look around.

 

If you are purchasing water I would invest $25 in a good ATC hanheld TDS meter so yo ucan make sure you are getting what you are paying for. The WalMart gallon jugs with the purple cap have shown to be very good but if you are using a vending machine make sure to test the TDS as you are relying on the maintanance or in many cases lack of maintenance on the machine.

[Mojado]

Distilled water is great for your top off and as a substitute for RO/DI in making new salt water. Most modern salt mixes are blended to be used specifically with RO/DI or distilled water. RO/DI is always my first choice and owning your own system is your best bet but there are good water vendors if you look around.

 

If you are purchasing water I would invest $25 in a good ATC hanheld TDS meter so yo ucan make sure you are getting what you are paying for. The WalMart gallon jugs with the purple cap have shown to be very good but if you are using a vending machine make sure to test the TDS as you are relying on the maintanance or in many cases lack of maintenance on the machine.

Do you recommend any RO/DI system? Not necessarily trying to go cheap, but rather best bang for the buck.

[DurocShark]

http://www.marinedepot.com/SpectraPure_Maxpure_RO_DI_System_24_to_40_Gallons_Per_Day_RO_DI_Water_Filter_Systems-SpectraPure-YSP1311-FIRORDFT-vi.html

 

$189.

 

Personally I have the RO Buddie because it was like $80 (by the time I added the DI cart) and takes up less space. I didn't think I'd use it for anything other than my tanks, but once I started testing water and found that my tap had over 500ppm of crap I've started using it for drinking water and coffee too. (I haven't had to descale my coffee maker so far in 6 months. Incredible!) I'm now looking to pick up an under sink unit as well. They seem to start at around $250 with the pressure tank and faucet.

Distilled water is too pure...it strips all beneficial elements from a reef, paint off your walls and kill your lawn. I once used distilled to make coffee and It striped 10 yrs away. I went from 31yrs back to 21! so I'm sure you can use it for top offs but don't say I didn't warn you.

 

 

I think I'd better go buy a whole bunch of distilled water! I could use stripping a decade or two away...

[Mojado]

http://www.marinedepot.com/SpectraPure_Maxpure_RO_DI_System_24_to_40_Gallons_Per_Day_RO_DI_Water_Filter_Systems-SpectraPure-YSP1311-FIRORDFT-vi.html

 

$189.

 

Personally I have the RO Buddie because it was like $80 (by the time I added the DI cart) and takes up less space. I didn't think I'd use it for anything other than my tanks, but once I started testing water and found that my tap had over 500ppm of crap I've started using it for drinking water and coffee too. (I haven't had to descale my coffee maker so far in 6 months. Incredible!) I'm now looking to pick up an under sink unit as well. They seem to start at around $250 with the pressure tank and faucet.

 

 

I think I'd better go buy a whole bunch of distilled water! I could use stripping a decade or two away...

Thanks! I've seen some that have TDS meters at two points to test the quality of your RO and DI membranes Is that past the point of diminishing returns? http://www.marinedepot.com/SpectraPure_MaxCap_RO_DI_System_w_Manual_Flush_90_to_180_Gallons_Per_Day_RO_DI_Water_Filter_Systems-SpectraPure-SP12291-FIRORDNH-vi.html

[DurocShark]

Those are useful but not necessary. A handheld TDS meter will do the same thing, but less conveniently.

OH, and you can go refurb for a lot less: http://spectrapure.com/Refurbished-90-GPD-RODI-System

 

$125.

[braaap]

Distilled water is great for your top off and as a substitute for RO/DI in making new salt water. Most modern salt mixes are blended to be used specifically with RO/DI or distilled water. RO/DI is always my first choice and owning your own system is your best bet but there are good water vendors if you look around.

 

If you are purchasing water I would invest $25 in a good ATC hanheld TDS meter so yo ucan make sure you are getting what you are paying for. The WalMart gallon jugs with the purple cap have shown to be very good but if you are using a vending machine make sure to test the TDS as you are relying on the maintanance or in many cases lack of maintenance on the machine.

 

 

The master speaks.

 

http://www.marinedepot.com/SpectraPure_Maxpure_RO_DI_System_24_to_40_Gallons_Per_Day_RO_DI_Water_Filter_Systems-SpectraPure-YSP1311-FIRORDFT-vi.html

 

$189.

 

Personally I have the RO Buddie because it was like $80 (by the time I added the DI cart) and takes up less space. I didn't think I'd use it for anything other than my tanks, but once I started testing water and found that my tap had over 500ppm of crap I've started using it for drinking water and coffee too. (I haven't had to descale my coffee maker so far in 6 months. Incredible!) I'm now looking to pick up an under sink unit as well. They seem to start at around $250 with the pressure tank and faucet.

 

 

I think I'd better go buy a whole bunch of distilled water! I could use stripping a decade or two away...

I'm fairly certain it is not recommended to drink RO/DI water. I may be wrong in that but I heard it everything we need? I'm no water expert.

 

*edit*

 

Straight from Spectrapure's site.

 

IS DRINKING DI WATER OK?

When it comes to drinking DI water, there are many different thoughts on it. First thing you should understand is that DI water has all minerals removed. If ALL you were drinking was DI water and you did not eat anything, it would be harmful. Cells in the body need electrolytes (salts) to stay active and produce more cells. So, if you are not replenishing the electrolytes, the cells could not survive. To better illustrate this: Imagine that you have two batteries. One batter is connected to a glass container filled with tap water, the other is filled with DI water. Tap water is able to conduct the electricity through it because of the minerals. DI water cannot because the lack of minerals. It is only when you add salt to the DI water, that you would be able to conduct electricity.

DI water does not necessarily harm your health unless it is the only thing that you are putting into your body. We would not recommend drinking it because of its flat taste and because DI resins are not made of food grade approved material.

 

 

 

Those are useful but not necessary. A handheld TDS meter will do the same thing, but less conveniently.

OH, and you can go refurb for a lot less: http://spectrapure.com/Refurbished-90-GPD-RODI-System

 

$125.

 

That is a great unit and most likely the unit AZDesertrat will recommend.

[Mojado]

Those are useful but not necessary. A handheld TDS meter will do the same thing, but less conveniently.

OH, and you can go refurb for a lot less: http://spectrapure.com/Refurbished-90-GPD-RODI-System

 

$125.

Nice. Can one add a manual flush valve to this? I've read where flushing can extend the life of the resins. I know very little about these RODI systems. Sorry for the Noob questions.

[DurocShark]

 

 

The master speaks.

 

I'm fairly certain it is not recommended to drink RO/DI water. I may be wrong in that but I heard it removes something we need? I'm no water expert.

 

 

That is a great unit and most likely the unit AZDesertrat will recommend.

 

It's not dangerous, you just miss out on the calcium and magnesium and such in tap water. Since I don't drink RODI water exclusively, it's ok. We all get sodas or iced tea or whatever when we eat out, or at the office or whatever, so it's fine. If you drink it exclusively, you may want to consider re-mineralizing the water. Something like this would do that: http://www.amazon.com/Upgrade-Reverse-Osmosis-Minerals-Re-Mineralization/dp/B00J3B6EI4/

Nice. Can one add a manual flush valve to this? I've read where flushing can extend the life of the resins. I know very little about these RODI systems. Sorry for the Noob questions.

 

You can add it to any standard RO unit. I don't have one myself.

[braaap]

 

It's not dangerous, you just miss out on the calcium and magnesium and such in tap water. Since I don't drink RODI water exclusively, it's ok. We all get sodas or iced tea or whatever when we eat out, or at the office or whatever, so it's fine. If you drink it exclusively, you may want to consider re-mineralizing the water. Something like this would do that: http://www.amazon.com/Upgrade-Reverse-Osmosis-Minerals-Re-Mineralization/dp/B00J3B6EI4/

 

You can add it to any standard RO unit. I don't have one myself.

 

 

I've drank it and I'm still alive. haha. It just taste bleh. I edited my original post before I saw yours but here it is again.

 

IS DRINKING DI WATER OK?

When it comes to drinking DI water, there are many different thoughts on it. First thing you should understand is that DI water has all minerals removed. If ALL you were drinking was DI water and you did not eat anything, it would be harmful. Cells in the body need electrolytes (salts) to stay active and produce more cells. So, if you are not replenishing the electrolytes, the cells could not survive. To better illustrate this: Imagine that you have two batteries. One batter is connected to a glass container filled with tap water, the other is filled with DI water. Tap water is able to conduct the electricity through it because of the minerals. DI water cannot because the lack of minerals. It is only when you add salt to the DI water, that you would be able to conduct electricity.

DI water does not necessarily harm your health unless it is the only thing that you are putting into your body. We would not recommend drinking it because of its flat taste and because DI resins are not made of food grade approved material.

 

[AZDesertRat]

Drinking RO or RO/DI is not harmful. There have been many studies attempted over the last 30 years or so but none have been conclusive. Man cannot live on water alone and eating even one potato chip supplies much more than is stripped out of many gallons or RO or RO/DI water. You would literally drown internally or waterlog your cells before doing yourself any possible harm.

 

I recommend this:

http://spectrapure.com/Refurbished-90-GPD-RODI-System

 

If you want to use it for drinking water too then you can add on a drinking water kit such as this one for only $59:

http://www.purelyh2o.com/index.php?option=com_virtuemart&view=productdetails&virtuemart_product_id=93&virtuemart_category_id=78&Itemid=835〈=en

 

The one thing I suggest is to add a small check valve between the pressurized RO water used for drinking, cooking and icemaker and the DI filter so TDS creep does not become an issue and shorten the life of the DI resin. This allows you to have pressurized RO at your fingertips for drinking and RO/DI for your reef tanks with one system

 

This simple diagram shows how you install the check valve between the pressure tank and the DI so you get the best of both worlds.

http://spectrapure.com/huds/4-STAGE-DWK-RODI-NAG.pdf

 

Note the post RO GAC carbon taste and odor filter on the drinking water faucet only and not the DI.

 

For a TDS meter I recommend only handhelds such as the HM Digital TDS-3, TDS-4TM, AP-1 or COM-100. Inlines lack the low end accuracy of the similar priced handhelds and are not ATC temperature compensated. They also limit you to a couple points and to test a RO/DI you need at least 3 points plus its nice to test your ATO TDS, the LFS water, bottled water, you buddies water etc.

 

Flush kits are a waste of money. Keep your waste ratio at the manufacturers recommended amount for your water conditions and nothing else is necessary. The best thing you can do for a RO membrane is provide softened water if you have it available, the next best is pressure, membranes perform better the higher the pressure gets.

[CJJon]

I drink RO/DI all the time. I also drink the wastewater from my RO/DI unit! Maybe it all balances out...

[DurocShark]

I drink RO/DI all the time. I also drink the wastewater from my RO/DI unit! Maybe it all balances out...

 

Hmm, wastewater makes you look like your avatar?

[CJJon]

 

Hmm, wastewater makes you look like your avatar?

 

Yep! Sexy!

[thecoralbeauty]

Personally, I love the taste of RO water. It's more of a treat thing for me though, so I'm not too worried about the nutrient issue.

 

Also, Colorado and specifically the part of Denver I live in really has wonderful tap water- my own aquarium as well as at least three other's have done beautifully with treated tap water for salt mixing. (yes, yes, judge away...) I wouldn't recommend it anywhere, but here, for us, it seems to be working just fine.

[spanko]

Distilled for top off here.

 

And here is why.

 

http://www.nano-reef.com/topic/225917-distilled-water/

[Mojado]

Drinking RO or RO/DI is not harmful. There have been many studies attempted over the last 30 years or so but none have been conclusive. Man cannot live on water alone and eating even one potato chip supplies much more than is stripped out of many gallons or RO or RO/DI water. You would literally drown internally or waterlog your cells before doing yourself any possible harm.

 

I recommend this:

http://spectrapure.com/Refurbished-90-GPD-RODI-System

 

If you want to use it for drinking water too then you can add on a drinking water kit such as this one for only $59:

http://www.purelyh2o.com/index.php?option=com_virtuemart&view=productdetails&virtuemart_product_id=93&virtuemart_category_id=78&Itemid=835〈=en

 

The one thing I suggest is to add a small check valve between the pressurized RO water used for drinking, cooking and icemaker and the DI filter so TDS creep does not become an issue and shorten the life of the DI resin. This allows you to have pressurized RO at your fingertips for drinking and RO/DI for your reef tanks with one system

 

This simple diagram shows how you install the check valve between the pressure tank and the DI so you get the best of both worlds.

http://spectrapure.com/huds/4-STAGE-DWK-RODI-NAG.pdf

 

Note the post RO GAC carbon taste and odor filter on the drinking water faucet only and not the DI.

 

For a TDS meter I recommend only handhelds such as the HM Digital TDS-3, TDS-4TM, AP-1 or COM-100. Inlines lack the low end accuracy of the similar priced handhelds and are not ATC temperature compensated. They also limit you to a couple points and to test a RO/DI you need at least 3 points plus its nice to test your ATO TDS, the LFS water, bottled water, you buddies water etc.

 

Flush kits are a waste of money. Keep your waste ratio at the manufacturers recommended amount for your water conditions and nothing else is necessary. The best thing you can do for a RO membrane is provide softened water if you have it available, the next best is pressure, membranes perform better the higher the pressure gets.

Thanks! I really appreciate it. One last question, I promise.

 

If I use 12-15 gallons of RODI/week (top off and for mixing salt), what is the ideal container size to get? I understand that RODI units work best (resins last longer) with fewer large batches of water production vs multiple smaller batches of water production. It would be a balance between larger batches and also not keeping RODI past a recommended storage time, I assume.

 

How long does RODI keep? One month? If so, then a 50 gallon reservoir would work, I guess.

 

 

[AZDesertRat]

I keep 25-50 gallons of RO/DI at all times. 23 gallons is in my Rubbermaid recycling can ATO storage with a snug lid on it and the other 25 gallons is in capped 5G drinking water jugs or 7 gallon blue AquaTainer cube style jugs like at WalMart in the camping aisle.

RO/DI keeps indefinitely if you keep it sealed and away from direct lighting and temperature extremes.

 

I like the 7 gallon AquaTainers, they stack nicely in an out of the way corner due to their cube shape. If I had more room my ATO storage would be a larger Brute trash can with a lid but my space was limited and the rectangular 23 gallon can fit the bill. I have my float switches set 12" apart so the RO/DI has to drop at least 11 gallons before the unit comes back on so TDS creep is minimized.

[mmorales]

I use the Walmart machine water and sometimes when I want to be really cheap I bring a gallon jug to work and get water out of our drinking water machine that claims to be RO water. So far no problems.

[aviator300]

Distilled water is too pure...it strips all beneficial elements from a reef, paint off your walls and kill your lawn. I once used distilled to make coffee and It striped 10 yrs away. I went from 31yrs back to 21! so I'm sure you can use it for top offs but don't say I didn't warn you.

This guy's nuts!

[Reefkid88]

This guy's nuts!

 

I was thinking the same damn thing lol. Must have been on the pot when he wrote that jibber-jabber.

 

 

I've been using distilled for almost 7 years now,and never had a problem with it being "too pure" lol. After all,that's what we want,right ? I mean,you're using marine salts to add all the trace elements and ion's to make "saltwater"... So why would you want anything less then pure for your reef ? Do you want a water that has nitrates,nitrites,phosphates and ammonia already added to your water ? NO

[nismo_sky32]

Can I use pee to start a cycle as long as I'm using distilled water?

[HarryPotter]

Can I use pee to start a cycle as long as I'm using distilled water?

 

Hmm.... I don't see why not! Sounds like theres loads of funky bacteria in that