Can someone help me please.

[Convict2161]

Ok I've been looking through many many threads and researching online as I've ordered the oceanic bio cube 29.

RO water. I understand it and I see units that are available. It removes everything from the tap water? It fits in my faucet and that's it?

Do I need it? Tap water isn't good for saltwater setups? Also why don't we use them for freshwater? Wouldn't it remove all harmful things in the water for a freshwater setup or is it removing too much?

Thanks for your help.

 

[Sniperhank]

Using an RO/DI unit will save you a ton of hassle with algae issues. I have mine hooked up straight to my faucet. I toss a 5 gallon bucket in my sink and let the waste water run right down the drain. Last week I almost flooded my kitchen after I accidently locked my drain lol.

You don't NEED it...but you need it. Since I got mine, I have the local SW people bringing me gallon jugs for distilled water. Goes great for me, trades for whatever I could possibly need.

As for freshwater, when I was running my FW tanks I would have to treat the tap water to remove the chlorine. It is a similar thing, and if you check the freshwater forums...I believe a good amount of them run RO/DI systems as well.

 

[Convict2161]

Interesting, thanks for your feedback. I may just get one from foster and smith, the one that goes right on the faucet. I can remove when done right? Just use it to fill the buckets? I've heard of people going to there LFS and buying the water?

 

[Sniperhank]

Some LFS sell distilled yes. Mine is 30 minutes away so...even if they did not happening. I take my RO/DI unit off when I'm done and then hook my dish washer up. You can get them cheap off of ebay. And for proof of them working, my water unfiltered is undrinkable due to bacteria leaching into it from how farmers fertilize their fields above my well. The RO/DI unit makes it usable for my SW tank and drinkable for my dog as well. I drank the stuff for years so I don't have any ill effects from it.

 

[dirkdolemite]

Ro/di water is not good for fresh water tanks. Minerals that are essential for health of fish are removed. Same is true with saltwater . We just add those minerals back in with our salt mix.

 

[NyteGTI]

^came to post this. it's good advice Convict

 

[kdpuffer]

As far as ro/di in freshwater, lots of people use it to soften their water. They usually mix it with treated tap water to achieve the desired hardness.

 

[BambooBen]

So is there a filter that would be a better option than a ro?
Lowes home improvement for instance has about 10 different inline filters for sale.

 

[Rutrag]

So is there a filter that would be a better option than a ro?
Lowes home improvement for instance has about 10 different inline filters for sale.

The ones I have seen at Lowes are typically just carbon filters which pretty much just remove chlorine, some organics, and some heavy metals. They do carry RO (reverse osmosis) units, but their prices are higher than what you can find online IME. I know there are several folks who have bought units from Pure Water Club through Ebay (myself included). I will say I think I would have gotten a better product (and got EVERYTHING I needed to hook up the unit) from Bulk Reef Supply for not that much more.

You really want an RO with a DI (deionization) stage (RODI for short). The typical staging is:

sediment filter>carbon block>RO membrane>deionization resin

That is a 4 stage system. Some systems use multiple carbon blocks of different microns or multiple deionization stages. you have to read the fine print on systems with more stage to figure out exactly what you're getting. more stages are generally necessary only if your source water has a lot of contaminants and more stages generally means that each stage (filter) will last a little longer.

I recommend you check out the videos at least on Bulk Reef Supply's website as they do an excellent job of explaining how the systems work and all the accessories you can get to make the RODI more functional. Their customer service is also very good.

There are portable units that you can easily attach to a sink as needed, however you can get some valves to "permanently" plumb in an RODI unit under a sink so you can still use the sink faucet whenever you need to. If you are fortunate enough to have a water source close to where your tank is (or you know how to snake the line through the wall), you can run a line from the RODI to a valve in a sump or tank for an auto topoff.

The main reason we use RODI water is to limit nutrients for nuisance algae and to control exactly what we are putting back into the tanks for the corals. I can't really explain exactly why algae can get out of control so fast with tapwater used in a saltwater tank compared to a freshwater tank, but trust me, it can go haywire quick! Cyanobacteria (sometimes called red slime algae or blue green algae) is the worst with hair algae being a close second.

 

[Rutrag]

Using an RO/DI unit will save you a ton of hassle with algae issues. I have mine hooked up straight to my faucet. I toss a 5 gallon bucket in my sink and let the waste water run right down the drain. Last week I almost flooded my kitchen after I accidently locked my drain lol.

You don't NEED it...but you need it. Since I got mine, I have the local SW people bringing me gallon jugs for distilled water. Goes great for me, trades for whatever I could possibly need.

I hadn't thought about trading RO water for frags and stuff. Hmm, there might be an opportunity there.

As far as your drain issue, you can buy a saddle drain valve where you drill a small hole in your drain pipe and plumb the waste line right into it. I think they are less than $10 and makes for a very clean looking installation. That's how I did mine. It is a little intimidating at first, but it's really pretty easy.

 

[Convict2161]

Looks like I'll be calling my plumber again.

 

[Fritz007]

Hi, I have a question for rutrag. I just requested the ro unit from pure water club for my birthday next month. Reading your post it seems your not impressed with yours. I'm wondering what you don't like about it? Maybe I should continue shopping for a different brand? Any suggestions? It has to be better than the ion exchange resin tap water filter I'm using now, isn't it?

 

[Convict2161]

Also interested. Can anyone recommend a good one? Doesn't have to be over the top extreme, it's for a 29 gallon cube. Any suggestion? I see online a bunch. Confused.

 

[Leighton79]

Without decent water you have about as much chance of keeping a nice salt tank as I do of playing for Liverpool FC.

 

[Wy Renegade]

Air Water and Ice makes excellent RO/DI filters, some are sized specifically for aquarium keeping.

 

[AquaRick]

I really like my RODI unit from BRS. I got the 5stage plus. Love the TDS meter (so i know the filters are working and when they go bad, to remove it), pressure gauge, and flush line. It came with several connections (tap faucet, copper line, outdoor hose etc).

I'm getting about a 50% return on my water (half water, half RODI water). Although i'm sure that high of a ratio is due more to the already decent water coming through my tap.

I decided to spend the $ and get the 5stage plus to get a few of these features, and don't regret the extra money I spent one bit.

Take a look, it may be what you're looking for.

 

[Convict2161]

I really like my RODI unit from BRS. I got the 5stage plus. Love the TDS meter (so i know the filters are working and when they go bad, to remove it), pressure gauge, and flush line. It came with several connections (tap faucet, copper line, outdoor hose etc).

I'm getting about a 50% return on my water (half water, half RODI water). Although i'm sure that high of a ratio is due more to the already decent water coming through my tap.

I decided to spend the $ and get the 5stage plus to get a few of these features, and don't regret the extra money I spent one bit.

Take a look, it may be what you're looking for.

Will do

 

[Rutrag]

Hi, I have a question for rutrag. I just requested the ro unit from pure water club for my birthday next month. Reading your post it seems your not impressed with yours. I'm wondering what you don't like about it? Maybe I should continue shopping for a different brand? Any suggestions? It has to be better than the ion exchange resin tap water filter I'm using now, isn't it?

I got their 5 stage unit. Here's what I didn't like:

1. It supposedly came with an adaptor / valve to go between the water supply coming out of the wall and the faucet. Whatever it was that came with it I either buggered up immediately or it was just not threaded properly. I then took several trips back and forth from the hardware store to get the stuff I needed to make it work like I wanted. BRS has the appropriate valve in stock.
2. All of the tubing is white. (BRS I believe color codes theirs in red, white, blue, and green.) This is just a nuisance when it comes to figuring out what goes where. Although it's pre-assembled. . .
3. I'm not convinced everything was hooked up right in the box. I do know that it was set up to flow right to left, and I wanted left to right for where I was going to put it. The directions are not that great and obviously translated from another language. I ended up going to the BRS website to figure out how to put everything together the way I wanted it. (This was my first RODI unit.)
4. Both carbon blocks are the same. BRS has two different micron sizes so you get progressive as opposed to redundant filtration.
5. I had some leaks at first. To be fair, that might have been the result of my disassembly and reassembly. They were resolved in any case.
6. The deionization resin in this unit does not appear to be refillable.
7. Vs. the same type from BRS, the one canister of the three was clear. I think all BRS canisters are clear. (I guess this isn't all that important, but I like the idea.)

Regardless, once properly assembled this unit will provide purer water at a long run lower cost than the Tap Water Filter from Aquarium Pharmacuticals (which is what I think you were using). I have tested the output from mine with a pen type TDS meter and I have 117ppm going in and 0 coming out. It just eneded up be a lot of work to save about $20 in the long run.

 

[Fritz007]

I got their 5 stage unit. Here's what I didn't like:

[*]It supposedly came with an adaptor / valve to go between the water supply coming out of the wall and the faucet. Whatever it was that came with it I either buggered up immediately or it was just not threaded properly. I then took several trips back and forth from the hardware store to get the stuff I needed to make it work like I wanted. BRS has the appropriate valve in stock.
[*]All of the tubing is white. (BRS I believe color codes theirs in red, white, blue, and green.) This is just a nuisance when it comes to figuring out what goes where. Although it's pre-assembled. . .
[*]I'm not convinced everything was hooked up right in the box. I do know that it was set up to flow right to left, and I wanted left to right for where I was going to put it. The directions are not that great and obviously translated from another language. I ended up going to the BRS website to figure out how to put everything together the way I wanted it. (This was my first RODI unit.)
[*]Both carbon blocks are the same. BRS has two different micron sizes so you get progressive as opposed to redundant filtration.
[*]I had some leaks at first. To be fair, that might have been the result of my disassembly and reassembly. They were resolved in any case.
[*]The deionization resin in this unit does not appear to be refillable.
[*]Vs. the same type from BRS, the one canister of the three was clear. I think all BRS canisters are clear. (I guess this isn't all that important, but I like the idea.)
Regardless, once properly assembled this unit will provide purer water at a long run lower cost than the Tap Water Filter from Aquarium Pharmacuticals (which is what I think you were using). I have tested the output from mine with a pen type TDS meter and I have 117ppm going in and 0 coming out. It just eneded up be a lot of work to save about $20 in the long run.

Thanks for sharing your opinion. It does seem pointless to pay for a five stage filter when two of them (the carbon blocks) don't compliment one another at all. I did feel the PWC unit better fit my budget but, the fact that the adapter/valve included is faulty and needs to be replaced adds to the overall cost of the unit. I may be better off spending a few more dollars on a better quality product and save myself the hassle. Anyway, I appreciate your feedback. Oh, by the way, you were correct about the tap water filter. It is the one made by Aquarium Pharmacuticals

 

[dirkdolemite]

I have the 4 stage ro/di. From bulk reef supply and love it .