Is this a good RO/DI System for a tight budget?

[edmond]

I have a 50 gallon SW tank with about 60lbs of live rock, 2 percula clowns, an algae blenny, firefish, 1o hermit crabs, 5 snails and 3 small corals (duncan, neon tree and electric torch).

I have never been able to get my nitrates down to 0, it always hangs around 10 ppm, which I suspect is because of my tap water. So I am looking into getting a RO/DI filter, but I am on a budget. So I found this on ebay: 100 G Aquarium Reef RO DI 5stage Reverse Osmosis Water - eBay (item 180544571860 end time Mar-06-11 21:47:21 PST)

Do you think this is a decent system for the price and will help get the job done? Do the brands for these systems matter at all?

 

[Smitty]

I don't have personal experience with that filter but I've seen that seller's name recommended a time or two. I think most people get their RO/DIs from ebay and are happy with them.

 

[duoc9119]

I'm also looking for a unit and came across this but I would like to know a bit more about it before actually buying it

 

[uscamaro]

I bought mine from Ebay, and it was 100GPD too, but it was $50 more than that. I got mine from FilterDirect and it had 2 DI and all clear membranes so you can see when you need to change the filters.

If 85 people bought them and they claim 0ppm, sounds like a great bargain. You could also buy a TDS meter to verify; it will also let you know when to change the filters)

 

[edmond]

After reading more about them online, seems like a lot of people have leaking/quality issues. Looks like everyone is recommending this line: Aquarium Water | Reverse Osmosis | RODI Water | ReefKeeper Water | ReefKeepers RODI

Maybe I will go with one of these, but I dont know which one to choose! Any suggestions?

 

[Smitty]

I was planning on getting a Typhoon III myself. One of the reasons is the automatic shut off so that I can start this thing filling a 55g drum or something and not worry about it overfilling. It isn't much more expensive than the ebay ones, and comes with a TDS meter.

 

[edmond]

So I was just planning on use this to fill two 5 gallon buckets when I do my water changes every two weeks (I have a 50 gallon tank). Is having one of these overkill for my purposes?

 

[Smitty]

What is this word overkill? I've never heard that phrase before! lol

Just because it is rated for 100g/day or so does not mean that is what you will get. That is what you would get in a perfect world. You could probably expect a good bit less unless you have high water pressure in your house.

IMO I would get the biggest you can afford. It will also help you in the future if you wish to upgrade to a bigger tank and need to do larger water changes.

 

[duoc9119]

Its not overkill. You can wait hours until you get 10 gallons of water or cut the waiting time by a lot and go on with your day.

 

[mr_X]

After reading more about them online, seems like a lot of people have leaking/quality issues. Looks like everyone is recommending this line: Aquarium Water | Reverse Osmosis | RODI Water | ReefKeeper Water | ReefKeepers RODI

Maybe I will go with one of these, but I dont know which one to choose! Any suggestions?

all R.O. systems are a series of plastic containers that hold filters. if they had leaks, it was most likely user error. what sets one apart from another are the bells and whistles, and customer service.
do you need bells and whistles, and customer service? that's for you to answer.

 

[uscamaro]

My 100gpd unit fills a 13-gallon container in about 6 hours. PSI is 25, 500+ppm is coming from the tap, and the temp outside is in the 50s... So 100gpd is best case scenario.

 

[mr_X]

R.O.D.I. units over 75 gpd waste a lot more water. keep that in mind when deciding on a unit.