Ro/DI Filtration Really necessary?

[RickkyBobby]

OK, tonight i was with a very good friend of mine who who works for the water department here in my town.. he has worked there for 15 years at least.. he has 2 different license in water distribution and 3 in Water Treatment..

Our water here has no chlorine at all, so i dont have to worry about that.. I see these Ro/DI kits for 100's of dollars and i told him about them because i almost bought one.. what did he say? They are waste of money. Use a charcoal/carbon filter to filter your tap water and you should be fine.. He has been to many houses in the area that have been set up with a R0/DI system and there was still plenty of metals and other [mod edit] in it after he tested the water. Just use a charcoal sink filter or something similar will do the trick.. Of coarse the people who have spent thousands of dollars buying there reverse osmosis system for there house are not happy when they see there water sample doesn't look much better than water that has gone thru a PUR water pitcher and to boot their water pressure sucks, but that's not his problem..

So my final question is....If i used just a charcoal filter/carbon water filter... what will be left in the water that will be so bad for my salt water fish tank.. I have heard that the tap water causes algae problems and everything else under the sun.. I would like to know EXACTLY what in the water causes these things. Give facts and numbers PPM Microns ETC.. Real Data, That you, yourself have collected.. I dont care what the DI system you bought says...Just dont tell me, well it does take out this and that and i am pretty sure it looks real clean.. Maybe someone is making alot of money here for no reason but i wont be from me.......................

Well,, I may still just buy one anyway and run 2 different tests just to see if they come out exactly the same as i regular charcoal/carbon filter setup, hopefully i can return it after..

 

[MrPillow]

If RO/DI is used properly you will have a product with 0ppm TDS. Buy what you want - it appears your friend knows more than we ever could

 

[RickkyBobby]

If RO/DI is used properly you will have a product with 0ppm TDS. Buy what you want - it appears your friend knows more than we ever could

Again.. Have you ever checked this.. and where are your results? I dont care what it tells you what it WILL do.. And what is it that is so bad that hurts the tank?

 

[MrPillow]

My results are that properly functioning RO/DI will yield a product with 0PPM TDS.

You should probably trust your friend though he sounds very qualified

 

[RickkyBobby]

ok.. I will test it like i said ,once i buy one . My question still is.. what are the acceptable levels ...PPM Of TDS for a tank?.. charcoal filtration=50-140 ppm.. tap water is 140-400.. Reverse osmosis 0-50ppm. 0 TO 50. So i could be 50PPM with reverse osmosis which equals charcoal on its low end of filtration..so charcoal isn't to far behind.. Do i Really NEED 0 PPM, REALLY 0 PPM, i know its perfect but do i really need it??.. And my friend doesn't know more than anyone ever could.. But im sure he does know just a little bit about what he does for a living which is dealing with water and treating it , .. .But you have a fish tank so you must know more about the properties of water and reverse osmosis than anyone, OK smart [mod edit] Anyway, How much do you sell your Ro/DI Filtration kits for, just give me a deal for testing purposes..lol?

 

[MrPillow]

I don't sell them, I am merely a consumer.

I was not aware there was ever any debate as to wether or not RO/DI was effective. If set up properly and maintained, it is extremely effective at removing most, if not all, contents from the water.

If you are using RO/DI, ideal TDS is 0ppm. You want to start from a clean slate, and add to the water only what you want.

The main targets of RO/DI are to remove ammonia (toxic at low levels to inhabitants), Nitrate (toxic at higher levels, used by algae as a "fuel source" per say), phosphates (also used by algae), silicates (used by diatoms, a form of algae), as well as chlorines/chloramines, waterborne bacteria, and heavy metal deposits. There are countless possible toxins and RO/DI will remove the vast majority of them. 0ppm isn't absolutely vital to the health of an aquarium, but it helps extremely - especially in areas with less than suitable water.

It is also necessary for some of the more sensitive species in regards to pH and alkalinity. If you start with RODI water, you can add buffers and ingredients of your choosing to concoct the perfect water parameters for the species you are housing.


Also I currently do not have a fish tank, but thanks for asking

 

[tonedogz]

RO/DI filters remove chemicals and minerals that regular filters can't. Plan carbon will not remove what ro's do. There's sediment filters, carbon filters, membrane, di-mineralizing resin there's 5 or 6 stages depending on the unit how can plan carbon compete with all these stages you end up with almost pure water.

 

[reefrunner69]

ok.. I will test it like i said ,once i buy one . My question still is.. what are the acceptable levels ...PPM Of TDS for a tank?.. charcoal filtration=50-140 ppm.. tap water is 140-400.. Reverse osmosis 0-50ppm. 0 TO 50. So i could be 50PPM with reverse osmosis which equals charcoal on its low end of filtration..so charcoal isn't to far behind.. Do i Really NEED 0 PPM, REALLY 0 PPM, i know its perfect but do i really need it??.. And my friend doesn't know more than anyone ever could.. But im sure he does know just a little bit about what he does for a living which is dealing with water and treating it , .. .But you have a fish tank so you must know more about the properties of water and reverse osmosis than anyone, OK smart [mod edit] Anyway, How much do you sell your Ro/DI Filtration kits for, just give me a deal for testing purposes..lol?

An RO filter is rated in percentages, not 0-50ppm. For ease of use...if your tap has 100ppm TDS, and your RO removes 95-98% of the TDS, then your resulting water will be 2-5 ppm and your DI will polish it to 0 TDS.

Personally, my tap water is 200-225 ppm TDS, depending on how long it's been since I recharged the iron filter, I know this cause I tested it. After the RO I get 4-5ppm TDS, after the DI I get 0 ppm TDS.

What is optimal? 0ppm is optimal, but for many years I had fish only aquariums and had never heard of RO or DI water. Only after I started my first reef aquarium did I come to realize the importance of RO/DI water in controlling unwanted algae. Ultimately what it boils down to is do you want to be in complete control of what goes in your tank or do you want your municipality having a say so?