Still haven’t bought an ro filter

[af2018]

So I used to have one, we had to install it, which was no big deal we owned the house. We currently rent this house and don’t want to change upgrade or modify anything as we’ll be buying a house within a year at this point. They make countertop ones, I found one that’s perfect but the next issue is the connector won’t connect to my “fancy” faucet
I would love some suggestions here. I’m cheap and I refuse to change anything, including the faucet but I’m about to spend all day today and half the day tomorrow boiling water, allowing it to cool, adding it to the jugs, and repeat. I’d give anything to do literally anything else with my day. Blessed housewife whose bored and burnt out on boiling water

 

[Aiken Drum]

Why do you need an RO filter? Whats wrong with water conditioner?

 

[af2018]

Mostly out of being cheap. But also bc I thought it was better for my fish..?

For the first time ever I’m having success with this hobby. I think a huge part of my issue in the past is the fact that I’m a clean freak and I thought I was smart by constantly disrupting and cleaning, thoroughly and routinely
This time around has been a lot better I’ve gained a better understanding of cycling and bacteria processes.
This started in a smaller tank though. I recently upgraded. So I wasn’t having to fill as many jugs before. I guess another reason I’ve kept doing this is bc it’s worked so well. Why mess up what’s been working so well, is the thought process I think.
I do want what’s best though and I don’t mind putting in some work to get it. This is just a bit much tho lol

 

[Aiken Drum]

RO is going to be bad on its own. It has no hardness so there is no KH to buffer against pH drops. The nitrogen cycle requires KH to function. It needs to be remineralised to provide a healthy environment. You would use RO if you are keeping fish that are particular about their water parameters. RO is a blank canvas that can be remineralised to the parameters you want. This could be if your tap water is hard but your fish need soft tap water. Its very difficult to remove minerals to soften water, whereas its easy to add minerals to harden tap water.

Most freshwater fish are very adaptable though and will live in a wide variety of water parameters. Commercially bred fish won't necessary have been born in raised in similar water to their wild brethren. Unless your tap water is way out there, or you are keeping particularly picky fish like say discus or wild caught fish that need acidic soft water, RO isnt going to be necessary.

You might use remineralised RO if your tap water is really bad. Full of contaminants for instance. You probably dont want to use tap water from that Flint, Michigan place.

I bet more than 99% of freshwater aquarium keepers arent using RO.

Its most common usage is for reefs because there are contaminants in tap water that coral wont tolerate, so you need that blank canvas so those contaminants arent present.

You are boiling the water to remove chlorine I presume. Boiling wont remove all contaminants. It will make the water a little harder because some H2O will evaporate but leave the minerals behind. So if the water is safe to use after boiling, its probably going to be safe to use after using a water conditioner.

As for cost, i can do a water change on a 200 litre aquarium using 20p of water conditioner. Boiling 100 litres of water for a 50% water change must cost more than 20p in energy cost, and there is the time cost too. Then compare it RO. You have to purchase the filter, fit it, maintain it, buy remineralising salts and mix it. Im not going to do all the maths, but that must cost more than the £10 per year for water conditioner it costs me to do weekly water changes on my 200 litre.

 

[af2018]

So I’m better off maybe testing my tap water and just doing the conditioner?
Also you’re right my water is always hard I haven’t noticed any thing negative with my fish so I’ve never looked into.
Also I notice no difference on my gas bill. It runs low low in this house like 10-20 month. And I run that thing constantly

 

[Aiken Drum]

Running the gas boiler for an hour for our heating costs about £1/ hour. The electric to heat 100 litres of water to 100C must be more than the 20p cost of water conditioner.

If cost is absolute a factor, the cheapest way to remove chlorine is to let it sit in an open container 24 hours before use. An aerator will help too. Running it through a charcoal filter (Brita) will remove chlorine too, but then you are back to the cost of purchase and maintenance of a charcoal filter.

I would certainly find out the parameters of your tap water. Its better to ask your water company. They will have testing far more accurate than a home test kit is capable of and can test for far more. In the UK we can access our water testing online on the water companys website, its updated every 3 to 6 months. If you are comfortable with your water chemistry you wont need to test much. I dont remember the last time i did a water test. Certainly not 2024.

 

[Andy Sager]

Just to toss my 2 cents into this conversation, I never used RO water when I was breeding wild caught S. American fish. I used rain water. Rain water is the same as RO water. If you were keeping hard water fish, it would need to be remineralized. ( i.e. Marine fish, many African Cichlid species, Livebearers, etc.) Unless you are in a heavy industrial area where there are a lot of smoke stacks and chemicals being spewed into the air, the cost of a 35 gal plastic trash can or even a 55 gal food prep drum will be cheaper in the long run than both the RO filter or the chemicals to make tap water usable. And making a rain catch or two is simple as well. All you need to do is cover it with a screen so that dirt and debris don't get into the container.

As Aiken mentioned, boiling your water to make it safe is only making your water harder. If you want to make it RO water, you'd need to collect the steam and let it reconstitute in a container for it to be equal to RO water.

 

[af2018]

Just to toss my 2 cents into this conversation, I never used RO water when I was breeding wild caught S. American fish. I used rain water. Rain water is the same as RO water. If you were keeping hard water fish, it would need to be remineralized. ( i.e. Marine fish, many African Cichlid species, Livebearers, etc.) Unless you are in a heavy industrial area where there are a lot of smoke stacks and chemicals being spewed into the air, the cost of a 35 gal plastic trash can or even a 55 gal food prep drum will be cheaper in the long run than both the RO filter or the chemicals to make tap water usable. And making a rain catch or two is simple as well. All you need to do is cover it with a screen so that dirt and debris don't get into the container.

As Aiken mentioned, boiling your water to make it safe is only making your water harder. If you want to make it RO water, you'd need to collect the steam and let it reconstitute in a container for it to be equal to RO water.

No I know it’s not ro after I boil it! I just wanted to do an ro filter bc I used to used it for weed plants and it’s good drinking water. I like the rainwater catch idea. That’s totally up my alley.

And Aiken: I am cheap but i live well above the poverty line. Yea ideally I’d like to keep costs minimal to a hobby that brings in no money and is occasionally a headache that’s my stand point on it.