Making Water Change Water

[GatorDrew]

Alright... so right now I don't have a RODI unit. I plan to have something by August though...

Anyway, I'm trying to make a next step by not taking water directly from the tap and then mixing chemicals. So, I bought a few five gallon jugs... added water, salt, Seachem Prime, and some pH stuff. I now have an air pump with a bubbler at the bottom of the jug to help stir it all up. Looks good now.

Does that sound like it should be a good solution for now?

[melosu58]

Is the seachem prime like a dechlorinator? What are your water test results of the New water before you put it in the main? Salt water is already a buffer so you might not need the PH enhancer.

[GatorDrew]

Yes - prime is a dechlorinator...

My pH out of tap is ~7.8

Test results...

Ammonia, Nitrate, Nitrite - 0

TDS ~90

My water company says they don't use any chloramines.

Basically, where I live (Gainesville, FL) we supposedly have some of the best water in the state.

Thank you for your input!

[melosu58]

OK. I would try the water without the buffer using only salt and the prime. You TDS around 90 would indicate the presence of heavy metals in the water. This is one of the things that people that use tap water need to be informed on. I would say that if you only have fish in the tank then you`ll be OK. I would not use tap with that high a TDS reading with corals in the tank. JMO

[tecwzrd]

I'd recommend using a power head versus an air bubbler for better mixing. As long as you mix for 24+ hours and match ph/sg/temp to the main tank your doing fine.

Personally I use a 32 gal trashcan dedicated to mixing SW and use a Mag 9.5 pump to mix it up and it also heats the water to around 78 degrees. Then I just hook up a 20 ft hose to the end of the pump and fill my tank back up.

TDS of 90 is pretty decent for tap as most tap around the country is 200+ TDS. Still using an ro/di to get it to 0 TDS will go a long way in keeping your water as pure as possible.

Not sure I understand what you're doing. Taking the tap and mixing salt into buckets is still "taking water directly from the tap" either way. How have you been doing pwc for the last year on your 90 gal?

[roka64]

I do the exact thing as Micah, I have a 32G (with wheels) always mixing water.