does RO remove nitrates?

[Beemo]

ive been using bottled RO for a few years now, but id like to setup a much larger tank and bottles of RO water just arent practical for such a setup.

i thought about using straight tap water (dechlorinated)
but on occasion nitrates and/or ammonia is present in my tap water.

does an RO machine remove nitrates and ammonia for tap water?

the tank will be fish only, no corals at all

 

[dhnguyen]

Yes. But RO/DI will be much better IMO/IME than just RO alone. There are more things than just Nitrate to worry about with tap water.

 

[danskim]

Agreed. Check the sponsors for some good deals on RO/DI units. Definitely easier than lugging around bottles And it should be a little more pure.

 

[Beemo]

oh cool thnx
i didnt know there were two types of RO

just curious, but for a fish only system, what is wrong with using tap water?
i only use tap water for my freshwater tanks. i add a dechlorinator that says it removes heavy metals also.

 

[dhnguyen]

Because for one although nitrate is not typically toxic to fish, high concentration of it can cause all sorts of problems and stressing the fish causing their immune system to weaken and more susceptible to infections and parasites. If your source tap water has a lot of nitrate in the first place, over time it will accumulate in your system to very high level that is detrimental to the livestock.

There are also other elements in tap water that can adversely affect fish as well besides chlorine and ammonia (copper, chloramine, phosphate, etc...)

This is not to mention algae (nuissance) will thrive on nitrate and phosphate.