I made RO/DI... now what?
- Thread starter texdoc77
- Start date
shifty51008
12-5 Chiefs record
I dont check for anything other than the tds. Once it reaches over 1 i change out the di resin. If the unit is working properly 0 tds water shouldnt have any ammonia in it
Ron Reefman
Active member
I'm willing to let my tds get up to 10 , but then I make a lot of water and have dual RO membranes that are 24" long. So just my RO water without the DI is usually under 20. Besides, I don't see the need for 0 or 1 tds. I have 4 tanks and have been in the hobby for 15 years and RO/DI water with a low tds has never been an issue. If I had an outbreak of algae, I'd make sure my tds was zero, but if all is going well, I don't see the need.
I have a friend on a well and his tds is over 120. He aerates his water and lets it stand for 24 hours before he uses it, but his reef tank looks as good as most. And he doesn't have any issues either.
If you suspect, or are worried, about the chance that something in your water is a serious issue, have it tested. Pay for a test, or check with your city water and find out what's in it. If there isn't anything terrible, keep your RO/DI clean. But I don't see the need to be obsessive about it.
I'm sure many here will disagree, but that's OK too.
I have a friend on a well and his tds is over 120. He aerates his water and lets it stand for 24 hours before he uses it, but his reef tank looks as good as most. And he doesn't have any issues either.
If you suspect, or are worried, about the chance that something in your water is a serious issue, have it tested. Pay for a test, or check with your city water and find out what's in it. If there isn't anything terrible, keep your RO/DI clean. But I don't see the need to be obsessive about it.
I'm sure many here will disagree, but that's OK too.
texdoc77
New member
Well here in Waco the taste of the water is notoriously bad, but I think it has actually nothing to do with the safety of the water. We do use chloramine here and it appears that there is some debate on using RO/DI to specifically remove it. I have seen comments from the spectrapure account that indicate removal of the chloramine may not be necessary, however, they sell one that does just that so.... it was a good price and I bought it. The TDS before treatment runs about 160 which I think is really quite good, after my RO it is currently <10 and after DI it is 0. I have a 55 without much evap so I do not go through all that much water and had been lugging it from the local target, but that was getting old (plus the RO/DI was something new to play with).
Spar
New member
Here in nearby Dallas, our TDS is 450 out of the tap... excessive.
The main reason to have the Chloramine removal component on your system is that the carbon block won't get rid of all of it, and the residual will tear away at your RO membrane quite quickly. I have noticed that the carbon and chloramine blocks last way longer than the specifications on it. best bet is to buy some of the dip sticks for chlorine/chloramine and check the output (pre-RO membrane) to see if you get any chlorine reading; you should start considering replacing both the filters once the reading gets to >=.25ppm.
