ro/di alternatives
- Thread starter didjman89
- Start date
scrmbld33
New member
you can get ro water at walmart green cap called drinking water, or distilled at walmart, purple cap. both run about 70cents a gallon. some supermarkets have ro machines in them but none by me to tell you if they are any good. some LFS sell ro water and premade saltwater. in the long run, the ro/di unit will be the cheapest. i average 2-3 gallons a day in evap. so ruoughly 2.10 a day, $766.00 a year. melev has ro units for under $200 www.melevsreef.com so pick wisely 
Flipper62
Premium Member
I would use RO/DI from your LFS.....Or worst case...Use distilled water from walmart, or any store.
I would NOT use premixed salt water from your LFS. Just get the RO/DI water & mix your own salt. I say this because. Depending on the salt that your using To what your LFS is using...will change the calcium... & all the other prams...
But..... getting a RO/DI unit from the Filter Guys, will realy pay off
I would NOT use premixed salt water from your LFS. Just get the RO/DI water & mix your own salt. I say this because. Depending on the salt that your using To what your LFS is using...will change the calcium... & all the other prams...
But..... getting a RO/DI unit from the Filter Guys, will realy pay off
jkrentz2515
New member
If this is that big of an issue you probably shouldn't be having a saltwater tank.
mustangbrew
New member
You might check around with your local health food stores for ro. In my experience they are usually fairly anal about changing their filters. The one that I get my water from checks the tds twice a week and upon request. It's not di but I know what I'm getting.
This is the truth. An RO system is one of the cheapest and most worthwhile things you can buy in this hobby... If you can't afford one right now, maybe you should consider not doing a SW tank....
Are you going to be able to afford lights? Livestock? Live rock? Salt? Food? Electricity bills?
Flipper62
Premium Member
Come on guys...Lightin up on this guy....Just because you want to have a Reef Tank......Doesn't mean you have to buy a RO/DI system. I used & a lot of people have used distiled water to get started. And some still use the LFS RO/DI water.
Get the tank going & spend what you can. When & if you can afford a Good RO/DI unit like the one from the filter guys...Reef + 1 ...$199.95......Then get it.
???.....If you cant afford a RO/DI unit.... you shouldn't even think of having a saltwater tank....Iam sorry...Thats wacked info. You will be fine.
Just keep posting questions when you have them... Everyone here is here to help.....well I guess most
Get the tank going & spend what you can. When & if you can afford a Good RO/DI unit like the one from the filter guys...Reef + 1 ...$199.95......Then get it.
???.....If you cant afford a RO/DI unit.... you shouldn't even think of having a saltwater tank....Iam sorry...Thats wacked info. You will be fine.
Just keep posting questions when you have them... Everyone here is here to help.....well I guess most
And some people here think of this more than some summer project to pass the time.
I didn't say you _needed_ a RO/DI unit... I know people who use tap water for their reef tanks... But if you say you can't afford a $90 RO unit, then how can you possibly afford all the other stuff required to keep saltwater fish alive? Hint: You probably can't.
jkrentz2515
New member
Well after seeing you are only doing a 20 gallon tank then it makes sense to start off this way just to see if you like it. If you were going any bigger than a 40 I would strongly suggest a RODI system. Have fun, and like everyone else said check your lfs, grocery store and or walmart.
Flipper62
Premium Member
didjman88,
This is what I can say. You can take the advise of me, I have been doing this saltwater thing for 8 years. You can also take that advice of Capn...Bertoni..& all the other RC Mods, We pretty much all have the same answers & recomendations.
OR.. you can take the advice of someone just getting into this hobby..... Please let us know what works out for you
This is what I can say. You can take the advise of me, I have been doing this saltwater thing for 8 years. You can also take that advice of Capn...Bertoni..& all the other RC Mods, We pretty much all have the same answers & recomendations.
OR.. you can take the advice of someone just getting into this hobby..... Please let us know what works out for you
Yes. Because you must be a marine biologist or something because you... uhh... have... a... saltwater tank.
My point is is that a RO unit is one of the cheapest things you can buy in this hobby and if you say you CAN'T afford one... Why can you afford any other part of it?
Next are you going to recommend using incandescent lighting because they ALSO double as heaters and real heaters are expensive? Sure it's not the best solution, but by God it'll work. Git 'er done!
Who isn't budget challenged? I know I am. I threw nothing in the guy's face. I just am of the mind that if you can't afford to properly maintain the tank in the first place... Why even start it?
But I guess you all can't see that because clearly you've been caring for fish far longer than I and know pretty much everything... And even though you vigorously tell people to exclusively use RO/DI in every FAQ on RC and plug the RO/DI sponsors incessantly in just about every post... It's obviously not really necessary.
