Tap water conditioner
- Thread starter geee
- Start date
michaeldaly
New member
No you don't have to use conditioner as the ro/di will have already removed everything.
Do you have only 2 cartridges on your filter? An ro/di filter should have 4, sediment, carbon, ro membrane, and deionization.
Measure the effectiveness of the filter with a tds meter. For RO/DI, you'll probably want to keep it under 1 ppm, though I'm happy with under 10 with my RO only model.
Sediment is generally changed when dirty, every 4 to 6 months or so depending on your water. Carbon I change with the membrane, and this very much depends on your water. Mine appears to be good for about 10-12 months. Deionizing resin needs changing more frequenly, I think, like every 150 gallons.
In case anyone is curious... My RO unit (no deionization) reduced chloramine levels from 2.75 ppm down to 0.15 ppm. (The water company came and measured) I've not been using any conditioner, though I do use some activated carbon in my tank. I can bet that with deionization it would be reduced even further.
Measure the effectiveness of the filter with a tds meter. For RO/DI, you'll probably want to keep it under 1 ppm, though I'm happy with under 10 with my RO only model.
Sediment is generally changed when dirty, every 4 to 6 months or so depending on your water. Carbon I change with the membrane, and this very much depends on your water. Mine appears to be good for about 10-12 months. Deionizing resin needs changing more frequenly, I think, like every 150 gallons.
In case anyone is curious... My RO unit (no deionization) reduced chloramine levels from 2.75 ppm down to 0.15 ppm. (The water company came and measured) I've not been using any conditioner, though I do use some activated carbon in my tank. I can bet that with deionization it would be reduced even further.
michaeldaly
New member
RO/DI removes heavy metals and chlorine.
They should not have to be replaced after 4 months. The prefilters are usually changed once per year and the ro membrane once every 2 years.
They only true way to tell if the filters need replacing is to buy a TDS meter, the reading should be very close to zero.
They should not have to be replaced after 4 months. The prefilters are usually changed once per year and the ro membrane once every 2 years.
They only true way to tell if the filters need replacing is to buy a TDS meter, the reading should be very close to zero.
Does it look like this?
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/Prod_Display.cfm?pcatid=4467&N=2004+113775
If so, then it is RO only and depending on your model either has a sedimment pre-filter or a carbon pre-filter.
This will certainly remove most of the chlorine/chloramine, but I would think maybe a little less than a higher end model might. I suppose it doesn't hurt anything to add a little conditioner in just to be safe. Can anyone comment on if conditioner use is bad for reef tanks? If not, it'd be some really cheap peace of mind.
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/Prod_Display.cfm?pcatid=4467&N=2004+113775
If so, then it is RO only and depending on your model either has a sedimment pre-filter or a carbon pre-filter.
This will certainly remove most of the chlorine/chloramine, but I would think maybe a little less than a higher end model might. I suppose it doesn't hurt anything to add a little conditioner in just to be safe. Can anyone comment on if conditioner use is bad for reef tanks? If not, it'd be some really cheap peace of mind.
Oh, and that link also provides information (click "more information") about use and care, and you might take note of the place where they say if the unit is not used for 4 weeks that the membrane needs to be removed and stored in a bag with some water. So you might ask the guy you got it from if he used it right up until you got it, OR if you kept it sitting around for a month before using it. In this case, you might want to replace the membrane.
Found the a website selling the one i have:
http://www.marinedepot.com/md_viewItem.asp?idproduct=KM1253
now can you help put that stuff in laymen terms
http://www.marinedepot.com/md_viewItem.asp?idproduct=KM1253
now can you help put that stuff in laymen terms
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