Its not what you need to add to the Tap Water Its what you need to remove thats the proper Question.
Tap water
- Thread starter bluetang22
- Start date
Its not what you need to add to the Tap Water Its what you need to remove thats the proper Question.
vames
New member
All the advice about RO/DI is certainly good advice, and all these guys are way above my paygrade, but I thought I'd add that if you are just doing FOWLR, you can probably get away with using treated (de-chlorinated) tap water. If you are on city water, your local utility will have a water report, frequently online, that will tell you typical ranges for things like phosphates and nitrates. I personally am about a month into a FOWLR tank using treated tap, and my nitrates seem very acceptable to me (<10) (not testing for anything else other than pH, NH3 & NO2).
But in the long run, RO/DI is certainly the way to go, and it's in my budget for the new year!
But in the long run, RO/DI is certainly the way to go, and it's in my budget for the new year!
locust
New member
I seem to be on my own on this site, but once again, i've been using tap water for 6 years without any issues. Mix your salt, let it stand for at least 2 days to remove any chlorine, then it's ready to use. There are no problems using tap water. I think some people just need to find something to blame apart from bad tank husbandry.
Incidentally, to answer your question, you don't need to add anything at all to the water, as long as you let it stand before use.
Incidentally, to answer your question, you don't need to add anything at all to the water, as long as you let it stand before use.
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brewski4u1
Member
any local food store sells RO all you have to do is read the label and see how its filtered and its pretty cheap .50 a gallon where I'm at! I'm fighting algae problems now i couldn't imagine what it would be like if i was using tap!! ugh :sad2:
I seem to be on my own on this site, but once again, i've been using tap water for 6 years without any issues.
There is no doubt that some folks have acceptable tap water. If you are one of those, that's great. Many reefers on Reef Central do it. But many folks clearly do not. So it is a crap shoot. Even if you next door neighbor's water is OK, yours may not be due to copper from your own pipes, etc.
So the question every potential tap water user should ask is simply this:
"Is it worth the risk for me?"
It may well be worth the risk for some folks, but bear in mind that it is not always easy to correct certain problems (like copper in the tank) once they happen.
There is no doubt that some folks have acceptable tap water. If you are one of those, that's great. Many reefers on Reef Central do it. But many folks clearly do not. So it is a crap shoot. Even if you next door neighbor's water is OK, yours may not be due to copper from your own pipes, etc.
So the question every potential tap water user should ask is simply this:
"Is it worth the risk for me?"
It may well be worth the risk for some folks, but bear in mind that it is not always easy to correct certain problems (like copper in the tank) once they happen.
baldwinaquaman
New member
If your doing FOWLR, your good with tap water, RODI is def. better, but it's also more expensive, more wasteful, and more hassle. A reef tank def. needs RODI in my opinion. I use tap in my FOWLR because I like to have more than avg. algae growth on the rocks for my tangs and other herbivorous fish. They graze all day, and they love it. It really is up to you even if your doing FOWLR. Im just not into wasting all that water, so if and when I go into a cleaner water source I'll be getting a kold sterile unit. You should check into that, it does'nt produce any waste water, from what i understand not quite as good as RODI water, but pretty dern close.
BongoSolo3
New member
I'm in Cleveland, and heard from a local reefer that our tap water was ok enough to do the initial fill, but to go RO/DI after that. So I went for it....
I did my fill about 6 weeks ago and have some green hair algae... but it has been slowing down as I do water changes...
I did my fill about 6 weeks ago and have some green hair algae... but it has been slowing down as I do water changes...
der_wille_zur_macht
Team RC
Referencing Randy:
IMHO it's dangerous to make sweeping statements like "Tap water is OK for FOWLR."
The bottom line is this: Tap water is an unknown. It may work for some people, some of the time, for some types of tanks. But even for those people, it's still a gamble - the treatment plant supplying your water system may change their processes without any notice, and suddenly your fish are all dead. Even on wells, your groundwater may suddenly become contaminated with something harmful.
I'm not trying to be a scare monger, just being honest. I ran tanks off tap water for years before RO/DI was common in the hobby. There were ups and downs. Given the availability and relatively cheap cost of an RO/DI unit compared to the investment in even a simple FOWLR, I don't see how it's worth the risk these days, though of course it's a decision every person has to make on their own.
baldwinaquaman
New member
Referencing Bob Fenner:
In the concientious maine aquarist, Bob states that it is his opinion that the use of tap water is not as big of a concern as the person setting up the tank equipment, and doing regular maintenance the way they should. I believe he said something to the effect that, often times people who don't know what their doing will blame their tap water.
Having kept up with my regular maintenance, and properly maintaining my tank, I have been using tap water for 5 years without any particular happenings or losses I can blame on the tap. It is a gamble I'm willing to take until I can afford a unit which will not waste more water than it produces. This is just my experience. It has been a good one, maybe it couldv'e been better. I however feel though, than new people to this hobby should be scared into thinking that they have to have this, or thy have to have that. It can be overwhelming especially to someone who has no idea what many of the pieces of equipment are. Just my opinion, as I stated before, of course RODI is better, but I believe you can get good results with tap as well.
In the concientious maine aquarist, Bob states that it is his opinion that the use of tap water is not as big of a concern as the person setting up the tank equipment, and doing regular maintenance the way they should. I believe he said something to the effect that, often times people who don't know what their doing will blame their tap water.
Having kept up with my regular maintenance, and properly maintaining my tank, I have been using tap water for 5 years without any particular happenings or losses I can blame on the tap. It is a gamble I'm willing to take until I can afford a unit which will not waste more water than it produces. This is just my experience. It has been a good one, maybe it couldv'e been better. I however feel though, than new people to this hobby should be scared into thinking that they have to have this, or thy have to have that. It can be overwhelming especially to someone who has no idea what many of the pieces of equipment are. Just my opinion, as I stated before, of course RODI is better, but I believe you can get good results with tap as well.
Frick-n-Frags
New member
the no-brainer is just to RO. but i'm glad the distinction has been clrearly and repeatedly made that it all depends upon the tap water source.
the folks in AZ with the land locked, minimal rain water supplies have 700+tds with lots of crap like Si
well, that is something i can't fathom being on the north coast and having nearly pristine lake erie water on tap. the detailed chemical assay from clevo water was really amazing. when i first started, and when i was even really rockingthe coral, i was using tap water. i would just run it out of the hot water tap to air off the chlorine by the time it cooled.
this water has nasty things like a few ppm of magnesium, calcium,
and traces or unmeasureables of heavy metals and pesticides (my really main concerns)
and when doing lots of waterchanges while growing lots of coral, vs only lots of makeup water, i would not really had a buildup.
maybe minimal water changes would have been a disaster, IDK, i never went there.
just to be clear here,now i use an RO unit anyway. why f around?
the folks in AZ with the land locked, minimal rain water supplies have 700+tds with lots of crap like Si
well, that is something i can't fathom being on the north coast and having nearly pristine lake erie water on tap. the detailed chemical assay from clevo water was really amazing. when i first started, and when i was even really rockingthe coral, i was using tap water. i would just run it out of the hot water tap to air off the chlorine by the time it cooled.
this water has nasty things like a few ppm of magnesium, calcium,
and traces or unmeasureables of heavy metals and pesticides (my really main concerns)
and when doing lots of waterchanges while growing lots of coral, vs only lots of makeup water, i would not really had a buildup.
maybe minimal water changes would have been a disaster, IDK, i never went there.
just to be clear here,now i use an RO unit anyway. why f around?
dawaterboy
New member
A few supermarket r/o units that claim to be up to date on filter changes were tested by reefers in my area. Let's just say not all of them really change thier filters like they claim to. If your buying water from a supermarket be sure not to take thier word that it is as clean as the sign says. Be sure to test the water before you throw it in your tank thinking it's clean.
Haxsaw
New member
I'm definitely not claiming to be an expert here (my tank has just been set up as of Wednesday) but from reading this site for months now; I was convinced that making the investment for a R/O unit was the right thing to do. To be fair, I did hear from folks in the area (including the LFS) that it wasn't necessary to get one. It just felt like good insurance to start with from day 1.
You believe this because in your area the Tap water is apparenttlly OK. but in many areas of the country that is not the case. It is loaded with silicate phosphates and much other crap that is not good for the reef. Often it is not directtly bad for the reef but it is fertiliizer for excess alge growth which is BAD for the reef.
cloak
New member
I've been using tap water for almost thirteen years now and have never had any problems. It is a crap shoot, don't get me wrong, but over the years I've seen far too many threads where RO/DI was being used, yet the aquarist is plagued by problems. Some people have a blue thumb, others don't. Not exactly sure if tap water deserves all the flak that it gets these days.
FWIW.
FWIW.
daddy'sgirl
New member
Starting out I used tap water, and it didn't kill anything; but I agree with everyone else, either buy RO water or get a RODI. Oh, and I know that some LFS sell RO water, make sure you ask to make sure its RO. I bought saltwater from Petco for months before I actually asked if it was RO water...it wasn't. It was just tapwater they added salt to.
TRichardson79
New member
IMO I wouldn't use tap water. My first purchase after my tank and stand was a RO/DI filter. Picked it up from BRS for less than $150
