what kind of water do you use for changes?

tracey_442

New member
does everybody use ro/di units or is there some other broke people out there like me doing somthin else.additives or buying it somwhere?
 
RO/DI here........you can get a decent unit on ebay for less than 100 bucks. WELL worth the investment IMO. Trust me I didn't start with one and I had cyano like mad in my tank :(
 
my algae isnt horroble but im saving my $ for a new tank and am trying to get away with a low buck option 4 now. but if ive gotta do it ive gotta do it.
 
IMO you would probably be better to get the rodi system first, you will be amazed at what it can do for your tank. Filling the tank from the start and only using rodi water in your new set up will save you alot of headaches in the future. I also got one off of ebay, one of if not the best investment I made in the hobby so far.
 
You can get water at walmart or places like that pretty cheap. but- if you are looking to get a new tank that is bigger, meaning you will need more water, then having a unit at home is much less of a hassle. A lot depends on your source water.
 
my current tank is a 36 gal. i do roughly a 6 gal water change every other week so buying it for that is ok, but to fill my new one ill definitley get a system. im buying the tank soon but im not gonna set it up till winter.
 
I wanted to use my RODI, but my land lord gives us sh*t for the water bill. She thinks our tank is the reason for the higher cost........
 
I recycle my bath/shower water intot he tank. It really keeps teh tank siffy clean, and the soap helps the skimmer work super well as it bubbles and foams up !





* no we really all do use RODI, or at very least filtered store bought water..... SOME PEOPLE...... use tap water, but it all depends on what they have in their tanks. I've used Troy tap water before, and my tank ran great........ but I didn't have anythig but fish and a few inverts at the time.
 
Tracey,

I would very strongly suggest using an RO/DI and (I don't mind being flamed for the following):

If you don't have the money for the RO/DI, maybe it's best to not have a tank in the first place. I would rather keep my tank water clean than eat a pizza. Remember, having a reef tank means having tons of little and big animals swimming around in a small vessel solely depending on you - that is why we call if Husbandry!

OK, let me have the flames
 
no flames here, its blunt and honest just how i like it. ill buy the water from the store for my water changes and ill get a unit b4 i setup my new tank.
 
hmmmmmm......I notice Rainer didn't say anything about keeping water clean rather than eating steak....hehehe.....but since I started using RO/DI there are noticeable changes in my tanks ....
all for the better.....it is pretty much a necessity....good luck!
 
If you absolutely need to go cheap you can test your tap water for various specs such as amounia, nitrite, nitrates and phosphates to see if you can get away with it. However these specs are bound to change without warning due to irregular or spike in water treatment service.

Personally I don't use anything but distilled water. I just ordered a 4 stage rodi system to eliminate hauling distilled gallons from the supermarket. This will come handy when my 90 gallon goes up next.

Heck I don't even drink tap water so why give it to our precious marines?
:p
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7905781#post7905781 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by upstatedave
hmmmmmm......I notice Rainer didn't say anything about keeping water clean rather than eating steak....hehehe

MMMMMMMMMMMMMMmmm Steak!! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH (bad Homer impersonation)

I know a few theads back there was a post by Jallard about a Spectupure group buy, could possibly be a good option. Also Have heard good things about AirWaterIce and Purely H2o along with good systems on Ebay.
 
If you get a job as a Chef, you get the steak, and eat it too as well as having enough $ leftover to get tank water :bum:
 
i ran every test ,y marie lab set would do on my well water and it all came back zero, my only problem i noticed is iron in my h20. but ill start using distilled water in my current tank for changes and buy a filter b4 i start my new tank up.

ps i hate my aenemone its always hungry.
 
try feeding it bigger meals ;)

IRON will only help with alga. ASlong as you have it undercontrol, it should not be a big deal.
 
Iron isn't a terrible concern- nitrogens are more of a fertilizer for undesirable algae growth. I would be more concerned about water distilled in a copper still personally, as many inverts are very sensative to copper. Not sure how common that is that copper is used though or how much of a concern it really is....I mentioned that you can fill your own water from a machine at super markets and I think Walmart. Those machines are frequently ro/di units.
You are using well water which is a different ball game than municipal water. I have heard of quite a few people who use well water. Usually it is harder and has some calcium in it.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7915484#post7915484 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by michaelg
You are using well water which is a different ball game than municipal water. I have heard of quite a few people who use well water. Usually it is harder and has some calcium in it.

It gave Joe alot of headaches but it did have a ton of calcium.
 
I used water purchased at Walmaert for over a year with ok results. I still do buy it there for top off water and large water changes. I recentley decided to try the ocean water that Petco sells. I set up a 12 gallon nano and have only used the petco water. I have noticed that the day after a water change I get green algae blooms that completely cover all of the glass. When I am done cleaning the glass there is no more algea until the next water change. Over all I feel that using boxed ocean water has been more convenient than mixing water from walmart. At 9.99 for a 5 gallon box it isn't cheap and you have to use the whole box, the stuff dolesn't store well I am told. Tony at Swamp bottom doesn't charge for ro/di water, just bring you container he'll give you the water for free.
 
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