I have a 35 gallon reef tank with a 14 gallon refug and a 5 gallon sump with in sump skimmer. What size RO\DI will I need? and where is a good place to start looking?

I'd go with a 100 GPD unit. The price difference is so small, it doen't make any sense to get a lower capacity unit.

eBay is a good place to start. Aquasafe seems to be a popular brand.

I have the aquasafe as do several others here. Works good for me and it was cheaper than any other that I found.

i bought melev's 100 gpd system. was the least expensive i found. i didn't see the aquasafe ...

I found my 100 GPD at aquasafecanada . I have had great results and the price with 3 yrs of replacements is almost unbelievable but product delivers.

Melev's should be great also. Most of them use the same filters anyway.

I also have an Aquasafe 100 GPD unit. With my house pressure at 65 PSI, I produce about 40g of RODI water in a 24 hour period. For setup, a diagram would've worked a lot better than the rambling instructions...but it was easy to install in our old washing machine closet. If I had to pierce a pipe or use a saddle clamp to drain, I would have been a bit more nervous...

I also just checked out Air, Water & Ice (http://www.airwaterice.com/category/1/) today, and it seems as if they have some nice, affordable systems tuned for reefkeepers. Their "new style" RODI unit (http://www.airwaterice.com/product/1DUALHRNEWSTYLE/Dual_home_reef_new_style.html) with an upflow DI cartridge seems more streamlined (less gangly), but I haven't priced out the consumables. Their part selection is also pretty extensive, including reservoirs. May be worth a gander.

I found mine off ebay, about $100 should get you a decent rodi from there. just make sure you have a TDI meter as well. It will tell you when your filters are aged and need replacing

John, do you mean a TDS meter or is this something else?

OK, here I go again, sounding Newbesque! Where does this system get hooked up? IREALLY need one for evaporation reasons alone!!

i plumbed mine under the sink. drilled a saddle clamp to my drain and got a T for the inlet. Works great for me, though I know a lot of peeps don't feel comfortable drilling their pipes.

I had mine under the kitchen sink, but moved it to the basement because I hated losing the space under the sink. As far as the plumbing, if your home is fairly modern, the actual installation is easy and shouldn't be a worry for anyone who is slightly handy. You certainly dont need to be a plumber to do it correctly.

I agree that installation is easy. I would warn you to add an auto top off or auto shut off to the system. These high GPH units will make water faster than you think. Please learn from my mistakes. I'll shut that off before I go to bed turned into waking up in the morning with a carpet full of water. I have found that float valves stick and that the air operated ones seem to be bullet proof.

I have found that float valves stick and that the air operated ones seem to be bullet proof.

Float valves stick? Hmm... I was ust about to purchase a Kent float valve to install on my Brute 44g reservoir. Could you post a link to a decent "air operated" shutoff valve for 1/4" RODI tubing?

Thanks!

I got the 100 GPD from aquasafecanada to. The way I plumed mine is was. I cut the 3/4in copper line put a T in and took it down to the 1/4in line. It was a couple of tripes to the hardware store.

The new Level Loc auto top off looks bullet proof. They have a bulb float but if that fails for any reason there is a magnetic micro switch that operates a solenoid valve for positive shut off. Here's a picture...

http://www.theculturedreef.com/Level%20Loc-4.jpg


And a link to my web site where you will find a complete explanation on how it works.

level-loc (http://www.theculturedreef.com/level-loc.htm)

Dick

You know that I'm think of doing some thing like that to my tank but make it graved feed in to the tank, from a bucket with about a gallon of water in it cause I'm getting tired of putting water in the tank 1/2 in the morning and 1/2 at night. Wow if I did some thing like that all I would have to do is check the bucket for water.