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fishyshawn
03-26-2006, 07:48 PM
Are R/O units a must for a reef aquarium or could i get by untill i can get some money without one??
Thanks

gwen_o_lyn
03-26-2006, 08:00 PM
Welcome to TR Shawn ;)

Yes, you do *NEED* an RO/DI unit for a reef aquarium. It's one of the most important pieces of equipment. However, you may be able to get by without one for a short amount of time, but eventually it will catch up to you once the hair algae starts to grow.

Tap water has "icky stuff" aka excess nutrients which causes you to have high phosphates and nitrates in your tank. Algae will feed off those excess nutrients and take over your tank and eat ur corals. You will notice many threads in this hobby about people trying to get rid of hair algae and using tap water is one of the primary causes of it.

I highly recommend getting one asap. FWIW, I went one year without one- it will vary for you depending on the quality of your tap water. But once it became a problem in my tank, I almost started losing corals- not pretty.

fishyshawn
03-26-2006, 08:06 PM
would this help get rid of the ecess nuitrents
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/Prod_Display.cfm?pcatid=4484&N=2004+2032+113773

gwen_o_lyn
03-26-2006, 08:09 PM
Don't waste your money.

You want something like this:
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/Prod_Display.cfm?pcatid=4459&Ntt=rodi&Ntk=All&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial&Np=1&N=2004&Nty=1

Many people get them off ebay for about $100.

fishyshawn
03-26-2006, 08:18 PM
i knew that i was just wondering if that would work instead. I found a cheaper R/O unit on marine depot for about $110.
thanks

gwen_o_lyn
03-26-2006, 08:20 PM
Make sure you are getting RO/DI and not just the RO unit ;) You want "the best" water going into your tank. It helps if you get one with a TDS meter too so u know when to change the filters.

Rob
03-26-2006, 10:19 PM
what gwen is saying is right on...
get the best you can afford.
here is the unit i have been using for more than 1.5 years (and many people i know use this unit)
AQUA-SAFE-100GPD-MAXIMUS (http://cgi.ebay.com/AQUA-SAFE-100GPD-MAXIMUS-REVERSE-OSMOSIS-WATER-FILTER_W0QQitemZ4426409788QQcategoryZ20684QQcmdZVi ewItem)

kj_yoda
03-26-2006, 11:04 PM
I use the same system as Rob, just without the resevoir.

JR Aquatics
03-26-2006, 11:41 PM
RO/DI Unit is one of the most important pieces of equipment in the reef hobby. If you can't afford on most local grocery stores carry units where you can fill 5 Gal bottles. Or you can purchase one on ebay, (like I did) just watch out for the crap. Mine was $120 Optima Automated Aquarium RO DI system, from H20Science.com. I have been very happy with it.

rogersoh
03-27-2006, 12:08 AM
For me, being tight on budget. I get an DI unit instead of both RO and DI unit. However with just only the DI unit the operation cost would be higher as I will need to change the resin in the DI unit more frequent.

IMHO, it would better to purchase the RO DI system. The RO unit will remove most of the contaminant in the tap water while the DI unit will remove the rest.

Roger

fishyshawn
03-27-2006, 01:53 PM
thanks for the the help
I'll look in to the one rob showed me
Thanks

Reefbaby
03-27-2006, 03:40 PM
In addition to removing phosphates and nitrates with a RO/DI system, you're also removing silicates, which dinoflaggelates feed on and can cause an algae bloom.

Rob
03-27-2006, 04:35 PM
and mercury, iron, copper, and a whole list of chemicals, adn heavy metals... ;)

Scott
03-27-2006, 09:57 PM
Last month I bought the exact unit Rob posted, and I love it.

I am one of those that are trying to get rid of hair alage, because I was using tap water to begin with. it's starting to get better now.

If you can get an RO/DI unit by all means do.

kj_yoda
03-27-2006, 10:30 PM
Scott... I am sure that you are happy with your RO/DI unit. As your experience has shown, buying water from your LFS doesn't hold a candle to your own RO/DI unit that you have contol over.

Scott
03-27-2006, 11:18 PM
oh, not to mention the availability and convenience! Did a 4 gallon water change yesterday, then realized I was also low on top off water...so filled my top off bucket with 2 gallons an hour later.

kj_yoda
03-27-2006, 11:58 PM
It is VERY nice and convenient.

8251Reefer
03-30-2006, 09:18 PM
As with all of my purchases I researched the heck out of RO/DI units before getting one. What sold me on this was the customer service, GUARANTEE offered and the amount of rave reviews I have seen on the other message boards. I bought this one http://www.airwaterice.com/product/1TYPHOONIII
two days ago, it shipped yesterday and I got it today. I hooked it up and got 0 TDS. I tested my water I had been putting in my tank from the grocery store and I was shocked to see it was at 55 TDS. I can't believe it.

I also heard that you don't need a 100 GPD unit it actually has a lower performing membrane which only removes 90% of TDS, The 75 GPD removes 98% of TDS thus allowing your DI filter to last longer...

Well, take care all...