RO unit set up pics??

Paul_MTS

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I'm considering using a RO unit to get softer, lower PH water for my FW tank.

I'm posting in here as i know more are using RO!!

anyways my tank is about 215gallon with sump aswell.

my PH is 8.3 in that tank and my hardness is 11 and 19, can't rember which way round they were!!

But doing quite large water changers for my rays to keep water perfect I'm wondering how i should go about storing the water.

i might beable to cut it down to about 25% water changes twice a week requiring 50 gallons.

also being on a meter i'm not too keen on the idea as i'm already paying towards electric bills!!

all other suggestions very welcome aswell.
 
i dont have a RO unit but i store my Ro water in 5.5 gallon containers that are seald ready to be used for when i need them one barrel was seald for 3 weeks and it was still fine
 
I take it you buy from a shop then??

how much do you pay for it? I might have to consider that aswell down to the costs of waste water.
 
using Ro will lower the water to a PH of about 7.0
Be warned though, it also carries a very low oxygen content so adding Ro can also starve the fish of oxygen if too much is added each time. I would recomend it is used with an aairstone of circulated to get pxygen back into it.
 
If you are on a water meter why not just use DI resin without the wasteful RO stage? might be cheeper.
 
Oki dokey, i can run a airstone in the water before using it. Doesn't this then raise the PH though?

As long as it takes it down to the low &'s then it's worth it, i read than my arowanas life span can be decreased with high PH/hardness.

I'm just going by what i'ved been suggested, if you could explain the deioniser a bit more i can consider it then.

I did some research into a Water Softener King which would of been great but the resin would of had to be replaced after each water change.
 
Paul_MTS said:
I take it you buy from a shop then??

how much do you pay for it? I might have to consider that aswell down to the costs of waste water.
i pay £4 for 11 gallons which is cheap comperd to others that charge £5 for 5 gallons (wildwoods being one) :D
 
Crikey, who said marines were expensive! my 220 gallon reef setup will only use 20 gallons per month on water changes.
The shop near me charge 50p per gallon so that comes to £10 per month!
 
you change 20 gallons a month :blink: thats so unfair :grr:

But back on track whats the best option for me??

I'm not sure if mum will be too happy about me having a water butt in the spare room!!...oh well
 
I pay £3.50 for 25L of RO, and thats gone in top ups in a week. Every other week I get 25L of salt water for my bi-weekly water change for £7.00, more expensive than mixing my own, but much less hassle.

Bigger and more frequent water changes are needed in predatory FW tanks because of the messy fish and nitrate in the tap water.

Jon
 
no answers?? :(

well here's another few Q's to add....

How do you set up RO's units?

I take it you have a outlet which goes to where you store your water...??
A outlet of waste which goes to where ever..??
And you attach a hose to it to supply the water?

I take it most fo that will be the same as DI unit but without the waste water right?

What PH will a DI produce?

What chemicals do I need to add back into the water? i.e. minerals??

How long will the resin/filters last on DI/RO unit?

and thats all i can think of at the moment.
 
Mine is plumbed into my cold water pipe with a saddle valve, and operated by a Spectrapure Liquid Level Controller when the water level drops in my sump. So my tank water level stays constant.
 
I use a permeate pump and a booster pump with my RO system that lowers my waiste water to a fraction of what it used to be. I think I have around $500.00 US into the system total. The permeate pump just cycles the waiste water back through the system, the booster keeps the water at max pressure. Basically for those who dont know, you have to have an outlet for the booster pump and the pressure switch on the RO unit, a cold water line to supply water to the Unit and a drain for the waiste water. Thats it, that simple. If you want to get really fancy you can add Ozone, UV, or even a H2O2 system which will add oxygen to the water.
The RO membrane you replace when the water out put decreases, the others I think that it said every 6 months or so.
Spectrapure Liquid Level Controller: Wow, this is cool, thanks Ostrow.
"What chemicals do I need to add back into the water? i.e. minerals??" Just do your normal reef supplaments.
 

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