Can you make tap water safe?

L

lessthanlethal

New Member
Must you have a RO for the water? They make drops for everything cant you put drops in tap water and make it safe? What else can you do? I am thinking of taking my mothers 90 gal tank but I do not have RO Is there something to put on the hose to make the water better? I dont want to go to the store everyother week to get water? please help I am very new to all this so any help will be good.
Bonita
 
vdituri

vdituri

Well-Known Member
hmmmm. An easy anwer huh? lol :faces:
It is the best anwer. RO water.
It is worth saving for before setting up a tank. Really.
I went from tap, to a deionizing filter, to an eventual RO/DO setup.
I went from hair algae, to a little bit of hair algae, to really good results.
That is my experience in this hobby and I recommend a RO filter definitely.

Try Craigslist if you want to save a few $. May find one used.
Best of luck in this hobby.
 
Surfnut

Surfnut

Active Member
Have your tap water tested. I used tap water for 6 months at my previous residence with zero issues. I live in the hills now with a well and the water is even more pristine.

Either have the LFS test it for you, or do as I did and spend the $60 to have a full water analysis done by one of the numerous water testing companies. Pay close attention to copper & heavy metal content. If there is even a hint of copper, pick up the R/O unit.
 
BoomerD

BoomerD

Well-Known Member
Sure you can. Most reefers use tap water. Heavily filtered and run through a Reverse Osmosis membrane and deionizing cartridges. :D

Odds are, just plain tap water won't be anywhere clean enough for your tank. MOST tap water has relatively high levels of nitrates and some phosphates, plus of course, the usual chlorine/chloramines, which are easy to deal with. (sort of...you should treat the tap water BEFORE you mix the salt in)

Some people try to get by with a tap water deionizer, and if your water is clean enough out of the tap, that might work, but for me, they barely last for 25 gallons...not an economical alternative.
 
D

DaveK

Well-Known Member
Here is the bottom line -

Water quality is the key to success with any reef system.

A good RO/DI unit is only going to cost about $150, tops.

With a few exceptions, SW fish are about $20 up, and corals about $40 and up.

The $150 spent on a RO/DI unit is cheep compared to loosing livestock. It only takes a few losses to pay for the RO/D unit.

Do yourself a favour and get a RO/DI unit. You'll be glad you did.
 
Rcpilot

Rcpilot

Has been struck by the ban stick
If you can't afford an RO unit, then perhaps you should take a serious look at the costs associated with this hobby. $150 for the RO unit is just a tiny drop in the bucket compared to what you will end up investing in this hobby. It's NOT a cheap hobby. Not at all.

Don't want to come off as a negative nelly, but if you can't afford an RO unit, you probably can't afford this hobby.

If it's not a question of cost--more of a question of trying to cut corners, then I would again suggest that you reevaluate your interest in this hobby. These are living creatures and they are delicate. Not like caring for a cat or a goldfish. If you're thinking of cutting corners to save a buck, then you're really not doing whats best for the animals. In that case, I'd recommend that you step back from this hobby and move on.

Good luck in whatever you decide.
 
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