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nervous nelly
03/08/2010, 09:01 PM
fresh tap water , filtered water , or water they sell you at the lfs... which is better ...?
nuccadoc
03/08/2010, 09:03 PM
The water at the LFS. You want to use RO/DI water exclusively.
Dipandots
03/08/2010, 10:21 PM
The water at your LFS for sure. Many would suggest never to use fresh tap water in your tank.
Aquarist007
03/08/2010, 10:31 PM
I would measure the tds of the water from the LFS. Many times it doesn't even come close to ro/di water(tds of zero)
A pocket tds meter at 25 dollars is a good investment IMO

What size of tank do you have?
bertoni
03/08/2010, 11:09 PM
Water quality from those sources varies widely. I invested in a RO/DI filter, in the end.
TorisFishes
03/08/2010, 11:11 PM
Same for me as above, LFS bought water can get expensive in the long run, I save alot just using my own RODI water! And Im guarenteed the quality
TorisFishes
03/08/2010, 11:12 PM
Oh and you dont have to run out and buy it, is right there when you need to do a top off :D
mjtncsu
03/09/2010, 12:52 AM
I agree that a RO/DI is a good investment if you have the space to make and store the water. I've had one ever since I've had my tank and couldn't imagine being in this hobby without one.

If you don't have the space, the water from the LFS is probably the best.
lordofthereef
03/09/2010, 04:27 AM
What are you considering to be filtered water? Quite literally RO/DI is water filtration and is therefor filtered water. You could probably get away with buying RO water from your local market (so long as the filters are checked regularly) and I bet it would be cheaper than your LFS. That is what I did before getting my own RO unit.
Sugar Magnolia
03/09/2010, 07:08 AM
I would measure the tds of the water from the LFS. Many times it doesn't even come close to ro/di water(tds of zero)


I agree with the Cap'n. I ran into some dinoflagellate problems when using water bought from a dinky lfs. I switched to a more reputable store that checks their tds and was able to rid myself of the dinos.
Aquarist007
03/10/2010, 10:47 PM
What are you considering to be filtered water? Quite literally RO/DI is water filtration and is therefor filtered water. You could probably get away with buying RO water from your local market (so long as the filters are checked regularly) and I bet it would be cheaper than your LFS. That is what I did before getting my own RO unit.

It goes roughly like this
distilled water has 90 per cent of the tds removed

ro water has 95 per cent of the tds removed

ro/di has 100 per cent removed