RO vs. RODI

[Greendarwin19]

I have the opportunity to purchase this for $50, it does not mention de-ionizing, is that part as important as the reverse osmosis, would this do the job for me?

http://purenex.com/5_stage_reverse_osmosis_system_50_gpg_per_day/

[SFish]

RO/DI is better. You should not drink RO/DI water. This unit is for drinking water so there is no DI part to it. RO units leave some TDSs where as RO/DI units leave no TDSs. You may be able to add a DI unit to it I'm not sure.

[SFish]

From thereeftank.com


explain the difference........i can great deal on an RO unit.....but its RO only.....i know i can get a DI add on from bulk reef supply.....but is it really needed right away?

ive always been confused on the whole ro and rodi systems..........

im using regulare RO water in my tank right now....WALMART.......SHUT UP........lol..........just because the place im in now isnt filtered......but even before i was just using RO water......the place we was in had an RO filter on the well pump......and no issues in my tanks after a year of using that......



A lot of it depends on your source water. if you started with 500 TDS and a 98% rejection you would still have 10 TDS. If you used a lot of top off and kept very sensitive organisms that may be a huge problem... it may not. Of course pure-er (is that a word?) is better, but there are still people out there that maintain successful reefs with tap water. So who knows if it will be a big deal for your tank.

i agree. The more pure the water, the better your odds of maintaining a "trouble free" system will be. I was using RO only for a short amount of time, and I doubt age of the tank had anything to do with it, but after I added DI, things seem to look that much better. If I were in your shoes, id just get what you can now, and just plan to add later. I dont for see a huge issue off the bat.

yeah, I ran Festival RO for a year or so...I was nuts running back and forth with 3-4 5 gallon jugs, plus another dozen gallons every week or so...

I don't know if it was due to the water or not, but I had hair algae like crazy, drove me nuts and then some, during most of that time. I put in my own RODI and things turned around. You probably don't NEED the DI, but in the end, you put more water into the tank than anything else...it is the single most important ingredient to a good tank.

If you're going to get RO water from Wal-Mart or a grocery store or whatever, you should really have a TDS meter to see what you're putting in your tank and making sure it's actually "good" water. I've read some stories online of people who have discovered that their RO water from the grocery store had a TDS equal to their tap water, etc... Just because they say it's RO water or distilled or whatever doesn't necessarily mean it's ultra-pure water.

As far as the DI, some people don't use one and have amazing reefs. It's really about your source water. If you have high silicates or something like that, you really want a high quality DI resin to make sure you remove any residuals that might get past your RO membrane. Think of DI as being kind of like boosting the octane of your gas. Regular unleaded gets you down the road just as well, but the Premium Unleaded gives you that piece of mind that you're putting the best possible fuel into your gas tank.

At the end of the day, nothing ruins your water quality like starting off with bad freshwater to mix your salt with. Since the ultimate goal of ours is to achieve and maintain the best water quality possible, I really think everyone should own his/her own RO/DI unit and a TDS meter. (And it also helps if you educate yourself about your system and know how to maintain it so it's always making "perfect" water.) If you control the source water by making it yourself before you mix salt into it, you always know precisely what's going into your tank. Not to mention, it saves you time, money, and the hassle of lugging jugs of water around town.

[James77]

I have the opportunity to purchase this for $50, it does not mention de-ionizing, is that part as important as the reverse osmosis, would this do the job for me?

http://purenex.com/5_stage_reverse_osmosis_system_50_gpg_per_day/

You can add DI afterwards. Plain RO water is okay to use as almost all TDS and chemicals are pulled out, but DI is better for mopping up that last little bit.

I would be wary of what type of filters that uses....while they will work, they may not have the longest lifespans.

[SFish]

I've been using Only RO water. I'm starting to wonder if the green algae out break I'm getting is because of TDSs. Any thoughts on this?

[Misled]

No way to know. The problem is, if you have 10 TDS coming out of your RO unit, you have no idea what it is unless you have it tested. Better off to get the add on DI and have 0 TDS. Then you know what you're putting in.

[SFish]

Ok

Thanks