Is an RODI water filter really necessary?

DrFlu

New Member
View Badges
Joined
Oct 19, 2021
Messages
7
Reaction score
2
Location
Sydney
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Hello everyone,

I have been reefing with mostly LPS/Softies for the last >10 years and recently gotten some SPS within the last few months. However, i have not been following one of the most basic principles in reef keeping: NOT using RODI water. I have been using tap water with Prime this whole time.

I have to say though, I have not been experiencing any issues as others have reported? I have not been getting cyano, dinos etc. Corals seem fine? I run a Chaeto reactor 24/7 and also a HOG1x algae scrubber. I also run GAC every few months - so that may that probably solves any heavy metals accumulation?

Nitrates: 1ppm (salifert)
Phosphates: 0.03ppm (salifert)

Am i missing something here? Is a RODI unit for reef tanks really a fundamental piece of equipment? I just couldn't justify the purchase of an piece of equipment that is seemingly not required.
 

Gtinnel

10K Club member
View Badges
Joined
Mar 20, 2020
Messages
21,074
Reaction score
29,648
Location
Charleston, WV
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
I have kept fish here since about 1984. There used to be several booming pet shops and I raised cichlids and traded with them to get rid of the small ones. Jomarrs at Nitro, Docs at Belle, Maynard's in Charleston, 2 others whose names I cant remember. The one in Saint Albans had parrots.
Yep I don't remember any of those other ones. But I was 2 years old when you started. I'd kill for one decent shop or a reef club in the area.
 
Upvote 0

WVNed

The fish are staring at me with hungry eyes.
View Badges
Joined
Apr 11, 2018
Messages
10,206
Reaction score
43,615
Location
Hurricane, WV
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Yep I don't remember any of those other ones. But I was 2 years old when you started. I'd kill for one decent shop or a reef club in the area.
Yea. If I am desperate I drive to Ashland Ky. Lately I make sure I never get desperate. They tell you something is coming in on such and such day and you drive all the way there, no joy. Never any LRS in stock. I was getting feeder shrimp 5-6 dozen at a time. I just started ordering stuff on the net ahead.
These places fail and blame it on online sales but they don't mind their business.

Going to a nice clean pet shop is better than going to a zoo because you can buy the thing you find the most interesting and take it home.
 
Upvote 0

Idech

2500 Club Member
View Badges
Joined
Feb 21, 2021
Messages
3,272
Reaction score
2,914
Location
Canada
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
To me it’s not a question of money. If I could just use tap water and fill the tank with a Python, like I did with freshwater, it would save me a ton of work !

I started with tap water, I had about 90 TDS. It was making me nervous that it wouldn’t work and I would have blamed every fail on it. So I went with RO/DI. Once I have a few years experience, I might give tap water another try, because then I would be able to tell if the water is causing problems.

But seriously, if your tank is thriving with tap water, I don’t see why you would need to change anything.
 
Upvote 0

JoshH

Tank Status: Wet...ish, growing things....
View Badges
Joined
Dec 3, 2016
Messages
9,994
Reaction score
35,391
Location
Humble
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
I didn't know that it used to be referred to brine, but I wish it would go back to that being the common term.

It still is referred to as brine by most professionals. The proper terms have gone by the wayside in the hobby as it is sometime easier to explain to someone who has no idea that you make "Product and waste" water. Easier for most people to understand. I do agree it can be misleading. In the summer I use my "Waste" water to water my grass. I also have a dual membrane setup to reduce my waste.
 
Upvote 0

Gtinnel

10K Club member
View Badges
Joined
Mar 20, 2020
Messages
21,074
Reaction score
29,648
Location
Charleston, WV
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
It still is referred to as brine by most professionals. The proper terms have gone by the wayside in the hobby as it is sometime easier to explain to someone who has no idea that you make "Product and waste" water. Easier for most people to understand. I do agree it can be misleading. In the summer I use my "Waste" water to water my grass. I also have a dual membrane setup to reduce my waste.
I am definitely in the hobbyist category at best. I usually hear the term product and waste, or permeate and concentrate.
 
Upvote 0

Gtinnel

10K Club member
View Badges
Joined
Mar 20, 2020
Messages
21,074
Reaction score
29,648
Location
Charleston, WV
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Yea. If I am desperate I drive to Ashland Ky.
I'm not a big fan of that store. I've bought dry goods from there but I find their livestock prices to be too high. I have a store in Charlotte, NC that I absolutely love and I drive to relatively often.
 
Upvote 0

DavidinGA

Active Member
View Badges
Joined
Nov 19, 2013
Messages
364
Reaction score
302
Location
Newnan GA
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Hello everyone,

I have been reefing with mostly LPS/Softies for the last >10 years and recently gotten some SPS within the last few months. However, i have not been following one of the most basic principles in reef keeping: NOT using RODI water. I have been using tap water with Prime this whole time.

I have to say though, I have not been experiencing any issues as others have reported? I have not been getting cyano, dinos etc. Corals seem fine? I run a Chaeto reactor 24/7 and also a HOG1x algae scrubber. I also run GAC every few months - so that may that probably solves any heavy metals accumulation?

Nitrates: 1ppm (salifert)
Phosphates: 0.03ppm (salifert)

Am i missing something here? Is a RODI unit for reef tanks really a fundamental piece of equipment? I just couldn't justify the purchase of an piece of equipment that is seemingly not required.

If it's working without a rodi, then by all means keep on truck'n.

It really depends on your beginning water quality on whether or not you really need rodi water. We just moved to a new house and our new water source reads a tds of 31. I could probably get by without rodi water at that level, but I have an old rodi unit from 7-8 years ago so I just keep using it.
 
Upvote 0

WVNed

The fish are staring at me with hungry eyes.
View Badges
Joined
Apr 11, 2018
Messages
10,206
Reaction score
43,615
Location
Hurricane, WV
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
I suppose if we pretend that what comes out of water taps is the same all over the earth this would be a useful discussion.

But everybody's tap water is different. It is the RODI that a filter makes that is the same for everyone.

I ran my tanks for years on tap water and then got a RODI filter. I wont be going back. The difference is long term success. You don't have the stuff from tap water that gets concentrated in your tank by evaporation. In my case at about 4 years inverts become impossible to keep. Eventually all that lives is fish.

So if all you want to keep is fish, go ahead and use tap water.

Been there and done that. Go ahead and find out for yourself.
 
Upvote 0

Boomski

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Aug 3, 2021
Messages
32
Reaction score
27
Location
Florida
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
In the states, especially in FL but I imagine elsewhere - Most cities where using liquid O2 for purification of tap water but due to COVID and the amount O2 being used, a lot of cities recently switched to chlorine or other chemical means to purify. I test my cities tap water pretty regularly and have seen a huge spike in chlorine



My point being you never know, even if you have low tds city water you never know when things could change and wouldn't want to risk hundreds/thousands of $$ worth of fish and coral. The extra $200-$300 worth of RODI is well worth the peace of mind.
 
Upvote 0

Rcpilot

Addicted to LPS
View Badges
Joined
Sep 29, 2007
Messages
570
Reaction score
620
Location
Hamilton
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
I started reefing in 1985/1986. I bought my first RODI unit in the late 1990s. I wouldn't be without one today.

IMO the RODI unit is the FIRST thing you should buy.... before you even buy a tank.
 
Upvote 0

atlantean

Active Member
View Badges
Joined
Dec 31, 2020
Messages
244
Reaction score
258
Location
Oregon
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
I can’t help but feel the whole waste water is more of an issue for commercial setups. A second membrane saves you 1.5 gallons of waste water (as advertised by BRS) per gallon of RODI. Cutting 3 minutes of your shower saves you on average about 7.5 gallons each time. Are people making that much water daily that it’s a huge concern relative to their other water usage?
 
Upvote 0

elorablue

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
Jan 5, 2021
Messages
1,762
Reaction score
6,197
Location
Ontario
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
I can’t help but feel the whole waste water is more of an issue for commercial setups. A second membrane saves you 1.5 gallons of waste water (as advertised by BRS) per gallon of RODI. Cutting 3 minutes of your shower saves you on average about 7.5 gallons each time. Are people making that much water daily that it’s a huge concern relative to their other water usage?
If I cut 3 minutes off my shower time I’d barely get wet ;)
 
Upvote 0
Back
Top