Source Water Testing Question

[motoking_1990]

I am getting ready to order the RODI unit for upcoming build. I am on a well and my water is really soft as you could say. I am wanting to have a water test done and am unsure which test to use for source water. I see the ICP testing that can be done but it seems this is only for salt water. Do they make a test I could use to get the results from what is in the source water besides a local water test which was done when I bought the house in July. I do have the results and will attach them here.

 

[OnePiece Corals]

Some icp test can do both( salt/ rodi)
Fauna marin/ ati icp/ oceamo and modern reef ( coming soon thr thr usa later on this month)

Are you trying to test your well water or you post rodi water?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

What is the reason to want to do a tap water test if you are getting an RO/DI?

If it is public water, they often have reports.

 

[get-salty]

ATI test kit will test for salt as well as RO or "source"

ATI ICP-OES Pro Water Analysis

The ATI ICP-OES Pro kit is identical to the original ATI ICP-OES test. The ATI ICP-OES Pro Water Analysis is a laboratory water analysis of 43 parameters in a reef tank that provides a complete overview of a tank's health, which is impossible with traditional test equipment. Each test checks...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

this is my go to kit.

 

[motoking_1990]

What is the reason to want to do a tap water test if you are getting an RO/DI?

If it is public water, they often have reports.

It's well water. I want to get a good baseline, so I know what I am dealing with ahead of time. If it's extremely high on TDS or have something else that could cause problems, I may decide on a different RO unit or a pre filter before the RODI.

 

[motoking_1990]

Some icp test can do both( salt/ rodi)
Fauna marin/ ati icp/ oceamo and modern reef ( coming soon thr thr usa later on this month)

Are you trying to test your well water or you post rodi water?

I am wanting to test the well water.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Ok, I understand.

I am not aware of any hobby companies that specifically test tap water/well water.

You could just get a tds meter for that need.

oceamo has a tropical freshwater test that might suit this need.

Reef Moonshiner's / Oceamo ICP-MS Tropical Freshwater Test

Reef Moonshiner's ICP-MS Tropical Freshwater Test The Reef Moonshiner's Ultimate Aquarist's ICP Test This is the new advanced test to be used for your Tropical Freshwater Aquarium testing when the Reef Moonshiner's method is applied and it allows to look into the water chemistry as never...

reefmoonshiners.com

@Christoph

 

[Malum Argenteum]

my water is really soft

If it's extremely high on TDS

If the water is soft, it does not have a high TDS, by definition.

Buying a standard RODI unit with the requisite number of TDS channels (one for source water, one post membrane, and one after each of the DI canisters, in my opinion) will tell you what you need to know. If any additional filtration is needed it can be easily added.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

If the water is soft, it does not have a high TDS, by definition.

Buying a standard RODI unit with the requisite number of TDS channels (one for source water, one post membrane, and one after each of the DI canisters, in my opinion) will tell you what you need to know. If any additional filtration is needed it can be easily added.

That is not necessarily true. Hardness is a measure of calcium and magnesium in the water. The tds can still be very high without lots of calcium or magnesium. In practice, high tds also often means high calcium and magnesium, but it need not be so.

 

[Christoph]

Ok, I understand.

I am not aware of any hobby companies that specifically test tap water/well water.

You could just get a tds meter for that need.

oceamo has a tropical freshwater test that might suit this need.

Reef Moonshiner's / Oceamo ICP-MS Tropical Freshwater Test

Reef Moonshiner's ICP-MS Tropical Freshwater Test The Reef Moonshiner's Ultimate Aquarist's ICP Test This is the new advanced test to be used for your Tropical Freshwater Aquarium testing when the Reef Moonshiner's method is applied and it allows to look into the water chemistry as never...

reefmoonshiners.com

@Christoph

Hello,

yes, this test can be used for source water - it includes ICP-MS and ion chromatography, as well as alkalinity titration and conductivity measurement.

The Organo-MS test is also suitable for freshwater, if pesticides, etc are a topic.

All the best, Christoph

 

[Malum Argenteum]

That is not necessarily true. Hardness is a measure of calcium and magnesium in the water. The tds can still be very high without lots of calcium or magnesium. In practice, high tds also often means high calcium and magnesium, but it need not be so.

Fair enough -- thanks for the correction. :)

 

[TLO45]

I would recommend finding a company that tests water for your home. They can also well water as well.
I’m on a private well as well and it was a learning curve. Very high tds and thus causing high co2 levels which burns resin VERY QUICKLY!
If you don’t have a local company that will test there are online resources. Even touch base with online companies that make rodi units.
That way you can get some good advice for your specific needs.

 

[motoking_1990]

I would recommend finding a company that tests water for your home. They can also well water as well.
I’m on a private well as well and it was a learning curve. Very high tds and thus causing high co2 levels which burns resin VERY QUICKLY!
If you don’t have a local company that will test there are online resources. Even touch base with online companies that make rodi units.
That way you can get some good advice for your specific needs.

This is exactly what I want to know. I don’t want to be changing resin every 50 gallons. If I get into a situation where I would need to off gas I would want to know ahead of time. I would end up with an extra storage tank I could do the off gassing in with circulation pumps etc. I know I will want my ph perfect. All of this is speculation at this point until I know what I am working with.

I also am thinking about plumbing my waste water to a secondary membrane. Leaning toward the BRS stage 5 again but may go up in DI stages. I had the 5 stage before and it worked great but that was on city water.

I would like to get this process started and am ordering the testing kit from Reef Moonshiners. I want to get this dry rock seeded and transitioned to live before March.

 

[motoking_1990]

Ok, I understand.

I am not aware of any hobby companies that specifically test tap water/well water.

You could just get a tds meter for that need.

oceamo has a tropical freshwater test that might suit this need.

Reef Moonshiner's / Oceamo ICP-MS Tropical Freshwater Test

Reef Moonshiner's ICP-MS Tropical Freshwater Test The Reef Moonshiner's Ultimate Aquarist's ICP Test This is the new advanced test to be used for your Tropical Freshwater Aquarium testing when the Reef Moonshiner's method is applied and it allows to look into the water chemistry as never...

reefmoonshiners.com

@Christoph

Hello,

yes, this test can be used for source water - it includes ICP-MS and ion chromatography, as well as alkalinity titration and conductivity measurement.

The Organo-MS test is also suitable for freshwater, if pesticides, etc are a topic.

All the best, Christoph

Thank you! Order coming

 

[motoking_1990]

Ok, I understand.

I am not aware of any hobby companies that specifically test tap water/well water.

You could just get a tds meter for that need.

oceamo has a tropical freshwater test that might suit this need.

Reef Moonshiner's / Oceamo ICP-MS Tropical Freshwater Test

Reef Moonshiner's ICP-MS Tropical Freshwater Test The Reef Moonshiner's Ultimate Aquarist's ICP Test This is the new advanced test to be used for your Tropical Freshwater Aquarium testing when the Reef Moonshiner's method is applied and it allows to look into the water chemistry as never...

reefmoonshiners.com

@Christoph

Hello,

yes, this test can be used for source water - it includes ICP-MS and ion chromatography, as well as alkalinity titration and conductivity measurement.

The Organo-MS test is also suitable for freshwater, if pesticides, etc are a topic.

All the best, Christoph

Actually I have a follow up question…do you know if the sample freezes due to weather does this affect anything?

 

[TLO45]

This is exactly what I want to know. I don’t want to be changing resin every 50 gallons. If I get into a situation where I would need to off gas I would want to know ahead of time. I would end up with an extra storage tank I could do the off gassing in with circulation pumps etc. I know I will want my ph perfect. All of this is speculation at this point until I know what I am working with.

I also am thinking about plumbing my waste water to a secondary membrane. Leaning toward the BRS stage 5 again but may go up in DI stages. I had the 5 stage before and it worked great but that was on city water.

I would like to get this process started and am ordering the testing kit from Reef Moonshiners. I want to get this dry rock seeded and transitioned to live before March.

If co2 becomes an issue degassing is the only way I personally know of to counteract it. I have tried it a few times but got tired of extra barrels and pumps and lines to save resin.
I ended up going with a 8 stage rodi unit and then adding 2 more stages so I can double up on the anion canisters and rotate them forward to keep anion in line, followed by 2 stages of mixed bed resin just to make sure nothing slips through.
I have run many ICP tests always making sure my tds is zero. I typically get about 100 gallons of zero tds water before having to refill one of the anion canisters. I’ve just added this into my maintenance plan and budget to make it easier.
My tds out of the well is ~1000 tds and after an iron curtain and softener is in the 500 TDS range. With the rodi system I’ve developed I’ve been able to keep my makeup water at zero.
Perhaps your well water is better than mine so I would recommend getting a test done to determine where your starting point is.

 

[motoking_1990]

This is exactly what I want to know. I don’t want to be changing resin every 50 gallons. If I get into a situation where I would need to off gas I would want to know ahead of time. I would end up with an extra storage tank I could do the off gassing in with circulation pumps etc. I know I will want my ph perfect. All of this is speculation at this point until I know what I am working with.

I also am thinking about plumbing my waste water to a secondary membrane. Leaning toward the BRS stage 5 again but may go up in DI stages. I had the 5 stage before and it worked great but that was on city water.

I would like to get this process started and am ordering the testing kit from Reef Moonshiners. I want to get this dry rock seeded and transitioned to live before March.

What ph are you getting? I cannot imagine my tds being that high but I wont know until its tested. I will follow up with this thread once I get results back. Thanks everyone for all the feedback.

 

[TLO45]

Ph in the tank? If so my ph range is 8.1-8.45 daily.
I also have installed an air exchange until in my fish room, run a co2 scrubber and drip kalk over the night time hours to help maintain that ph range.

 

[motoking_1990]

Ph in the tank? If so my ph range is 8.1-8.45 daily.
I also have installed an air exchange until in my fish room, run a co2 scrubber and drip kalk over the night time hours to help maintain that ph range.

I built a mechanical/sump fish room in my basement. I want to get an air exchanger in that room eventually. All I have found are large whole house units or ones that you duct into your air handler. I have been looking for a self contained unit that has a fan and heat for winter months. I did find this though.

 

[TLO45]