The basics of RO DI units and storage

[JoshH]

If I haven't missed anything major it would seem I can do it for less, however, is the impending doom of flooding my basement worth the savings?

I was down in my basement last night just looking around and I saw in my waterline that comes in from outside there almost looks like a valve with a hose attachment? I didn't know what that was and if I could simply screw a hose on and turn it on to get water. I can take a picture of this tonight when I get home. For draining the dirty water I have a sump pump in my basement so I was thinking I could just run the waste line over to the sump hole and it could drain down there.

At the end of the day it's up to you if you feel it's worth the savings or not. For $600 you could set up a pretty decent mixing station yourself. I don't think impending doom is a serious issue here myself but as with any DIY there are some small risks involved.

The valve with a hose attachment is most likely a utility valve, or a quick way to drain the system if plumbing needs to be done. If it is the standard hose fitting most (Non Basic) RODI units will come with the fitting needed to attach to this...

Personally I would still go the saddle valve route for the drain line and skip the sump pump. If the sump pump happens to fail (And from time to time this does happen) you'll end up making a big mess. Once again as mentioned above, some pictures of the location you hope to set it up would help immensely in us giving you the most accurate advice. Feel free to PM myself if you would like someone to help walk you through the process.

BTW, at a minimum I would make sure your RODI system has a pressure gauge and a dual inline TDS meter.

This is the starter system I usually recommend for most

SpectraPure - Innovators in Water Technology

SpectraPure, Inc. is an Industry Standard in the Water Purification world. From Drinking Water to Aquarium Systems, you don't just want pure water, you want the PUREST Water! Get it with SpectraPure!

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One that comes in behind that from BRS (This system is missing some of the features the one above has)...

4 Stage Value Plus RO/DI System

BRS 4 Stage Plus RODI Systems are perfect for reefers who have city water treated with chlorine, or reasonably clean well water. Self-contained on a single bracket making them ideal for tight spaces or where a non-permanent connection may be required. Every BRS RODI system can be installed...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

 

[TheKingInYellow]

Yes, I usually avoid plumbing and electrical work because I know it can go bad quickly. I did get a quote from a local fish guy to set up a station for $600. I did some pricing myself and came up with this list below of what I think I would need.

BRS4- $135-$194 (the additional cost is for the valve, is that needed?)
Brute cans(2)- $120
Float switch(2)- $40-$80
PVC pipe and Fitting-$50-75

If I haven't missed anything major it would seem I can do it for less, however, is the impending doom of flooding my basement worth the savings?

I was down in my basement last night just looking around and I saw in my waterline that comes in from outside there almost looks like a valve with a hose attachment? I didn't know what that was and if I could simply screw a hose on and turn it on to get water. I can take a picture of this tonight when I get home. For draining the dirty water I have a sump pump in my basement so I was thinking I could just run the waste line over to the sump hole and it could drain down there.

If I can do something like that I think I would be capable of setting this up. If I actually have to put a hole in my water line, I may rethink this as that would freak me out a little.

You also need a pump to mix the salt water, and a heater. You might also want a pump to move RO/DI to the SW mixing brute, or a more complicated plumbing solution can do both with one external pump.

 

[New&no clue]

You also need a pump to mix the salt water, and a heater. You might also want a pump to move RO/DI to the SW mixing brute, or a more complicated plumbing solution can do both with one external pump.

Do I need to move water from one to the other or can I have two buckets and the line that comes off the RODI unit split into two lines one to each bucket?

Currently I buy RODI water from my LFS and then I pour it into a 10 gallon brute can. I have an Aqueon power head that I stick in the bucket as well as a Aqueon heater. Then I pour in my salt, I use Instant Ocean, once the temperature is up to 70+. I was assuming I would do the same thing without a pump, but do I need to do it differently?

 

[TheKingInYellow]

Do I need to move water from one to the other or can I have two buckets and the line that comes off the RODI unit split into two lines one to each bucket?

Currently I buy RODI water from my LFS and then I pour it into a 10 gallon brute can. I have an Aqueon power head that I stick in the bucket as well as a Aqueon heater. Then I pour in my salt, I use Instant Ocean, once the temperature is up to 70+. I was assuming I would do the same thing without a pump, but do I need to do it differently?

Sure you can. Ten gallons is easy to mix with a powerhead. If you are going larger though you'll need something with more power, that's all.

What I do is run the freshwater into one brute, pump it to my mixing brute and let the freshwater one refill. That way I always have a full container of saltwater, one full of freshwater, and a quick way to move it over if I have to quickly do a large water change.

 

[New&no clue]

How do you move from the sw to your tank? Do you pump into another bucket and carry it? Do you have a long hose and pump directly into your tank?

I ask because right now I have a 55 gallon, my water changes are 10-13gallons at a time. So I go from my 10 gallon brute to a small bucket and take a couple trips. However once I, hopefully, upgrade to a 130 I would be looking at water changes of 30gallon at a time. That’s a lot of trips up and down the stairs.

 

[TheKingInYellow]

How do you move from the sw to your tank? Do you pump into another bucket and carry it? Do you have a long hose and pump directly into your tank?

I ask because right now I have a 55 gallon, my water changes are 10-13gallons at a time. So I go from my 10 gallon brute to a small bucket and take a couple trips. However once I, hopefully, upgrade to a 130 I would be looking at water changes of 30gallon at a time. That’s a lot of trips up and down the stairs.

I do buckets but if you can do a pump and hoses or auto water changes its really nice, or so I've heard.

 

[Hermie]

I bought one of these from Home Depot and connected it to a line going to a toilet,

John Guest 1/4 in. Push-To-Connect x 3/8 in. Female Compression x 3/8 in. Compression Polypropylene Valve Fitting 803389 - The Home Depot

The John Guest 3/8 in. Comp x 1/4 in. O.D. Push-to-Connect Angle Stop Adapter Valve is manufactured from white polypropylene and equipped with EPDM O-rings utilizing John Guest's push-fit technology to

www.homedepot.com

Since the plumbing to the toilet already had a cutoff valve I didn't have to turn off the house water, it was super easy, you just have to make sure the fitting sizes are correct ( from the house to the toilet ) 3/8"

 

[New&no clue]

Here is my basement set up

This is the valve I have connected to the main water line

This is my sump pump, I was going to run the dirty line down here.

I have room right next to the pump to put two brute cans. The main water line is on the same wall at the other end so I thought I could just run a hose down.

 

[JoshH]

Here is my basement set up

This is the valve I have connected to the main water line

This is my sump pump, I was going to run the dirty line down here.

I have room right next to the pump to put two brute cans. The main water line is on the same wall at the other end so I thought I could just run a hose down.

So the valve you speak of is actually BEFORE the main shut off to your houses water (Circled in red). You can use this valve with the fitting posted above if you wish but be aware if that particular valve fails for whatever reason. You will be unable to shut the water off to prevent any flooding. Unless there is another valve below the water meter which I highly doubt (they are installed like this for a reason). This would however be a one time installation and the only time you would need to shut the water off at this valve is if you were taking the system out. Plumbing in a John Guest valve just before the RODI unit itself would be the most practical way of going about it.

 

[New&no clue]

I have this under the meter, I always thought this was my main shut off. if I'm wrong please let me know because when we moved in I scooped this out so I knew want to turn in a water emergency.

 

[JoshH]

I have this under the meter, I always thought this was my main shut off. if I'm wrong please let me know because when we moved in I scooped this out so I knew want to turn in a water emergency.

Yup, my apologies, that would be your actual main shut off valve for sure. Very unusual spot for it I might add. Maybe it's just an American thing. It won't let you bleed your system off though by the looks of it. In that case you're definitely safe using the valve posted above for your supply to your system. Typically (Atleast here in Canada) the shut off valve is after the water meter so you can't plumb a connection in before the meter and "Steal" water.

 

[New&no clue]

Okay, now that I think I have my location set can anyone give me a breakdown on how to set up the buckets and the pvc pipe between them?

 

[JoshH]

Okay, now that I think I have my location set can anyone give me a breakdown on how to set up the buckets and the pvc pipe between them?

Were you looking to have an external pump between the two and use it to transfer, mix and maybe pump up to your tank? Or use an internal pump?

 

[New&no clue]

I was thinking external. I was looking at a pan world, but I'm not sure on the size. I think I'm going to go with two 44 gallon brutes.

 

[sfin52]

my system. I love it. So much better than hauling water.

 

[JoshH]

I was thinking external. I was looking at a pan world, but I'm not sure on the size. I think I'm going to go with two 44 gallon brutes.

Were you planning on using this pump to pump water to your tank from the basement?

 

[New&no clue]

So from looking at different pictures this is kind of the design I am thinking of. I don't think I'm going to worry about pumping upstairs, I can make a couple trips right now, get some exercise in. One of my fish dreams is to one day drill through the floor and have my sump in the basement as well. Where I would put it would be very close to this station so then I could just pipe over to it.

Couple of questions;

Is SCH40 okay or do I need SCH80?
I was going to do 3/4" for everything but should I go up?
One thing I read said to put in a lot of valves, I have 5 is that to may, not enough?
Is the Pan World 40PX-480GPH a good pump to use for this?

p.s. That pump is sitting on the ground next to the buckets, not floating in the air.

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[TheKingInYellow]

SCH 40 is fine, 80 is for higher pressure applications. 3/4" is also fine, 1" if you have a big enough pump is also fine.

Valves are helpful but really you want Unions too. Unions let you break down the plumbing to clean or change anything.

480GPH will be okay but if you are looking to mix it may not move enough water. I'm plumbed with 1" and I find the sweet spot to be about 600GPH at 3' of head.

 

[samnaz]

Another much simpler option would be to gravity feed the RODI water into the saltwater mixing bin. You’d need to build a simple stand to hold the RODI bin above the other, or get some heavy duty shelving. This way you wouldn’t need a pump to move the water between bins, less plumbing to install, plus side it saves space.

Add casters to the SW bin and you can move it anywhere easily for water changes. However if you’re setting up the station in a basement, and need to cart the SW upstairs, you’ll need more than casters.

You could gravity feed RODI water into 5 gal buckets and cart them upstairs yourself. Or get more complicated and plumb it upstairs using a pump, but for this I have no idea how because my set up is all on the same level.

RODI mixing stations can be as easy and as complicated as reef tanks themselves, if you ask me! But if I can figure it out, you can too, without flooding your house. Like anything else, all it takes is patience and the willingness to learn.

 

[samnaz]

Some pics (not mine) to better explain what I mean...