The basics of RO DI units and storage

[New&no clue]

Hi All,

I have been buying my water from my LFS, but I’d like to start making my own. Is there already a thread or article on here for how to build a system and how to store water? I tried searching and I saw lots of questions but I was hoping just to find a simple set up and storage thread. If not I’m sure trusty YouTube will provide, I just like here better.

 

[Sailingeric]

I have a BRS 4 stage system I have in my garage. When I make water I run the hose out the window and my storage is a 65 gallon Norwesco tank. You can get them at most farm supply stores if you want to go that big but they do make all different sizes.

 

[Pete_the_Puma]

I have a BRS 5 stage unit, it runs to a Rubbermaid brute commercial 33Gallon trash can which I place in the shower in case it overflows (my wife is really happy about that one ).

 

[JoshH]

No Article that I'm aware of here. But more than enough members willing to walk you through the steps needed to make a wonderful RODI setup and storage system. I would first look at what's in your water via a local water report and what you feel your water demand will be. This can have a real influence on your system purchase and is good to know before you go filter shopping..

 

[W1ngz]

I'd really suggest checking out the Bulk Reef Supply 52 weeks of reefing series. They go from nothing to a full reef setup and cover each step and piece of gear in simple and clear terms. Their RODI episode and water mixing is here:

 

[vetteguy53081]

Location is important as you will need a drain and water source.
I chose my laundry room which provides both. The waste water line goes into drain while RO water to container. They are cut and dry and often have a faucet attachment for running water through and you are then in business

 

[JasonK84]

This is my storage/salt mixing station. I use an RO Buddie+DI but plan to upgrade soon. The cans are 44 gallons each and the pump is identical to the return pump I use in my DT so I always have a backup pump for the DT in an emergency.

 

[Reef-junky]

Was thinking about doing an article on this. Maybe it’s time.

 

[New&no clue]

I currently have a 55 gallon DT with a HOB filter, however, I would like to upgrade to the waterbox130 later this year. I want to set something up that will work for a larger tank. I was thinking the BRS 4 or maybe the RO buddie. I was also debating the laundry room or my guest bathroom with buckets in the shower. I could also do the basement but I’m worried about the difficult level.

I see these really nice setups but I know zero about plumbing and valves and piping that I get overwhelmed. I can follow instructions pretty well though so I was hoping to find instructions on all the parts needed and how to build. I’ve watched a lot of videos on just the basic mechanic of the units and the basic setup of the red, black, and blue tubes.

What are the steps for storing RODI water or mixed salt water? I’m assuming I need a heater and power head in the bucket, is there anything else?

 

[JoshH]

Was thinking about doing an article on this. Maybe it’s time.

I actually had an Article typed out and almost finished, well sans the Mixing station part anyway. I decided to delete it as I felt it was particularly biased towards a certain company I tend to favour when it comes to this stuff. Thought about doing a round two but haven't had the time

 

[JoshH]

I currently have a 55 gallon DT with a HOB filter, however, I would like to upgrade to the waterbox130 later this year. I want to set something up that will work for a larger tank. I was thinking the BRS 4 or maybe the RO buddie. I was also debating the laundry room or my guest bathroom with buckets in the shower. I could also do the basement but I’m worried about the difficult level.

I see these really nice setups but I know zero about plumbing and valves and piping that I get overwhelmed. I can follow instructions pretty well though so I was hoping to find instructions on all the parts needed and how to build. I’ve watched a lot of videos on just the basic mechanic of the units and the basic setup of the red, black, and blue tubes.

What are the steps for storing RODI water or mixed salt water? I’m assuming I need a heater and power head in the bucket, is there anything else?

Personally I would steer clear of the Buddie, either go with a 4-5 Stage unit from Buckeye Hydro, Bulk Reef Supply or spectrapure (My personal Favorite). Where ever you set things up the level of "Difficultly" is pretty much the same. Regardless of where it is, it needs a supply and a drain. The reason you won't find a quick go to for installation is because while there are only really a few ways to hook things up. Everyone's situation and house are usually different and therefor they all need a slightly different way of going about hooking them up.

Let me ask you this. In a perfect world, where would you want your mixing station to be? And we can go from there

 

[Mjl714]

@Buckeye Hydro

 

[infinite0180]

I currently have a 55 gallon DT with a HOB filter, however, I would like to upgrade to the waterbox130 later this year. I want to set something up that will work for a larger tank. I was thinking the BRS 4 or maybe the RO buddie. I was also debating the laundry room or my guest bathroom with buckets in the shower. I could also do the basement but I’m worried about the difficult level.

I see these really nice setups but I know zero about plumbing and valves and piping that I get overwhelmed. I can follow instructions pretty well though so I was hoping to find instructions on all the parts needed and how to build. I’ve watched a lot of videos on just the basic mechanic of the units and the basic setup of the red, black, and blue tubes.

What are the steps for storing RODI water or mixed salt water? I’m assuming I need a heater and power head in the bucket, is there anything else?

I had the buddy for awhile... i got lucky that my water was pretty good to begin with. So it worked fine for almost a year but i really had no idea how it was performing. Somewhere along the way i found a local guy selling his AquaFX unit for cheap. I picked up all new filters from BRS and swapped the membrane from my buddy into it. I also added a dual tds meter. Its putting out great water now. I even sent out a sample of it when i did a ICP test and it came back perfect. Moral of the story, anything can work ok depending on source water quality, but i ended up spending more money in the long run to get what i really wanted from the beginning...

 

[New&no clue]

Let me ask you this. In a perfect world, where would you want your mixing station to be? And we can go from there

I would love it in my basement, but I don’t have established plumbing down there... what I mean is in my bathroom or laundry room I have a water line already coming in that I can connect to and someplace to drain the dirty water. The city water comes into my basement and then goes all over the house, but I’m not sure how to tap into that.

 

[JoshH]

I would love it in my basement, but I don’t have established plumbing down there... what I mean is in my bathroom or laundry room I have a water line already coming in that I can connect to and someplace to drain the dirty water. The city water comes into my basement and then goes all over the house, but I’m not sure how to tap into that.

Well in your basement you will certainly have both those options as well. The typical way to tap into a line in the basement (both drain and supply) is a Saddle Valve. In this case we would need to look at where exactly you would like your station and filter to be and locate a supply and drain somewhat close to that location.

 

[W1ngz]

I really hope this doesn't end up sounding rude or condescending, it's sincerely meant to help you end up with what you need for water, without frustration and potential flood hazards. For many, doing it themselves is not the right choice.

We have a reefer here who is admitting they are overwhelmed when it comes to plumbing, and recommending they tap saddle valves directly into basement water supply lines, with no mention of making certain that a saddle valve has to be installed AFTER the main shutoff valve so the water can be cut in case things go wrong. I see potential disaster all over this.

If this kind of work is overwhelming for you, then blindly following step by step instructions on your own is probably not your best choice. I would find some local in-person help, or skip the fancy mixing station entirely.

Adding an RODI unit in a laundry room with a brute can or a fermentation barrel and a float valve will give you RODI water on hand all the time, and you can just mix the salt in buckets when needed.

If adding an RODI unit to an existing laundry room is already too much for you, your best choice is to hire a plumber or get in-person help from someone who has a clearer understanding.

Wisdom isn't about knowing. It's recognizing what you don't know, and stopping before you get there.

 

[JoshH]

We have a reefer here who is admitting they are overwhelmed when it comes to plumbing, and recommending they tap saddle valves directly into basement water supply lines, with no mention of making certain that a saddle valve has to be installed AFTER the main shutoff valve so the water can be cut in case things go wrong. I see potential disaster all over this.

Clearly you're jumping the gun here.

Presenting someone all the options available to them isn't a potential disaster. If one doesn't feel comfortable with doing it themselves than that can be up to them to decide. I've helped several people through this very same process with none of the previously mentioned disasters ever happening. And obviously there's a lot more to it than just tapping a random line which, if this is the route the OP would like to go, I would happily go into detail with. I'm not going to do a huge write up on properly tapping lines if it's something they decide against doing from the get go. If the OP would rather seek a professional to do the work for them that's more than okay, as you mentioned, DIY isn't for everyone. But regardless going through the steps to set things up DIY can still be useful information to someone who hires a professional so they can explain exactly what it is they are looking for and atleast have a basic understanding of what said professional is saying in return.

 

[New&no clue]

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.

 

[homer1475]

If it's just a hose bib, then most certainly.

Only thing that might worry me is having the sump pump run constantly when making water.

Pictures of what you have and where you want it setup would help immensely.

 

[Blutspitze]

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.

I'm in a similar boat to you in that I'm not super comfortable with doing an overly complex setup - mine is just the RO unit hung on the wall of the guest bathroom and tapped into the toilet water line. It was really easy to do. The main main issue is I don't have space for mixing containers, so I have to make the water a few gallons at a time in buckets, and the waste goes down the shower drain. With a 150 GPD (modified from a 75), it goes pretty quickly, though. All it cost was the RO system, a splitter, and a ball valve.

If you have a regular hose attachment that you can attach to, there are fittings that will get you to the 1/4 line you need. The sump hole would be difficult to drain into, though, not to mention setting up float valves, solenoids, plus some other redundancies would be needed, as well. It's very doable, but ANY time you're dealing with tapping a water line directly, it can lead to major issues, regardless of experience level.