Nancymacc Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 I live in a rental apartment with deco faucets and I can't see how I can install or even use a portable RO/DI unit. Would purchasing jugs of distilled water be the same? I can get them for about $1 per gallon, and as my tank is only 20g, I don't see this as a huge expense. Can anyone tell me of another alternative? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
finch6013 Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 When I was in an apartment I had a small RO that hooked to a sink adapter. You took the sink aerator off and screwed in an adapter that has the RO line and a switch to let you use the sink as normal. Also if there is a LFS near, you can buy RO and even pre made saltwater. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mandinga Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 OR, I am assuming you have a washer and dryer in your apartment???If you do, you can T the cold water inlet off to an RO unit...quite simple. Long term, bottles of water just suck. It's not bad at first, but eventually you will either give in and install an RO at all costs...or you will start adding tapwater, which may lead to a massive algae outbreak, and then boom, game over...next thing you know you are selling your gear with the heading, "Maintenance just too much, must get out of hobby, stuff for sale, cheap!" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael7979 Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 OR, I am assuming you have a washer and dryer in your apartment???If you do, you can T the cold water inlet off to an RO unit...quite simple. Long term, bottles of water just suck. It's not bad at first, but eventually you will either give in and install an RO at all costs...or you will start adding tapwater, which may lead to a massive algae outbreak, and then boom, game over...next thing you know you are selling your gear with the heading, "Maintenance just too much, must get out of hobby, stuff for sale, cheap!" Gosh you paint such a pretty picture!!! (laugh) (laugh) Yeah try to go ro/di if at all possible........ but bottled water would be ok in a pinch! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trautman Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 or since you would already be paying 1$/gallon, why dont you just buy the premixed stuff? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael7979 Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 or since you would already be paying 1$/gallon' date=' why dont you just buy the premixed stuff?[/quote'] Only problem with that is ....you do not know how old the filters are in their units. But yeah that is another option. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trautman Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 Only problem with that is ....you do not know how old the filters are in their units. But yeah that is another option. haha, i didnt even think about that, but it does make sense. i bet it is easy to tell who does regular changes and who doesnt by the amount of gunk and cleanliness of their tanks... lol. or even of you ask to see it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nancymacc Posted March 14, 2011 Author Share Posted March 14, 2011 Thanks so much for the quick responses!! I live just about 5 minutes from Barrier Reef Aquariums here in Renton. I have been there a few times and everything looks spotless. I am actually thinking of signing over my paycheck to them..... I will look into getting water from them. Washer/Dryer are of the stacked variety and I think that getting them out to install a unit would be a big pain in the a**. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mohaynow Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 it might be a pain in the keister but it will only be for a few minutes then its done and overwith. It will save you money in the long run. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
finch6013 Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 you could even T it into the cold water line for your sink. Its a piece of cake and then you can have a small unit under the sink. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReeFit Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 bottled water is made for human consumption so it has additional minerals and additives in it, its not regulated very well, there's even been cases of finding arsenic, ecoli, etc. in bottle water. Nothing beats a true RODI 0TDS water from LFS or your own system. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jackaninny Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 Check out Bulk Reef Supply or Air Ice Water - pretty one of them has install videos for RODI systems. Not hard really and lots of options for all sorts of home configurations. IMHO - an RODI system is one of the best things you can invest in from both a money savings and a time savings perspective. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grassi Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 I ran a 14g biocube for about 9 months with drinking water. That tank was running great. But it was an heavy modified biocube, live rock with a few drops of water around, good lighting, daily water change (a cup), weekly water change (10% with natural sea water), bionic 2 part, run with phyto and a few mysis every other day, remora skimmer, carbon, gfo and fuge with cheato, and a lot of flow. That tank was running like a swiss watch. But if I was leaving the tank alone for a couple of days... boom. Algae. I was just lucky and I found a good equilibrium. RO/DI water is the best investment for stable systems. They are cheap nowadays. You can find a small unit with membrane and carbon block for less than $100. Or you can buy it from a store, if you don't mind carrying around jugs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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