RO or RO/DI

I noticed some people use RO and some people use RO/DI which is better for a reef?

 

The setup that would be best for most is the ro/di unit.

 

Some use DI

 

well the problem I'm faced with is my tap water is from a well and it has alot of clay in it ( its been tested for drinking)which we don't. I don't use it in my reef tank.I wanted to get a ro unit but wasn't sure if just ro was alright. I know already that I will probably go threw filters for it like crazy, but it beats having to fill 3 gall jugs at the ro/di machine every week.

 

DI will give you 0 TDS in your water. A standard RO unit will not.

 

I just use RO water. If I could do RO/DI, I would. But it is better than tap water, I'll tell you that.

 

Like Otty said, most say 3 or 4 stage RO units will give you maybe 95% purity and adding the DI will give you 99.99% or even a 100% purity. Some think that RO is enough will others want only the upmost in purity.

Good luck,
oh and some like to use tap and Mortens salt!

 

I use DI, I guess RO will kill off the bacteria and such, my DI units instructions say to not drink the water, lol, because like Otto said it removes chemicals and metals.. 0 TDS. Drsfostersmith.com has the API DI unit for 39.99. It comes with 1 cartridge that gives you 25-100 gallons of water, depending on your water quality. They sell 3 pk cartidges for 59.99.. That's your best bet budget wise imo. Kinda fun makin my own water too, and If I mess something up, I can only blame myself. Good luck!

 

I had an API DI unit and in my eyes it was garbage, I personally wouldn't recommend it to anyone. In my case it was cheaper to buy RO water out of a machine or prebottled than to buy cartridges. I would get on average, 15 gals per cartridge, then the water would come out smelling like rancid garbage. I now use a Corallife 3 stage but am considering going w/ a small boy by SLS. I personally would take a RO that makes a gal a minute thats 90% pure than a RO that makes 100 gal a DAY thats 95% pure. To me its quantity not quality.

The desicion is all yours.....
Good luck!

 

So far so good for me, my buddy's been using it for a few years with no problems. TDS is 0, it's no $100-200 unit. I get at least 50 gallons out of a cartridge, just depends on your water. It does smell funny, but that's from the resin, lol. For me quality over quantity.