r/o vs. distilled

Except for a few posts....in this thread and others, most people refer to R/O water sources from the LFS or a home R/O unit. I am able to find R/O water at any and every grocery store/walmart/target etc. that I go to, for about the same price as spring or distilled water. of course, my tank is only 20g so my water changes are not that involved as far as water volume goes...can see how this would be inconvenient/expensive if your water changes were in larger volumes....but for people who need smaller amounts of R/O water (if you feel that's the kind you want), going to the grocery store might be a more convenient option, and perhaps less expensive than purchasing from the LFS. Just a thought!

 

:-/

As long as it filters heavy metals. Humm, you should research on what exactly tha purifier takes out. :-/

 

As long as it filters heavy metals. Humm, you should research on what exactly tha purifier takes out. :-/

 

Here is a list: (on previous page)

Alachlor Reduction
Asbestos Reduction
Atrazine Reduction
Chlordane Reduction
Cyst Reduction
Ethylene Dibromide Reduction
Dibromochloropropane Reduction
Heptachlor Epoxide Reduction
Lead Reduction
Lindane Reduction
Mercury Reduction
Methoxychlor Reduction
MTBE Reduction
PCB Reduction
Toxaphene Reduction
Trihalomethanes (TTHM) Reduction
Turbidity Reduction
VOC Reduction
Xylenes Reduction
2,4-D Reduction
2,4,5-TP (Silvex) Reduction

 

I agree with Trancy's excellent point -- for smaller tanks it is more economical to just buy R/O water from the store.
I did some back-of-the-envelope calculations. I think the threshhold is 55-70 gallons.

 

I don't have an R/O unit, so I'm not sure of some of the costs. But, I did more calculations. The break point for 1 year is a 40-50 gallon tank.
The cost of a filter will make the difference. How often do you change the filters in an R/O unit? If it's only 1 per year, then the R/O unit is less expensive for even a 40 gallon tank for more than 1 year's service.