The 3 Most Common Objections I Get to RODI Water (With Answers To Each)
Of all the RODI questions I get, these are the 3 most common. And here’s what I have to say to each of them.
Browse the Store! Questions?
Of all the RODI questions I get, these are the 3 most common. And here’s what I have to say to each of them.
Browse the Store! Questions?
hey mark great great vid, do you mind if i share it on the forum im at
So u changed RODI units, is there a reason?
another reason why its best to put an RO/DI filter if your are on well water is, when water goes through the ground or sits for long periods of time it can develope all sorts of bacteria just like the bacteria in our live rock, only this bacteria is a freshwater form and will end up dying off once mixed with saltwater. why would you want that when you’re doing a waterchange to remove any excess nutrients?
great video mark and great reasoning for having an RO/DI unit =)
oh and mark im hoping that clip of you driving is old cause well your tags are expired lol
JCE…that’s hilarious! I was wondering who would notice!
Mark
Just wanted to let you know thanks to your advice I have purchased a ro/di filter and been using it for about five months now and am very happy that I have. My reef is an obsession and an enjoyment. So thanks again.
Daniel Powell
Nice information there mark. There’s no reason why any body shouldn’t be using an Rodi unit these days.
What happened to your buckeye field supply unit?! you didn’t like it or something?
Very informative, I loved watching that, thank you mark for sharing
That was a kool video. But, unfortunately, im from mumbai (bombay), India. Here we dont get RO/DI units. I went all the way to singapore to buy it but looking at the size, there was no bag i could fit in and because of our strict laws it was difficult to get it. i also emailed many online stores like H2O, bulk reef supply, etc. they all replied no for export it. so i went to different shops and read about different home water purification systems that i get here. then i got a home water purification unit the best money can buy that has RO, UV, Carbon, Carbon block, Sediment filter, UGF (kills germs) and a TDS controller. tds dosent become 0 but still can lower it as much i can. The name is KENT GRAND+.
I laughed so hard when you said 400 TDS. My tap has almost 700. Thank god I have and RO system.
I just set up my unit from Bulk Reef Supply and boy are you right about the goodies. Everything went up nice and easy. Question, I plan on keeping some of this water to drink. Should I install a t before the DI unit? Does it matter? Why should I drink crap when the fish have the good stuff . Lol
Mark, nice info on RODI!
But something complete different……………Are you a cyclist in your non saltwater time??
I see a bunch of cycling bottles on the counter behind you!!
I used to ride for the Bike Barn cycling team and did a bunch of races in Austin.
I might be in Austin coming weekend to be a cook for the teams training weekend and of course the teams support car/truck on the road.
Used to make trips to the store when I first started, what a PITA! BRS RODI 5 stage plus unit is cheaper than a year worth purchased water. I make hundreds of gallons per year for chump change now. Easily paid for itself in less than a year and convenience is best! Anyone sitting on the fence on this should take your advice to heart. Keeping a reef tank should be as easy as possible so we’re more likely to perform the needed scheduled maintaince too.
For $50 people can purchase a storage container with a caddy and move their water wherever, heck, like you said you can even make a portable water station to pull out when needed. Mark, this is a very good informative video for folks, way to go! Your the man! (: take care and happy reefing everyone!
P.S. Some of us learn the hard way, lol (:
Respectfully,
B-
This is one of the first things that I got. The tank was still in the garage being cleaned out and I mounted my filter on the wall and started the process of making clean, tank safe water.
What do people do with the excess waste water that the unit produces? That is the 1 think holding me back from setting up mine.
Loved the episode. My next question is how do you transfer water from your 55 gallon tank, add salt, heat and replenish your aquarium?
J-P, I have my system mounted over the clothes washer and empty the waste water into the washer and use it for laundry.
John…I siphon water to 5 gallon jugs, mix the salt then bring it inside for 24 hrs to get close to my aquarium’s temp. Very low tech and most people put spigots into their 55g jugs so they can just drain water into their mixing jugs.
J-P…lots of things! As John said above you can use it to fill up your clothes washer. I run my waste line outside to water my lawn, you could collect it and use it water a garden, etc. Lots of things to do with it v. running it down the drain,
Thanks for the complement Brian!
Ben…I do cycle for exercise. A cook for their race teams? That sounds fun!
Dave…lots of mixed opinions on if it safe to drink DI water. If you drank it all the time for a long time it could cause issues so most people drink just the RO water before it hits the DI stage.
Carson…holy cow?! 700 TDS? How fast do you go through filters?
Veeral…have you tried Premium Aquatics? They will export most anything
Bobby..I needed a chloramine specific unit so I switched brands
You are welcome Daniel and thanks for the comment
well i came across it after buying my filter and my money got stuck it that. now i order food like cyclopeze, marine snow, etc , some filter media like GFO and carbon. from them and also ordered aqualifter pumps for ATO with kalk watching your video. i wish BRS starts international shipping. before i always use to come across marinedepot and BRS when searched google.lol. i was not fortunate to come across premium aquatics before. well but a year down the line ill buy 1 for sure from them.
it costed me Rs.25000 thats aprox 500$ my old 1 was working fine but had to scrap it. lol. convinced my parents to buy this new one.lol. so cant convince them to let me buy new one till next year.
@ J-P… a lot of folks let their city recycle the waste water during winter months. If your on a well then run the waste outside and recycle it yourself. There are several things you could consider using your waste water for and would require a small bit of creativity on your part to do so. “Like to hear it here it goes” (: (In Living Color)
A lot of home and farm supply stores sell nice stock tank containers for water storage that could easily be dug and placed into the ground. Coastal Farm Supply store in my area sell nice Freeland 150 gallon stock tanks that are perfect for this kind of thing. Then you can water plants, grass, trees, roses, shrubs, & what ever during spring, summer, and fall seasons using a pump. A lot of folks run waste to their washing machine!
In winter months you could get really creative and take another reefer’s recommendation and use a “Watts Premier Inc in Phoenix makes a kit that “converts any RO system to a zero waste unit”. It consists of a quiet pump, pressure switch, and solenoid valve that returns the ‘waste’ water to the hot water line.” He goes on to say that “Works great so far – 4 weeks!! About $135 at Home Depot.” this sounds very lucrative and easy to do…well for most I should say. Installing a small pump
And solenoid valve would be no biggie for many folks.
A container outside in your garden filled with water hyacinths are gorgeous, you can do water changes in these, like water lawn and plants, while you make a batch of RODI water for your reef tank.
I think the best suggestion is the Watts Premier Inc setup for no wasted water personally. (:
Oh! One more…Heck, you could even run the waste water line to your neighbors basement (: Just joking, I love my neighbor…on Sundays. (:
Take care- J-P, don’t fret over the waste water, you can make this work for you.
Respectfully,
B-
Mark, Great information but can you tell me the benefits of a Kold-Sterile unit as compared to RODI unit?
Can’t imagine why anyone would want to cause potential problems for themselves in what is essentially a very expensive hobby for the price of a decent family meal…
My RO/DI 4 stage (soon to be six) was fitted before the tank was… Not only used for the tank but also good for cleaning around the house… Especially the windows and polished stainless steel! 😀
Top advice Mark… But here’s the question… How many times have you flooded the garage? I’ll admit to two minor floods… Auto shut off high on my list… but like the RO/DI … I forget about it a lot… 😛
Would you install the RODI prior to a softner or after the water has been through the softner?
Thanks,
Mark–I live in a small condo. I have my BRS RO/RI unit next to my washer/dryer. A simple “Y” fitting on the cold water supply allows me to turn the unit on and off. The drain line runs next to my washing machine drain. I use a new 2-20 gallon brine tanks from the local water softener store to hold water. One tank has “pure” RO/DI the other is mixed salt water. The timer is a great tip, as an added level of safety I use the automatic shut off valve that BRS sells. I also use a long extension of poly tubing that I can run directly to my ATO source so I dont need to carry buckets of ATO water around the house. I just extend the RO/DI hose and I am all good to go. In the summer I extend the waste water line outside to water the patio garden!
Mark-Thanks for the great tips!
I have been using an ro unit sice I started my tanks, I was just wondering what benefits I was missing out on by not having the di? My TDS is at 0, but I do tend to have a slight phosphate issue form time to time.
great vid mark, I to was reluctant to go the RODI route, but after the initial setup and some good advise from a friend, I went and got myself a 4 stage RODI with pump for the feed.
so much better, my TDS before the unit is between 350/400 and that`s from the main supply that we also drink from,(and yes high in chloramines) as that is what they disinfect the water with in the UK. now my TDS is 0% and i make 2 25 litres of RO water and 2 for salt, stored in doors so no need to heat as they are at room temp all the time.(flat is at 21′ all year round) so have a chiller as well.
great vid mark keep them coming, always looking to improve and be a better marine keeper.
Hi Mark,
I noticed that you had to switch RO/DI units because your municipality treats water with chloramines. I called my water provider and they said that there are trace chloramines in the water. What model is your Bulk Reef Supply RODI unit? Is it the 5 stage plus kit? How do I know it can do chloramines?
Cheers!
Simon…here is my RODI unit
Stephanie…the DI stage will take the TDS down to 0. If you are getting 0 TDS after the RO stage, that is really good and in case the TDS does creep up, the DI stage would knock it back down to 0.
Mark… could you explain the ‘carbon rinse valve’ on your system… Its not something I’ve seen over in the UK so I’m wondering as regards the effectiveness and if its something I should be asking BRS about shipping internationally!
Cheers…
I can’t imagine why you cannot install an RO/DI unit. You could always put it in a shed. Or on the attic or something.
I really wonder how anybody can get an TDS of 7. I mean water should contain all kinds of minerals. Over here in the Netherlands, we got tap water which is (except for silicates) of better quality (inlands) then most bottled water. Still i got a tds of around 200 pre RO/DI. A TDS of 7 from the tap is nice for an aquarium. But not for humans.
I think if you want a tank which is around 300Liter you’ll really want some room somewhere to put the stuff. You need to make new saltwater, and add fresh water. If you can buy and store the containers you got the room to put the unit..
Matt…BRS’ chloramine specific unit (the one I have) has the rinse valve. The valve is there as the chloramine stage is a refillable cartridge so when new carbon is put in there, it needs to be rinsed…hence the valve.
Epicurus…surprisingly most viewers who write in with low TDS are in New York City! These are a lot of the same viewers that live in small apartments and don’t have a garage or storage area for a RODI unit
Update about the clients dream build soon? Lookin forward to it.
As a New Yorker it also hurts that we have to pay for water(those in private houses). Thanks for the drinking tip.(wouldn’t want the fish netting me out)..my Tds 0 but having my tank for so may years(8) I find that most of the phosphate issues occur due to evaporation in the winter when we star heating the house. Now I store RO DI water in my 40 gallon drum and refill my 20 gallon top off with it as well. What about the sterility of this new water. What additive do any of you use for make up water? I just been using B Ionic
What about the amount of waste to product ratio I hear it can be up to five gallons of tap to one gallon of RODI water is there a way to reduce the ratio?
@Kory yes it js possible, there’s a guy here in vegas who has a 3 gallon waste. He added extra filters … sounds crazy. I’m one of those that has 4-5 gallon waste but like many others I use it to wash clothes and having a baby u will definitely use a lot of water to wash clothes …
Hey, I just got to know that in usa. U have 110v 60 Hz and here in my country india, we have 220v 50Hz. today morning my aqualifter pump just burnt out. i had bought a converter from 220v to 110v but the Hz remains 50Hz. well i contacted premium aquatics from whome i bought them and they told me about it. i also asked about other products like RO/DI and they told me all elec. products are 110v 50Hz. 🙁 i was planning to buy neptune apex from them. have contacted Neptune guys and asked about it but no replies yet. i guess they are only make products for USA. 🙁
Kory…you can add another RO membrane to reduce the waste significantly.
kory.. the comment mark made about adding another RO membrane to the unit works, but they also work better when the pressure of the feed water is matched to the output of the RO membrane. cuts down on a lot of waste, most of the waste comes from the flush out after I have made all my RO water.