I am starting a 36 gal saltwater tank with live rock and sand, a Fluval MSF 204 filter and a sea clone prtein skimmer, the tank is still cycling, (this sunday 9/19/04) will be two week, when I set up the tank for the first time, I use tap water to mix the salt, I am not sure this is the right way to mix the water or not, a friend of mine told me that, not suppose to use tap water, suppose use purified water, and he told me to get a RO (reverse Osmosis) Unit to create purified water, I 've been doing some research at liveaquaria.com, the RO Unit cost $200 dollar, I was wondering can I use the Tap Water Filter instead, can any one please help me....
Question on RO Unit.
- Thread starter KellyYe
- Start date
do you mean the tap water filter available through liveaquaria.com via drsfosterandsmith.com?
if you do, that tap water filter is kind of expensive in the long run because depending on your tap water's mineral content, you may need to replace it often
an RO unit is the most cost effective solution in the long run--but its expensive as hell to start up, as you know
personally, i go to the supermarket and fill up 3 gallon water jugs at those outdoor water things--@ $.25 a gallon, i might add....but i also use tap water, so the purified water i buy dilutes whatever is in my tap water to an extent
if you do, that tap water filter is kind of expensive in the long run because depending on your tap water's mineral content, you may need to replace it often
an RO unit is the most cost effective solution in the long run--but its expensive as hell to start up, as you know
personally, i go to the supermarket and fill up 3 gallon water jugs at those outdoor water things--@ $.25 a gallon, i might add....but i also use tap water, so the purified water i buy dilutes whatever is in my tap water to an extent
Water change...
ok, thanks for the help, i went to my lfs today, the salesman told me that i have to get a Tap Water Filter, because NYC's water pipe is old and have a lot of mineral (i live in new york city), should i listen to him? or just continue use Tap water, by the way what kind of water do you guys use? and how do you guys change your water? do you use a container mix the salt with water, then measure the salinity and gravity of the water, if every thing is okay then put it in the tank or what? it's my first saltwater tank a lot of things that i still need to learn, so thanks for the halp
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ok, thanks for the help, i went to my lfs today, the salesman told me that i have to get a Tap Water Filter, because NYC's water pipe is old and have a lot of mineral (i live in new york city), should i listen to him? or just continue use Tap water, by the way what kind of water do you guys use? and how do you guys change your water? do you use a container mix the salt with water, then measure the salinity and gravity of the water, if every thing is okay then put it in the tank or what? it's my first saltwater tank a lot of things that i still need to learn, so thanks for the halp
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i would probably think an RO unit would be important if you have old pipes...i used to use RO but i got a water report and there is nothing in my water so i use tap...yes mix it in a bucket first b/c you want the salinity, temp, and ph to be correct before you add it to the tank...usually good to let it run with a powerhead for a couple hours at least, overnight is even better
there are a couple stickied posts at the top of this section which you may find very useful; there are recomendations for a couple really good books you should read
there are a couple stickied posts at the top of this section which you may find very useful; there are recomendations for a couple really good books you should read
If you live in New York you will not be wanting to use tapewater to mix up as saltwater - it's simply too rubbish. I use tapwater, but my local water quality is good enough too. You can likely test for high mineral content, high nitrates, phosphates and dissolved organics, and all of these wilcause you king size, and almost unsolvable algae problems.
You can
1. live with it
2. buy an RO
3. Buy salt water or RO from an aquarium store
4. RO form somewhere else.
Once you got the tank filled, and you're changing like a bucket every week or two you might find option 3 to your advantage.
If you can get a water report get it and have a look. Or take a sample of tapwater to the aquarum store and get them to test it for nitrate, copper and so on.....
You can
1. live with it
2. buy an RO
3. Buy salt water or RO from an aquarium store
4. RO form somewhere else.
Once you got the tank filled, and you're changing like a bucket every week or two you might find option 3 to your advantage.
If you can get a water report get it and have a look. Or take a sample of tapwater to the aquarum store and get them to test it for nitrate, copper and so on.....
how much money are you willing to spend, i had a queen skimmer that worked ok but it was noisy and difficult to set up but it wasnt too expensive, but i recently bought a Turboflotor 1000 multi by Aquamedic and it is great, 270$ though.... but i would say that if this is going to be a long term hobby it is well worth the investment
Brahm
Brahm
I wouldn't buy a turboflotor for that size of tank, or that sort of money. How much do you want to spend.
Prizm - cheap , better than a seaclone, noisy, requires frequent fiddling around
CPR BakPak. Much better, reputedly very quiet
Aqua C Remora - more efficient than BakPak, more noisy too
Deltec MCE 500 or 600 - Big on quality, and likely big on cost too.
Prizm - cheap , better than a seaclone, noisy, requires frequent fiddling around
CPR BakPak. Much better, reputedly very quiet
Aqua C Remora - more efficient than BakPak, more noisy too
Deltec MCE 500 or 600 - Big on quality, and likely big on cost too.